Barriers to Communication

Most people would agree that communication between two individuals should be simple. But it’s important to remember that there are differences between talking and communicating. When you communicate, you are successful in getting your point across to the person you are talking to.
John Adair (2009) has developed what he sees as the Key Ingredients for communication
Social Contact | The persons who we are communicating haveTo be in touch with one another |
Common Medium | Bothe parties to communication must sharea common language or means of communication |
Transmission | The message must be imparted clearly |
Understanding | The message has to be received properly, understood and interpreted |

When we talk, we tend to erect barriers that hinder our ability to communicate.   Seven of these types of barriers to effective communication have been identified

  1. PHYSICAL BARRIERS, are easy to spot – doors that are closed, walls that are erected, and distance between people all work against the goal of effective communication. Whilst most agree that people need their own personal areas in the workplace, setting up an office to remove physical barriers is the first step towards opening communication. Many professionals who work in industries that thrive on collaborative   communication , such as architecture, purposefully design their workspaces around an “ open office” plan. This layout eschews cubicles in favour of desks grouped around a central meeting space. While each individual has their own dedicated workspace, there are no visible barriers to prevent collaboration with their co workers. This encourages greater openness and creates closer working bonds

  2. PERCEPTUAL BARRIERS, in contrast are internal. If you go into a situation thinking that the person you are talking to isn’t going to understand or be interested in what you have to say you may end up subconsciously sabotaging your effort to make your...