Understanding the Five Basic Principles of Communication

     Principles are a basic generalization that are accepted as true and that can be used as a basis for reasoning or conduct (Miller, 2009). The following five basic principles discussed here serve as the foundational truths about the nature of communication, which help to guide our explanation and understanding of our communication experiences and learning. The entire book is full of basic principles of the different forms of communication, summarizing the theoretical explorations, as well as validating the scholars in the field.

     Many of these principles occur naturally in our interactions and behaviors, with little thought to them on a daily basis. However, the critical awareness of them would help you to understand your relationships better, become a better person, as well as a more responsive and effective communicator. This, ultimately, is one of the primary principles that define us and bring us inherent joy – the strength and depth of our interpersonal relationships.

Principles of Communication

Communication is a Process

     The word process, as it is used here, has two connected interpretations: one is that it represents a series of events, occurring one after the other or simultaneously, and two; it is a constantly changing series of actions that never cease. A good analogy would be the infinity symbol.

     Communication involves a series of activities that people engage in, knowingly or otherwise, that results in a form of meaning in the mind of one or more people. However, it is not something you can see or touch because it takes place inside of the communicators. In addition, it is a set of activities that is dynamic and does not have a beginning or an end; therefore, it cannot be considered as starting with somebody and ending with another. In the words of Berlo (1960), a process is something that is constantly moving and in which the elements interact with one another. Engleberg and Wynn (2011) define process as a set of constantly changing actions, elements, and functions that bring about a result. Here is an everyday example many of us can relate to.

     Example: How to Remove Chewing Gum From Hair

1. Prepare an ice sack.
   Place several cubes of ice in a plastic bag or thin cloth. Seal or hold it closed.
2. Apply ice pack to hair.Move the affected hair away from the scalp and press the ice against the gum for 15 to 30 minutes or until the gum freezes solid. Use a rubber glove or a dry washcloth to hold the ice compress if your hand becomes chilled.
3. Crack the frozen gum into pieces.
   With one hand, hold the stuck section of the hair between the gum clot and the scalp, and break the frozen gum into small pieces.
4. Remove the gum.
   Gently pull the frozen gum pieces from the hair using your other hand. If the warmth of your hand begins to melt the gum, refreeze and repeat until all the gum has been removed from the hair (Funk, 2000).

     Looking at it from an interpersonal communication perspective, communication is a series of actions that have no beginning or end, but that are constantly changing and influencing the participants one way or another. Imagine that you meet a new colleague at a new job for the first time and you have decided to share how you enjoy your job training. To begin, you extend a polite greeting with the other person; this you do to acknowledge that person and because it is the right thing to do. The receiver of your greetings, reciprocated by saying: “hello” or “how are you?”

     The effects are partly that you both feel valued because you greeted someone and the person responded in kind, thus affirming both of you. This is the give and take, or reciprocation process. The many other impacts we can only imagine, but many are the results of such a single act of communication, not to mention a complex form of exchange such as a conversation. The nature of the greeting and the reason for the greeting and, of course, the cultural training to greet people, did not start with either of you and did not even start with the parents or guardians who taught you this simple polite etiquette. We can go back as far as we can and we will still not get to the very beginning of this human activity.

     The interacting elements in the process of communication are varied as there are different and collective impacts that they have one on another. Yet these elements, their nature and their impacts on the participants are unique and, as such, cannot be duplicated. Seiler and Beal (2011) clarify this by claiming that the interrelationships among people, environments, skills, attitudes, status, experiences, and feelings all determine communication at any given point.

     We cannot pretend to capture the essence of communication, a multidimensional activity on paper, which is a two dimensional medium. Therefore, when models are used to represent communication activities, there is an assumption that we are freezing the process in time and space just as we do when we take the photographs of rivers or of the atmosphere. We are only taking a snapshot of a process that cannot be adequately represented by such drawing. Communication is likened to a river sometimes swiftly flowing and some other time hardly moving at all. But whether we participate or not in this process, the communication river continues to roll along (Insight Media, 2001).

Communication and Communication Process

Communication is a System

     A system has been described as a set of interrelating elements operating within a boundary and the functioning of all of the constituent elements is dependent, to the extent that when any of the elements changes, the change is systemic, affecting every element individually and the system as a whole. Such is the nature of communication with all of its operating and interdependent elements of sender, receiver, encoding, decoding, context, noise, feedback, channel, and background. Any change in any of these elements will influence the meaning being shared among the communicators and; any imperfection in the system would be as a result of imperfection in one or more of the interdependent variables. Communication effectiveness depends on the members of the system working and cooperating in tandem; consequently ineffective or miscommunication would be a result of malfunction in any of the constituent elements.

     The communication system can be likened to the functioning of the human body; when one part is defective, it affects all other parts as well. As we all know, when one has a head cold, our nose runs, our ears become plugged, perhaps we even have a sore throat. Notice the impact of the cold. We may become fatigued or unable to process clearly because of the effects of the cold. Therefore, in your effort to communicate effectively, you have to understand all of the functioning parts of the communication system and to put them into view, when explaining yourself to another person and, when you are trying to assign meaning to the messages of others. A good understanding of the communication system would make you a diagnostic expert that can bring remedy to dysfunctional communication systems.

Basics of Communication System

Communication is Both Interactional and Transactional

     While we understand that you constantly communicate with yourself, you also engage others in the process of communication. When you speak, another person listens and when you listen, another person speaks. This is the give-and-take exchange of meaning that is described as interactional. It suggests that we take turns in exchanging messages with one another when we engage them in the communication process. The interactional model still viewed speaking and listening as separate acts that did not overlap and that were not performed at the same time by the same person (DeVito, 2011). As scholars have now realized, the interactional model does not explain or adequately represent the nature of communication as it really occurs among the interacting people.

     The transactional view of communication takes a different look at the communication process and as (Watzlawick, Beavin, & Jackson, 1987; Barlund, 1970; Wilmot, 1987) note, in the transactional view each person is seen as both speaker and listener, as simultaneously communicating and receiving messages. This perspective also underscores the dynamic nature of communication in which all of the interacting elements change because of change in one or more of these elements. Consequently, when one person’s experience changes, it influences the meaning assigned to the communication episode in which the individual is interacting and thus leads to changes in the messages exchanged with receiver and the interpretations of the receiver. This creates a bandwagon effect whereby any little change in any of the elements in the system creates a domino effect that influences and changes the entire system. See “communication models” section to view how these different ideas are presented in diagrams in the following pages.

Communication Can Be Intentional or Unintentional

     Communication is an activity in which we may deliberately or unintentionally engage. Often you say or do something for a specific purpose, but others may perceive such differently and attribute a different purpose to it than intended by you, the speaker. Yes, communication has purpose, but not all of the intentions are calculated well in advance, just as the consequences cannot be foretold. There are messages you intentionally send that are so received; however, there are messages you intentionally send, but are not received as intended. This means that there are unintentional receivers of your message. Again, you may unintentionally send a message to an intentional receiver or to an unintentional receiver.

     When you write an e-mail to your colleagues about the “lack of managerial skills of your immediate boss” (this is an intentional message) and, instead of sending it to just your colleagues, you hit the “reply to all” button on your computer and the e-mail is sent to all of your colleagues and your boss (an unintended receiver). What do you imagine would be the consequence of this unintentional act and how can you deal with the situation? No doubt we have all experienced sending an erroneous email or text. The intent was clear, but the persons who received it may have been unintentional due to our human error (often of not reviewing a message or being too quick to ‘send’ the message).

     As you can see, intentionality is an important issue to keep in mind when communicating with people. Because of different mindsets, people misinterpret messages and sometimes send out unintended messages. However, unintended messages, either sent or received, are usually nonverbal, that is without the use of words. It may be your eyes that communicate something you are not aware of, or your mode of dressing that suggests a different meaning than you are aware of, you cannot control totally the meanings that others impose on the messages you send intentionally or unintentionally.

Communication Is Inevitable, Unrepeatable, and Irreversible

     Communication is inevitable. When something is described as inevitable, it means that its occurrence is not controllable by the action or inaction, in our case, of those who engage in the act of communication. The act of sending and receiving messages is often not controlled by the actors. When you show up for an appointment, you’re communicating; when you show up late for the appointment, you’re sending another message; when you don’t show up for the appointment at all, you are yet sending another message. When you speak, you communicate; when you don’t speak, you communicate. Your nonverbal, messages are not discrete, they are continuous, and as such, you’re always communicating. Now, you can see why Watzlawick (1978) claims that we cannot not communicate, or that we cannot not influence the person with whom we communicate.

     The elements in the communication system are always changing and, as such, we cannot repeat our communication with the exact choices of symbols and with the exact impact on the receiver, because time, situation, mindsets of the communicators would have influenced the nature of the exchange, that the meaning of the exchange would have changed. The same goes with the experience of drawing a glass of water from a running river. Certainly, you can physically dip your glass in the water twice, but each time you draw from a different pool of water. The pool of water you draw from the first time would be down the stream by the time you dip in your cup the second time. Though the water in the two different glasses may look the same, they are also different – such is the nature of communication as an unrepeatable phenomenon. It is amazing how the contexts of communication influence communicative meaning sometimes with delicate subtlety and sometimes dramatically. As it is often stated, “you can’t go home again.” This expression also explains the dynamic nature of communication because, yet you can go home physically, but with the passage of time, you will change and your perceptions of home would not be the same as before. As DeVito (2011) explains, you can never repeat meeting someone for the first time, comforting a grieving friend, leading a small group for the first time, or giving a public speech.

     When something is described as irreversible, it suggests that that thing cannot be taken back or erased or recalled. Communication is irreversible because of its nature of being received and interpreted by the receiver. Once your message is sent, the impact is inevitable. One way or the other the receiver will have a reaction of sort to the message. What is done, therefore, cannot be undone. Though there may be attempts to reduce the impact or change the meaning in order to influence the interpretation of the message, but the choice is no longer that of the sender, but of the receiver. Imagine that in a conversation with a friend he tells you that you’re an arrogant person, but you don’t believe you are. Seeing the frown on your face, your friend may try to recall his message to you by trying to say he did not mean it. Now the name-calling is out there and it has started a chain reaction in you, both physically and mentally, and there is no amount of retraction and mending that can be done because the effect is ongoing and cannot be erased. So what is said cannot be unsaid and you cannot, not influence another person, even when you profusely apologize. There is no preventing you from being self-conscious about the label that your friend has given you even when time has progressed and should have removed the impact of that message.

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