INTRODUCTION TO COMMUNICATION
MEANING AND ROLE OF COMMUNICAT ION
The word communication is use d to mean speaking or wr iting or sending a message to another person.
Communication is really much more than that. It involves ensuring that your message reaches the target
audience and that the receiver understands and responds to t he message appropriately. Communica tion is an
important aspect of behaviour; human commu nication is affected by all factors that influence human behaviour.
GENERAL DEFINITION OF COMMUNICA TION
Communication comes from the Latin word communicare, which means “to make common” or “to share. ”
Communication is defined as the pr ocess of using messages to generate meaning (Judy Pearson, 2008).
Communication is c onsidered a process because it is an activity, an exchange, or a set of behaviours—not an
unchanging product. It is an activity in which you participate. David Berlo (1960), a pioneer in the field of
communication, probably provided the clearest statement about communication as a process: “If we accept the
concept of process, we view events and relati onships as dynamic, on-going, ever changing, continuous. When
we label something as a process, we also mean that it does not have a beginning, an end, a fixed sequence of
events. It is not static, at rest. It is moving. The ingredients within a process interact; each affects all the others.
Working definition
Communication is the sum of all the things one person does when he wants to create understanding in the mind
of another. It involves a systematic and continuous process of telling, listening and understanding. (Louis A
Allen)
Communication can be defined as the process through which two or more persons come to exchange ideas and
understanding among themselves.
The word Communication describes the process of conveying messages (facts, ideas, attitudes and opinions)
from one person to another, so that they are un derstood. (M.W. Cumming)
Communication is the process whereby speech, signs or actions transmit informatio n from one person to
another. This definition is concise and definitive but doesn‘t include all the aspects of communication.
Communication i s the process of transmitting informati on and meaning from one individual or organisation to
another by means of mutually understandable symbols. The crucial element is meaning. Communication has as
its central objective the transmission of meaning. The process of communication is successful only when the
receiver understands a n idea as the sender intended it. Both parties must agree not only on the information
transmitted but also on the meaning of that information.
In order to transfer an idea, we must use symbols (words, signs, pict ures, sounds) which stand for the idea. The
symbols must be understood by the person or persons with whom we intend t o communicate. Both must assign
the same meaning to the symbols used; otherwise, there is miscommunication.
ROLE/ PURPOSE OF COMMUNICATION IN AN ORGANISATION
1. Managing the human resource. Communication is the tool with which we exercise influence on others, bring
about changes in the attitudes and views of our associates, motivate them and establish and maintain relations
with them. The primary element in the skills of management is competence in communica tion.
2. Communication is central to the success of e verything that we do in an organisations (objectives); our family,
school/college, office, hobby group, communit y group, our city/town are the organisations in which we live and
