Components of communication system

Communication in fact is necessary in the world as the life itself not only for
human beings but also for animals and plants. Communication is the name
we give to the countless ways of keeping is relationship with whatever we are
concerned in our day to day life. It means, communication is natural to all living
creatures. It can be established even between human and nonhuman beings in
case they live together. Pet animals for example, also communicate with their
human companions. Methods of communication may however, differ from
individual to individual, groups to groups or community to community. A civilized
group cans posse’s better communication ability. It is central to everything that
we perform in our day to day life. In order to achieve goals effectively, it is
necessary to adopt the process of effective communication. An organization can
he held together only if there is proper communication among its members. Each
person has different goals and they may be achieved through cooperative,
coordinate efforts which needs proper communication. Hence, without
communication no organization can properly function. It is a tool which can
exercise influence on others. Communication motivates them to establish and
keep the relations with them. It means that there can be no society without
communication.
For transferring the thoughts and ideas certain means and methods are required
to be adapted. For this, we use the following means which stands for the ideas:
1. Symbols 2. Signs 3. Pictures 4. Sounds 5. Words
As we know, communication is the process by which information is passed
on from one individual to another individual from one organization to another
organization and so forth. An individual, who wished to pass on certain
information, puts his thoughts either into words or other symbols which can be
understood by the persons to whom he wants to communicate. The process of
communication begins with an emergence of thought or idea in one’s mind. Mere
emergence of thought or idea does not start the process of communication. The
individual concerned must intend to communicate it to somebody. This intention
to convey idea or
thoughts begins the process of communication. In a broad sense, the
communication process takes place in the following general form
The Sender: A person who intends to convey or communicate his thoughts
or ideas is called as a sender. He has to translate this message in such a
language which is known or understood by the Receiver. The effect of his
message not only depends on the language he uses but also upon his status and
reputation. Status relates to authority, knowledge and prestige while reputation
relates to the kind of person he is known to be i.e. whether he is cooperative or
noncooperative (hostile). For example, a message from a popular boss who is
liked will be appreciated or believed by the subordinates much more than the one
receives from a boss who is not in subordinates very good esteem.
Encoding: The method which initiates the message is called encoding a
thought. The sender puts his thoughts in certain form of logical and coded
message. It may be either oral or written communication. It can be stated in a
specific form may be in letter, telegram, verbal talk, (gestures) or some other
form of expression. As the sender intends to know the effect of his message, he
considers various factors such as the receiver’s knowledge about the subject
matter, his working conditions, his job responsibilities and other background
information. There are four aspects which are important for encoding the
message.
1. The sender’s skill of encoding the message;
2. His knowledge as well as the sociocultural system of which he is a part;
3. Success in sending the message depends upon the sender’s skill about
writing speaking, reading, listening and reasoning.
4. The attitude of the sender substantially influences the receiver.
Dispatch and Reception: A message is the actual physical product at the
encoding source. When one speaks, writes or paints a picture is considered as a
message. Gestures, movements of arms facial expressions etc. are also taken
as messages. It is affected by the code or a group of symbols used to transfer
meaning. The meaning of what is to be communicated itself and the decision that
the sender makes in choosing, arranging and selecting both contents and codes,
constitutes a message.
For transmitting the message, some kind of medium or chemical is essential.
It can be sent directly or through a proper channel. This process involves certain
media. It may be a face to face message, a conversation or a written or typed
matter or simply some sort of gestures. The channel bridges the gap between the
sources and the receiver. In case of face to face communication, a talk over the
telephone or a broadcast radio or telecast on Television, reception almost
synchronizes with the dispatch of the message. In other forms of communication,
it depends upon the efficiency of the medium used. There may be some time
interval between dispatch and actual reception of the message. A letter may take
few days to reach the destination while a telegram may reach within a few hours,
and an Email in a few seconds.
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The Receiver: Just as the sender has his own frame of references, so does
the receiver. What the receiver has to select to listen and give attention to,
depends upon his own opinions, attitude and relationship with the sender. It also
depends on the type of message sent, the channel employed, the manner of his
reception and the situation under which it is received. The frame of the mind of
the Receiver also carries equal importance in the process of interpretation or
decoding of the message as that of the sender in encoding.
Decoding of message: The work of interpretation is concerned with
receiver of the message. He accepts the message and tries to find out its exact
meaning by analyzing the sender, his intent his role, knowledge, experience and
authority. Receiver of the message tries to translate the symbols, ideas into a
form that can be understood by him. The process of translation and interpretation
of the signals is called decoding. The process of decoding requires that the
receiver must possess skill in reading or listening and must also be able to apply
reason. Receiver’s attitude and cultural background can distort the message. In
case, the encoding is efficient and the receiver is conversant with those codes
and symbols, his perception can be good. There can be a fairly accurate
reproduction of the message. When the message is properly decoded by the
receiver, he may immediately respond to it. This response exists in his mind in
the form of ideas or emotions.
Feedback : Feed back is the turn of message or responses from the
receiver to sender of the message. It determines whether understanding is
achieved or not. When the message reaches the state of decoding, the process
of understanding starts. The sender expects that the receiver shows some
response or reaction so that he can take some action or reply or behave in a
particular way as a result of the responses he receives. The sender of the
message needs to know whether the receiver responds in the desired way or not.
He can find this out only through the feedback he gets from the receiver. Thus,
feedback is the knowledge of the result of communication, which can be useful
for undertaking or modifying future communication.
(Diagram)
In the process of face to face communication, there is an immediate and
continuous feedback. The facial expressions of the listener can tell the speaker,
whether the message is understood, accepted, rejected, liked or not liked by the
receiver. The speaker can further modify his message according to the situation
needs and understanding of the listener, so as to make it more acceptable to the
listener. It is possible for the speaker to ask certain questions to find out whether
the message is fully understood or not by the listener. In certain cases, listener
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can also ask questions for better understanding and clarification of the message
he receives.