Barriers of Communication

ationBarriers of Communication

Barriers to effective human communication
Barriers to effective communication can retard or distort the message and intention of the message being conveyed which may result in failure of the communication process or an effect that is undesirable. These include filtering, selective perception, information overload, emotions, language, silence, communication apprehension, gender differences and political correctness
This also includes a lack of expressing "knowledge-appropriate" communication, which occurs when a person uses ambiguous or complex legal words, medical jargon, or descriptions of a situation or environment that is not understood by the recipient.
Physical barriers
Physical barriers are often due to the nature of the environment. An example of this is the natural barrier which exists if staff are located in different buildings or on different sites. Likewise, poor or outdated equipment, particularly the failure of management to introduce new technology, may also cause problems. Staff shortages are another factor which frequently causes communication difficulties for an organization. While distractions like background noise, poor lighting or an environment which is too hot or cold can all affect people's morale and concentration, which in turn interfere with effective communication.
System design
System design faults refer to problems with the structures or systems in place in an organization. Examples might include an organizational structure which is unclear and therefore makes it confusing to know who to communicate with. Other examples could be inefficient or inappropriate information systems, a lack of supervision or training, and a lack of clarity in roles and responsibilities which can lead to staff being uncertain about what is expected of them.
Attitudinal barriers
Attitudinal barriers come about as a result of problems with staff in an organization. These may be brought about, for example, by such factors as poor management, lack of consultation with employees, personality conflicts which can result in people delaying or refusing to communicate, the personal attitudes of individual employees which may be due to lack of motivation or dissatisfaction at work, brought about by insufficient training to enable them to carry out particular tasks, or just resistance to change due to entrenched attitudes and ideas.
Ambiguity of words/phrases
Words sounding the same but having different meaning can convey a different meaning altogether. Hence the communicator must ensure that the receiver receives the same meaning. It is better if such words are avoided by using alternatives whenever possible.
Individual linguistic ability
The use of jargon, difficult or inappropriate words in communication can prevent the recipients from understanding the message. Poorly explained or misunderstood messages can also result in confusion. However, research in communication has shown that confusion can lend legitimacy to research when persuasion fails.
Physiological barriers
These may result from individuals' personal discomfort, caused—for example—by ill health, poor eyesight or hearing difficulties.

Author: Jim Riley Last updated: Sunday 23 September, 2012

Aiming to achieve effective communication is one thing – actually doing it is another. There are several barriers to communication, including:

Barrier | Explanation | Language | The communication message might not use vocabulary that is understood by the receiver – e.g. too much use of technical or financial jargon | Noise | Various things stop a message from getting through or being heard – e.g. poor connection, background noise, distractions, too many people speaking | Overload | Too much information can cause problems e.g. slow down decision making | Emotion | The relationship between the sender and receiver of communication might adversely affect the message – which could be ignored or misinterpreted | Gaps | Too many intermediaries (e.g. too many layers in hierarchy through which message has to be passed) might prevent or distort the message | Inconsistency | If people receive conflicting or inconsistent messages, then they may ignore or block them |