Communication: Encyclopedia - Communication

Communication

Communication is the process of exchanging information, usually via a common protocol. "Communication studies" is the academic discipline focused on communication forms, processes and meanings, including speech, interpersonal and organizational communication. "Mass communication" is a more specialized academic discipline focused on the institutions, practice and effects of journalism, broadcasting, advertising, public relations and related mediated communication directed at a large, undifferentiated or segmented audience.

Communication - Forms and components of human communication

Humans communicate in order to share knowledge and experiences, give or receive orders, or cooperate. Common forms of human communication include sign language, speaking, writing, gestures, and broadcasting. Communication can be interactive, transactive, intentional, or unintentional; it can also be verbal or nonverbal. Communication varies considerably in form and style when considering scale. Internal communication, within oneself, is intrapersonal while communication between two individuals is interpersonal. At larger scales of communication both the system of communication and media of communication change. Small group communication takes place in settings of between three and 12 individuals creating a different set of interactions than large groups such as organizational communication in settings like companies or communities. At the largest scales mass communication describes communication to huge numbers of individuals through mass media. Communication also has a time component, being either synchronous or asynchronous. There are a number of theories of communication that attempt to explain human communication. However, various theories relating to human communication have the same core philosophy. Communication follows a five-step process which begins with the creation of a message and then sending it to another individual, organization or a group of people. This message is received and then interpreted. Finally this message is responded to, which completes the process of communication.

Communication - Communication technology

In telecommunications, the first transatlantic two-way radio broadcast occurred on July 25, 1920.

As the technology evolved, communication protocol also had to evolve; for example, Thomas Edison had to discover that hello was the least ambiguous greeting by voice over a distance; previous greetings such as hail tended to be lost or garbled in the transmission.

As regards human communication these diverse fields can be divided into those which cultivate a thoughtful exchange between a small number of people (debate, talk radio, e-mail, personal letters) on the one hand; and those which disseminate broadly a simple message (Public relations, television, cinema).

Our indebtedness to the Ancient Romans in the field of communication does not end with the Latin root "communicare". They devised what might be described as the first real mail or postal system in order to centralize control of the empire from Rome. This allowed Rome to gather knowledge about events in its many widespread provinces.

As the Romans well knew, communication is as much about taking in towards the centre as it is about putting out towards the extremes.

In virtual management an important issue is computer-mediated communication.

The view people take toward communication is changing, as new technologies change the way they communicate and organize. In fact, it is the changing technology of communication that tends to make the most frequent and widespread changes in a society - take for example the rise of web cam chat and other network-based visual communications between distant parties. The latest trend in communication, decentralized personal networking, is termed smartmobbing.

Communication - Communication barriers

Anxiety associated with communication is known as communication apprehension. Such anxiety tends to be influenced by one's self-concept. Besides apprehension, communication can be impaired via bypassing, indiscrimination, and polarization. Failing to share a common language is also an important barrier in many parts of the world.

Apart from that there may be following barriers in communication

1. Language
2. Time lag
3. Politics

Communication - Examples of communication

• jungle drums
• smoke signals
• Non Verbal Acts: hand signals and Body Language
• semaphores (use of devices to increase the distance "hand" signals can be seen from by increasing the size of the movable object)
• vocalization
• territorial marking (animals such as dogs - stay away from my territory)
• Pheromones communicate (amongst other things) "I'm ready to mate" - well known example is moths where the pheromones are put into traps to attract them
• Gold-plated disk (sent on Voyager 1 into interstellar space)
• writing
• telecommunications - use of technology to aid and enhance distance communications
  • Digital telecommunications
    • encoding and decoding
    • compression and encryption (as they relate to enhancing or specifying communications) for example the use of encryption to turn a one to many into a one to one communication.
    • Digital Transmission Media including telegraphy and computer network
  • analog telecommunications
    • telephone
    • radio
    • TV
    • Photography
    • Art (including Theatre Arts)

See also

• Knowledge visualization
• Communication basic topics

• Communications satellite
• Computer network
• Diffusion of innovations
• Ethernet
• Global telephone network - also known as the Public Switched Telephone Network PSTN
• Information theory
• Internet
• Journalism
• Linguistics
• Mail
• Mass media
• Media studies
• Neuro-linguistic programming
• Radioteletype
• Rhetorical criticism
• Semaphore
• Social software
• Telegraphy
• Telephony
• Toastmasters International
• Vocalization
• Surveillance
• Traffic analysis

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Communication", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki