Introduction To Human

Communication
By
Kyle Gaytan
Julio Molina
Yesica Ortega
Sandra Ortiz
Alexis Reyes

Overview

What is communication?
The importance of communication
The variety of careers in communication
Primary components of communication
Human Communication in Society
Communication Ethics

What Is Human Communication?

According to the chapter Introduction to Human Communication as complex and

having a variety of definitions. However, the chapter does gives its own definition.
Transactional process in which people generate meaning through the exchange of
verbal and nonverbal messages in specific context, influenced by individual and
societal forces and embedded in culture

The Importance of communication

Delivers an understanding on the exchange of a message to create meaning.

Increases an understanding of how humancommunication and the way it helps
individuals improve their abilities in a wide variety of context.
Some might believe that communication is just common sense, however, it is a skill
that takes practice in order to get better.
Develops professional and personal relationships. In addition, learn ways to remove
dissatisfying relationship

Careers In Communication

There are a huge variety of careers that communication falls under.

For example: Advertising, electronic media/ radio-television/broadcasting, business
and law. (More examples that are more in depth in the handout.)

Components of Communication
There are seven basic components of communication that we must consider when
planning an interaction: message creation, meaning creation, setting, participants,
channels, noise and feedback.
These components are extremely important because they give you an idea of how the
communication will unfold.

Components
1)

Message Creation: The creation of a message is important because its the beginning
of a conversation among two or more people and helps the participants to keep
going. It begins with encoding, this refers to the process of taking ideas and
converting them into messages, after the message has been delivered and received
the listener decodes the message, which means they give an interpretation to what
they have received.

Components
2) Meaning Creation: The goal of communication is to express something either
through a symbol or spoken words and allow the other person to give it a meaning.
Even if the people involved hear the same message each one of them can understand
it differently. Each message delivers two types of meaning: content meaning and
relationship meaning.
Content meaning refers to the meaning of the message either the definition you would
find in the dictionary or the meaning associated with the emotions triggered by the
message.
Relationship meaning describes what the message conveys about the relationship
between the parties.

Components

3) Setting: The location, environmental

condition, time of day or day of the
week, and the proximity of the
communicators play an important part
in communication.

4) Participants: the number of participants, as well as their characteristics,

influences how the interaction unfolds. The more characteristics the participants
share the easier they will find it to communicate. Also the type of relationship
the communicators share can affect their communication.

Components
5) Channels: The channels are the
means through which a message is
transmitted.
Some of the channels used back in the
day were face-to-face, letters, later on
telephone calls, radio and TV were
added to the list of channels.
Now we have many channels more such
as, instant messaging, text messages,
email and videophones.

6) Noise: Refers to any stimulus that can interfere with, or degrade, the quality
of a message.

Examples of noise: loud music or voices, air conditioner, bizarre dress or

hairstyles. Noise can come from internal stimuli such as hunger, or sleepiness.

Components

7) Feedback: The response to the

message you have received is called
feedback. This allows the sender of the
message to know if the message was
received and how the message was
interpreted.

An Early Linear Model of

Communication
Noise

Sender
(Informati
on
Source)

Transmitte
r

MESSAGE

Channel

Method of
Reception

Receiver
(Destination
)

Communication is Transactional

Each communicator is a sender and a receiver at the same time, even if the messages
are sent only nonverbally
Meaning is created as people communicate together
Communication is an ongoing process
Previous communication events and relationships influence the meaning of
communication

Communication is Transactional
Noise
Field of
Experience

Field of
Experience

MESSAGE

Sender/
Receiver

Meaning

Channel

MESSAGE

Sender/
Receiver

Communication is Influenced By

Individual forces
These include your demographic
characteristics such as age, race, ethnicity,
nationality, gender/sex, sexual orientation,
regional identity, and socioeconomic class,
as well as such factors as personality and
cognitive and physical ability.
Societal forces
The values attributed to individual characteristics such as age, sexual orientation, and
sex also come from larger societal forces whether communicated to us through
media, by our friends and family, or by organizations such as schools religious
institutions, or clubs.

Communication is Influenced By
Continued .

Culture
Culture refers to the learned patterns of
perceptions, values, and behaviors that a
group of people shares. It is dynamic and
diverse. Participants bring their beliefs,
values, norms, and attitudes to each
interaction, and the cultures to which they
belong.

Context
It includes the setting in which an interaction occurs, but also which and how many
participants are present as well as the specific occasion during the interaction.

The Human Communication in Society Model

Culture

CONTEX
T
Noise

Culture

Relationship

Relationship

Field of
Experience

Field of
Experience

Social
Individual
Forces Forces

MESSAGE
Sender/
Receive
r

Culture

Meaning

Channel

MESSAGE

Individual Social
Forces
Forces

Sender/
Receive
r

Culture

Communication Ethics

What is Communication Ethics? Ethics refers to standards of what is right and wrong,
good and bad. Communication Ethics describes the standards of right and wrong that
one applies to messages that are sent and received.

Why are Communication Ethics so

important?

Communication Ethics are important because they sustain professional success.

Communication ethics are vital to personal relationships as well. For example
truthfulness such as trust play a fundamental role in ethical communication. People
expect messages to be truthful and messages have consequences.

Developing Communication Ethics

If you develop your own set of communication ethics, you will be better prepared to
face these difficult choices. Communications ethics can be concern on how absolute or
relative your ethical standards will be.

Ethics of Language Use

Another important ethical issue related to message creation centers on the types of
language we use. For example the use of racial and ethnic slurs and sexist and
homophobic reference can be consider unethical language.

Conclusion