communication and its type.

What is Communication?

Communication is a process that involves sending and receiving of messages through a verbal and non-verbal method. The sender sends a message, the receiver receives a message and sends it back with the feedback to the sender again.

The methods of communication involve oral and speech communication, written and graphical representations. Additionally, it includes the cultural sphere, a tool utilized to communicate, location, etc. Though it looks simple, communication is generally a very complicated subject.

In other words, communication is a two-way means of communicating information in the form of thoughts, opinions, and ideas between two or more individuals with the purpose of building an understanding.

Types of Communication

The four main categories of communication are

Verbal – It is a method that uses speech in the form of speaking to convey a message or information. It is the most popular and effective mode of communication, usually practiced during video conferences, phone calls, presentations, one-on-one conversations, and meetings. It supports both nonverbal and written communication.

Nonverbal – It is basically a practice of gestures, facial expressions, and body language to send information. It can be implemented intentionally and unintentionally when communicating. For instance, a person can smile unintentionally when they hear an interesting piece of information or a pleasant idea.

Written – It is all about typing, printing symbols, numbers, letters, and writing to send a piece of information. Sometimes used to record information for evidence or reference purpose. In general, the written style of communication is used in books, blogs, pamphlets, memos, and letters to share and spread information. In the workplace, e-mail is a common example of written communication.

Visual – It uses art, photographs, sketches, graphs, charts, and drawings, to pass on the information. It is used especially during presentations to present to give a visual effect and support written or verbal communication.

Communication Process

The communication is a process that starts with the development of thoughts by a sender who conveys the message using a various channel to the receiver, who then sends him a message as feedback. There are seven main components of the communication process:

Sender – Here, the sender conceptualizes the idea or the conversation he wants to convey it to the recipient.
Encoding – Now the sender starts the encoding process where he utilizes words or non-verbal means to translate the thought into a message.
Message – After encoding, the sender receives the message that he wants to send.
Communication Channel – The sender then decides through which medium or channel he/she wants to send the message to the recipient. They must choose the channel to have an effective and correct interpretation of a message to the recipient.
Receiver – The receiver receives the message and tries to comprehend in the best possible way.
Decoding – In this step, the receiver translates the sender’s information and tries to perceive it most suitably.
Feedback – It is the last step of the communication process that assures the recipient, has received the information and understood correctly as the sender designed it.