MODULE 1-2

COMMUNICATION PROCESSES, PRINCIPLES, AND ETHICS

I. INTRODUCTION
At this stage of your lives, you have definitely observed and experienced that having effective communication
in English is important for success. You have witnessed how the better communicators in your group or class
have stood out not only as persons but as students. How have they become effective communicators?

All of you can become better communicators like them if you just try harder. Among other things, you can start
by getting a better picture of what communication is and how it works- absorbing principles, learning concepts,
and applying them in practical situations inside the classroom and in real life as members of the community.

II. OBJECTIVES. Specifically, after working on this module, you should be able to do the following:
1. Describe the nature, elements, and functions of verbal and non-verbal communication in various and
multicultural contexts;
2. Name and interpret the principles of communication; and
3. Discuss the ethical issues in communication

III. PRELIMINARY ACTIVITIES

How do you understand the quote above? How do you understand the second clause saying 80% lies
on how you feel about the 20% of what you know?

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IV. LESSON PROPER

WHAT IS COMMUNICATION?

Communication is the art and process of creating and sharing ideas. Effective communication depends on the
richness of those ideas.

Communication may be classified according to:

(1) communication mode
(2) context
(3) purpose and style

Elements of Communication Process

1. Source
2. Encoding
3. Message
4. Channel
5. Decoding
6. Destination / Receiver
7. Feedback

1. Source
The communication process begins with the sender, who is also called the communicator or source. The
sender has some kind of information — a command, request, question, or idea — that he or she wants to
present to others. For that message to be received, the sender must first encode the message in a form that
can be understood, such as by the use of a common language or industry jargon, and then transmit it.

2. Encoding
This represents the conversion of subject matter in certain symbols. Here, things get complicated, because
most people use their own definition for certain emotions or ideas. The way they put these in sentences offers
a view over their type of personality.

3. The Message
The message or content is the information that the sender wants to relay to the receiver. Additional subtext
can be conveyed through body language and tone of voice. Put all three elements together — sender, receiver,
and message — and you have the communication process at its most basic.

4. Channel/Medium
Also called the channel, the medium is the means by which a message is transmitted. Text messages, for
example, are transmitted through the medium of cell phones.

5. Decoding
The receiver has to extract the meaning from the symbols sent by the sender and understand completely what
he needs.

6. Destination / Receiver
 The person to whom a message is directed is called the receiver or the interpreter. To comprehend the
information from the sender, the receiver must first be able to receive the sender's information and then
decode or interpret it.

7. Feedback
The communication process reaches its final point when the message has been successfully transmitted,
received, and understood. The receiver, in turn, responds to the sender, indicating comprehension. Feedback
may be direct, such as a written or verbal response, or it may take the form of an act or deed in response
(indirect).

COMMUNICATION MODELS

1. Aristotle’s Communication Model

Speaker Speech Audience

2. Laswell’s Communication Model

Who Says what To whom

In which channel With what effect

Medium Effect
Communicator Message Receiver

3. Shannon-Weaver’s Communication Model

4. Berlo’s Communication Model

Encodes Decodes

Source Message Channel Receiver

Communication Content Hearing Communication

Skills Elements Seeing Skills
Attitudes Treatment Touching Attitudes
Knowledge Structure Knowledge
Smelling
Social System Code Social System
Culture
Tasting
Culture
GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

1. Know your purpose in communicating.

2. Know your audience.
3. Know your topic.
4. Adjust your speech or writing to the context of the situation.
5. Work on the feedback given to you.

PRINCIPLES OF EFFECTIVE ORAL COMMUNICATION

1. Be clear with your purpose. You should know by heart your objective in communicating.
2. Be complete with the message you deliver. Make sure that your claims are supported by facts and essential
information.
3. Be concise. You do not need to be verbose or wordy with your statements. Brevity in speech is a must.
4. Be natural with your delivery. Punctuate important words with the appropriate gestures and movements. Exude
a certain degree of confidence even if you do not feel confident enough.
5. Be specific and timely with your feedback. Inputs are most helpful when provided on time.

PRINCIPLES OF EFFECTIVE WRITTEN COMMUNICATION: THE 7Cs

1. Be clear. Be clear with your message. Always be guided by your purpose in communicating.
2. Be concise. Always stick to the point and do not beat or run around the bush. Be brief by focusing on your main
point.
3. Be concrete. Support your claims with enough facts. Your readers will easily know if you are bluffing or deceiving
them because there is nothing to substantiate your claims.
4. Be correct. It is important that you observe grammatical correctness in your writing. Always have time to revise
and edit your work. Even simple spelling errors may easily distract your readers.
5. Be coherent. Your writing becomes coherent only when you convey a logical message. The ideas should be
connected to each other and related to the topic. Make sure that you observe a sound structure that will
present a smooth flow of your ideas. Use transitional or cohesive devices so that the ideas cohere with one
another.
6. Be complete. Include all necessary and relevant information so that the audience will not be left wanting of any
information. Always place yourself in the shoes of the audience, who is always interested to receive new
information.
7. Be courteous. The tone of your writing should be friendly. Avoid any overtone/undertone or insinuation to
eliminate confusion and misinterpretation.

ETHICS OF COMMUNICATION

Deirdre D. Johnston (1994) pointed out ten ethics in communication that you should bear in mind to avoid being
labeled “unethical” (as cited in Chase & Shamo, 2013, pp. 140-141).

1. Mutuality. Pay attention to the needs of others, as well as yours.

2. Individual dignity. Do not cause another person embarrassment or a loss of dignity.
3. Accuracy. Ensure that others have accurate information. Tell them everything they have a right and need to
know, not just what is true.
4. Access to information. Never bolster the impact of your communication by preventing people from
communicating with one another or by hindering access to the supporting information.
5. Accountability. Be responsible and accountable for the consequences of your relationships and communication.
6. Audience. As audience or receiver of the information, you also have ethical responsibilities. A good rule of
thumb is the “200% rule” where both the sender and the receiver have full 100% responsibility to ensure that
the message is understood, and that ethics are followed. This is a 100/100 rule, not a 50/50 rule.
7. Relative truth. As either sender or receiver of information, remember that your own point of view may not be
shared by others and that your conclusions are relative to your perspective, so allow others to respectfully
disagree or see it differently.
8. Ends vs means. Be sure that the end goal of your communication and the means of getting to that end are both
ethical although no rule can be applied without reservation to any situation.
9. Use of power. In situations where you have more power than others, you also have more responsibility for the
outcome.
10. Rights vs responsibilities. Balance your rights against your responsibilities even if you live in a wonderful society
where your rights are protected by law; not everything you have a right to do is ethical.

V. PRACTICE EXERCISES

The ethics of communication, obviously, are fundamental to effective communication, below are different
communication quotes, specify which of the ethics is relevant to you. Explain.

1. To effectively communicate, we must realize that we are all different in the way we perceive the world and use
this understanding as a guide to our communication with others.
Tony Robbins

2. In many ways, effective communication begins with mutual respect, communication that inspires, encourages
others to do their best.
Zig Ziglar

3. The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.
George Bernard Shaw

4. The single most important lesson of effective communication is this: Focus on clarity. Concentrate on precisions.
Don’t worry about constructing beautiful sentences. Beauty comes from meaning, not language. Accuracy is the
most effective style of all.
David Gerrold

5. The way we communicate with others and with ourselves ultimately determines the quality of our lives.
Tony Robbins

6. You can have brilliant ideas, but if you can't get them across, your ideas won't get you anywhere.
Lee Iacocca

7. Trust is the glue of life. It's the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It's the foundational
principle that holds all relationships.
Stephen Covey
8. Do not say a little in many words but a great deal in a few.
Pythagoras

9. The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn't said.

Peter Drucker

10. Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.
Mother Teresa

VI. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

 "Aristotle’s Model of Communication," in Businesstopia, January 6, 2018,
[Link]
 "Berlo’s SMCR Model of Communication," in Businesstopia, January 6, 2018,
[Link]
 Mulder, P. (2018). Lasswell Communication Model. Retrieved [insert date] from ToolsHero:
[Link]
 Shannon, C. E. & Warren Weaver. (1963). The Mathematical Theory of Communication. Illinois: University
of Illinois Press. "Shannon and Weaver Model Of Communication," in Businesstopia, January 6, 2018,
[Link]
 How miscommunication happens (and how to avoid it) - Katherine Hampsten
[Link]
[Link]

VII. ASSESSMENT
 To be given in a separate worksheet

VIII. REFERENCES
 Madrunio, M. & Martin, I. (2018). Purposive communication. 839 EDSA, South Triangle, Quezon City: C &E
Publishing, Inc.
 Padilla, M., Dagdag, L., & Roxas, F. Communicate & connect. Malabon City: Mutya Publishing House.
 Lim, J.M., Hamada, I., & Alata, E.J (2019). A Course Module for Purposive Communication. 856 Nicanor
Reyes, Sr. St., Sampaloc, Manila: Rex Book Store, Inc.
 [Link]
 [Link]
process