This document discusses various theories and models of communication. It begins by defining communication and listing its core elements. It then examines several linear models of communication, including Aristotle's model, Laswell's model, and the Shannon-Weaver model. Interactive models like the Osgood-Schramm model and Westley and Maclean model are also analyzed. These models incorporate feedback and view communication as reciprocal. Transactional models see communication as a cooperative process where parties co-create meaning through encoding, decoding, and interpretation within social, cultural, and relational contexts. Barnlund's transactional model specifically emphasizes the role of cues and environmental factors.

2. Application Of Theories And Models To
Strengthen Human Relation And Communication
Skills
By
KABITA MITRA

3. Definition
Communication is a two-way process which involves
transferring of information or messages from one person or
group to another

4. Elements of Communication
 Sender
 Message
 Encoding
 The media
 Recording
 Recipient
 Answer
 Noise

5. Communication Barriers
 Lack of proper style, feedback.
 Content is not related to customer requirements.
 Failure to maintain dual communication.
 Bad weather.
 Lack of horizontal flow of ideas.
 Availability of technical coordinators.
 Semantic Problems.
 Lack of leadership.
 Lack of enthusiasm.
 Lack of support from heads of institutions.

6. Flow of Communication
Downward Flow
Upward Flow
Lateral/Horizontal Communication
Diagonal Communication
External Communication

7. What are models of communication?
According to Denis McQuaill, “a model is a selective
representation in verbal or diagrammatic form of some
aspect of the dynamic process of mass communication.”
In other words, models of communication provide us with
a visual representation of the different aspects of a
communication situation.

8. How can models of communication help with
work communication?
Since communication is the lifeblood of any
organization, using communication models helps us
make better decisions and enables us to be successful
communicators.
Think about our communication situations more
deliberately,
Better prepare for future situations, and
Learn from our previous experiences

9. Major models of communication
There are 8 major models of communication, that can be divided
into 3 categories:
1. Linear models — Only look at one-way communication. The
most prominent linear models of communication are:
Aristotle’s model of communication
Laswell’s model
The Shannon-Weaver model
Berlo’s S-M-C-R model

10. Major models of communication---- cont.
2. Interactive models — They look at two-way communication.
These are the following:
The Osgood-Schramm model
The Westley and Maclean model
3.Transactional models — They look at two-way communication
where the message gets more complex as the communication
event progresses. These include:
Barnlund’s transactional model
Dance’s helical model

11. Linear models

12. Aristotle’s Model

13. Three element to improve communication
Ethos — defines the credibility of the speaker. Speaker
gains credibility, authority, and power by being an expert in
a field of their choice.
Pathos — connects the speaker with the audience
through different emotions (anger, sadness, happiness, etc.)
Logos — an important element that signifies logic. It is
not enough for the speech to be interesting — it needs to
follow the rules of logic.

14. Five components of a communication situation
To analyze the best way to communicate:
Speaker
Speech
Occasion
Target audience
Effect

15. Application of the model
Aristotle model of communication is the golden
rule to excel in public speaking, seminars,
lectures where the sender makes his point clear
by designing an impressive content, passing on
the message to the second part and they simply
respond accordingly. Here the sender is the active
member and the receiver is passive one.

16. Laswell’s Model

17. Main components of this model
 Who created the message? ------------ Communicator
 What did they say? -------------- Message
 What channel did they use (TV, radio, blog)? -------------- Medium
 To whom did they say it? -------------- Audience/Receiver
 What effect did it have on the receiver? ----------- Effect

18. Example

19. Application of the model
Though Lasswell’s model was developed to analyze mass
communication, this model is used for interpersonal communication or
group communication to be disseminated message to various groups in
various situations.
Lasswell’s model was developed to study the media propaganda of
countries and businesses at that time
Lasswell also brought the concept of Effective Communication
Process. He talked about the relation between presentation of facts
and how it generates different effects

20. Criticisms of Lasswell’s Model
The major criticism of Lasswell’s Model is that
it does not include feedback and it ignores the possibility of noise.
Without feedback, a communication process can not be fruitful.
 Lasswell’s model is very linear and does not consider barriers in
the communication process.
The model is also criticized for being very general and only
including very traditional topics.
The model is very simplistic.
The model is said to be propaganda based as it is more focused on
the resulting outcome and generally used for media persuasion.

21. The Shannon-Weaver Model

22. Noise
Shannon and Weaver were the first to introduce the
role of noise in the communication process. In his
book Introduction to Communication Studies, John Fiske
defines noise as “anything that is added to the signal
between its transmission and reception that is not
intended by the source.”
The noise appears in the form of mishearing a
conversation, misspelling an email, or static on a radio
broadcast.

23. Application of model
Information Source (Thought/message)
↓
Transmitter (Brain to mouth) [Along with noise and distractions-external barriers]
↓
Signal
↓
Recipient (Receives the signal)
↓
Final Destination (Finally gets the message)

24. Berlo’s S-M-C-R model

25. The source
 Communication skills — Good communication skills . The speaker should
know when to pause, what to repeat, how to pronounce a word, etc.
 Attitude — source needs the right attitude. The source needs to make a lasting
impression on the receiver(s).
 Knowledge — Knowledge does not refer to educational qualifications. It refers
to the clarity of the information which the source wants to transfer to the receiver.
 Social system — The source should be familiar with the social system in which
the communication process takes place. That would help the source not to offend
anyone.
 Culture — Source needs to be acquainted with the culture in which the
communication encounter is taking place. This is especially important for cross-
cultural communication.

26. The message
 Content — Simply put, this is the script of the conversation.
 Elements — Speech alone is not enough for the message to be fully
understood. That is why other elements have to be taken into account: gestures,
body language, facial expressions, etc.
 Treatment — the way the source treats the message. They have to be aware of
the importance of the message so that they can convey it appropriately.
 Structure — The source has to properly structure the message to ensure the
receiver will understand it correctly.
 Code — All the elements, verbal and nonverbal, need to be accurate if you do
not want your message to get distorted and misinterpreted.

27. The channel
All our senses are the channels that help us communicate with one
another.
Our sense of hearing lets us know that someone is speaking to us.
Through our sense of taste, we gather information about the
spiciness of a sauce we are eating.
Our sense of sight allows us to decipher traffic signs while driving.
We decide whether we like a certain perfume or not by smelling it.
By touching the water we feel whether it is too cold for a swim.

28. The receiver
To understand the message, the receiver should entail the
same elements as the source. They should have similar
communication skills, attitudes, and knowledge, and be
acquainted with the social system and culture in which
they communicate.

29. Application of the model
Watching a news report on television is an example of how the
SMRC model is used. The news reporter acts as the sender of the
information during the news broadcast. The content of the news
report is the message that is being sent. The television itself is the
channel of communication, and the person watching the news
broadcast is the receiver of the information.
The SMCR model is also being used to develop educational
activities for students.

30. Criticism of Berlo’s SMCR model of communication
There is a lack of feedback. The effects are practically unknown.
It does not mention the barriers to communication.
There is no room for noise.
It is a rather complex model.
It is a linear model of communication.
It requires people to be on the same level for effective
communication to happen. However, that rarely happens in
everyday life.
The main drawback of the model is that it omits the usage of
sixth sense as a channel of communication, which is an asset to
human beings (thinking, understanding, analyzing etc.)

31. Interactive models

32. Main elements of these models
 Sender
 Message
 Receiver
 Feedback
 Field of experience
The field of experience represents a person’s culture, past experiences, and
personal history.

33. The Osgood-Schramm Model

34. Four principles in this model
 Communication is circular— individuals involved in the communication
process are changing their roles as encoders and decoders.
 Communication is equal and reciprocal— both parties are equally engaged
as encoders and decoders.
 The message requires interpretation— the information needs to be
properly interpreted to be understood.

35. Three steps in the process of communication
 Encoding
 Decoding
 Interpreting

36. Explanation of the model
 There is no difference between a sender and a receiver. Both parties are equally
encoding and decoding the messages
 Encoding and decoding are two most important factors of an effective
communication without which information can never flow between two
individuals
 This model shows that information is of no use until it is put into words and
conveyed to other people.
 Encoding plays a very important role because it initiates the process of
communication by converting the thought into content
 He also emphasizes that the communication is incomplete unless and until the
sender receives a feedback from the recipient

37. Application of the model
 This model is useful for describing interpersonal, synchronous
communication, but less suitable for cases with little or no feedback.

38. The Westley and Maclean Model

39. Nine crucial components
Environment (X)
Sensory experience (X¹)
Source/Sender (A)
The object of the orientation of the source (X²)
Receiver (B)
The object of the orientation of the receiver (X³)
Feedback (F)
Gatekeepers (C)
Opinion leaders

40. Components of the model
Environment (X)
 According to the model communication process starts when a stimulus from the environment motivates a
person to create and send a message.
Sensory experience (X¹)
 When the sender of the message experiences something in their environment that nudges them to send the
message, we are talking about sensory experience as an element of communication.
 In the example above, this sensory experience would be witnessing a road accident.
Source/Sender (A)
 Only now does the sender come into play.
 In the above-mentioned example, you are the sender, as well as a participant in
the interpersonal communication situation.
 However, a sender can also be a newscaster sending a message to millions of viewers. In that case, we are
talking about mass communication.

41. Components of the model
The object of the orientation of the source (X²)
 Namely, the object of the orientation of the source is the sender’s beliefs or experiences.
 If we take the previously-mentioned road accident as an example, you (A) are concerned (X²) that you
are going to be late for work because of the accident (X¹), and that is why you are calling your boss.
Receiver (B)
 The receiver is the person who receives the message from the sender.
 In mass communication, a receiver is a person that watches TV, reads a newspaper, etc.
 When speaking about interpersonal communication, a receiver is a person that listens to the message.
 In the example with a road accident, mentioned above, receivers of the message are your friends and your
boss.
The object of the orientation of the receiver (X³)
 The object of orientation of the receiver is the receiver’s beliefs or experiences, which influence how the
message is received.
 For example, a skeptical person (B) watching the news is critical (X³) towards the message.

42. Components of the model
Feedback (F)
 Feedback is crucial for this model because it makes this model circular, rather than linear.
 As a matter of fact, feedback influences how messages are sent.
 That means that a receiver and a gatekeeper are sending messages back to the sender.
 After they have received the feedback, the sender modifies the message and sends it back.
 In this example, after the feedback from your worried friend, you modify your message and send it back to her.
Gatekeepers (C)
 This element usually occurs in mass communication, rather than in interpersonal communication.
 Gatekeepers are editors of the messages senders are trying to communicate to receivers.
 For example, these are newspaper editors that edit the message before it reaches the readers.
Opinion leaders
 Again, this element of communication refers to mass communication situations.
 Namely, opinion leaders have an immense influence as an environmental factor (X) on the sender of the message
(A).
 These are political leaders, celebrities, or social media influencers.

43. Application of the model
 The Westley and Maclean model is primarily used for explaining mass
communication.
 This model introduces environmental and cultural factors to the process of
communication. Namely, according to this model, the communication process
does not start with the source/sender, but rather with environmental factors.
 The Westley and Maclean model also takes into account the object of the
orientation (background, culture, and beliefs) of the sender and the receiver of
messages.
 The very process of communication starts with environmental factors which
influence the speaker — the culture or society the speaker lives in, whether the
speaker is in a public or private space, etc.

44. Application of the model
 The Westley and MacLean’s model can be applied in two contexts:
interpersonal and mass communication, the point of difference being
the feedback. Feedback is direct and fast in interpersonal
communication and indirect and slow in mass communication. The
model also differentiates message as purposive and non-purposive.

45. Transactional models

46. Key components are
Encoding
Decoding
Communicators
The message
The channel
Noise

47. Characteristics of the model
 communication is viewed as a transaction, meaning that it is a cooperative process
in which communicators (a new term for senders and receivers, which first appears
in these models) co-create the process of communication, thereby influencing its
outcome and effectiveness.
 In other words, communicators create shared meaning in a dynamic process.
 Aside from that, transactional models show that we do not just exchange
information during our interactions, but create relationships, form cross-cultural
bonds, and shape our opinions.
 In other words, communication helps us establish our realities.
 These models also introduced the roles of social, relational, and cultural context.
 Moreover, these models acknowledge that there are barriers to effective
communication — noise.

48. Barnlund’s Transactional Model

49.  The main components of Barnlund’s Transactional Model are:
 Encoding
 Decoding
 Communicators
 The message (including the cues, environment, noise), and
 The channel
 This model accentuates the role of cues in impacting our messages. So, Barnlund differentiates between:
 Public cues (environmental cues),
 Private cues (person’s personal thoughts and background), and
 Behavioral cues (person’s behavior, that can be verbal and nonverbal).
 All these cues, as well as the environment, and noise, are part of the message. Each communicator’s reaction
depends on their background, experiences, attitudes, and beliefs.

50. The role of context in transactional communication
Relational
 The relational context includes the interpersonal history and type of relationship a person has with another
person.
 For example, two old friends communicate differently than the job candidate meeting a selection panel.
 These interactions will be different again to the relational context of a nurse treating patients, who must
use professional but polite and empathetic communication.
Cultural
 Including various aspects of identity such as ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, gender, class, and ability.
 Individuals whose identities have been culturally repressed may find that their communication style has
been altered to suit.
 However, the transactional model also suggests that some cultural influences will be much harder to
identify during communication.

51. The role of context in transactional
communication
Social
 Or the stated (or unstated) rules and norms that govern the communication
process.
 These include apologizing for mistakes, smiling, saying thank you, and being
respectful of elders, among many other norms.
 Most people learn these rules by trial and error, practice, and observation.
Each strategy is supported by the communicator simultaneously embodying the role
of sender and receiver.

52. Advantages of the model
Since transaction models account for relational, social, and cultural
contexts, the model enables individuals to better understand the
various factors that influence communication itself.
These three contexts also account for the vast majority of
communication contexts, which makes the model more versatile.
Transactional models account for non-verbal cues such as body
language and gestures, which tends to make it an accurate
representation of face-to-face interactions.
See communication as evolving and complex

53. Disadvantages of the model
While the model does make room for a variety of contexts, it
nevertheless relies on the individual to possess a basic
understanding of various political, historical, and social structures.
Where there is not a sufficient understanding of the other person,
the transactional model may only be useful in scenarios where
each communicator shares a similar cultural or social background.
Most transactional models of communication do not account for
noise, which is defined as any factor that impedes the transmission
and understanding of the message.

54. Disadvantages of the model --- cont.
 However, one could argue that relational, social, and cultural contexts
are a form of noise that the individual must contend with.
 Transactional models also have less relevance in non-verbal forms of
communication such as email, telephone, instant messaging, or radio.
 there is no scope to consider feedback in the communication process.
 Transactional communication relies on a cooperative process
between the sender and receiver where each is responsible for
contributing to the conversation

55. Examples of Barnlund’s Model of communication
include
Face-to-face interactions,
Chat sessions,
Telephone conversations,
Meetings, etc.

56. Dance’s Helical Model

57. Concept of Dance’s Helical Model
Communication is seen as a circular process that gets more and more
complex as communication progresses.
That is why it is represented by a helical spiral.
With every cycle of communication, we expand our circle, and each
communication encounter is different from the previous one because
communication never repeats itself.
Additionally, in the process of communication, the feedback we get
from the other party involved influences our next statement and we
become more knowledgeable with every new cycle.

58. Dance’s helical model
Dance used a helix to represent communication as a dynamic, non-linear, continuous, and
evolutionary process.
 Essentially, the helical shape of the model describes the various communication contexts a person
will encounter during their life.
 Communication, Dance argues, begins from the moment we are born. Babies cry or make noise to
communicate cold, hunger, or pain.
 This progresses to simple words, phrases, and sentences as the individual becomes a toddler and
then a school-age student.
 A similar evolutionary process describes how two strangers meet by exchanging pleasantries and
gradually progress to less formal communication as they become comfortable with one another.
 Importantly, communication in both scenarios is shaped by previous experiences or behavior.

59. What is Human Relations Theory?
Human Relations Theory focuses specifically on
the individuals needs and resultant behaviors of
individuals and groups.
It takes an interpersonal approach to managing
human beings.
It presents the organization is made up of formal
and informal elements.

60. Elements of Human Relations Theory
1. A focus on people, rather than upon machines or economics.
2. The organizational environment is not an organized social
context.
3. Human relations are important in motivating people.
4. Motivation depends upon teamwork, requiring co-ordination and
cooperation of individuals involved.
5. Human relations within teams must fulfill both individual and
organizational objectives simultaneously.
6. Individuals and organizations desire efficiency by achieving
maximum results with minimum inputs

61. Who are the Primary Contributors to Human Relations
Theory?
Elton Mayo - Mayo is best known for his contribution to
human relationships management through the Hawthorne
experiments.
Mary Parker Follet - Follet employed psychological tools
to understand the efficient use of people. She introduced the
concept of de-personalized authority and responsibility. The
also advocated for the integration of decision making
through communication channels.

62. Elton Mayo and the Hawthorne Experiments
 The theory became known as the Hawthorne Effect - individuals perform better when given
special attention.
 The study also addresses other major concerns, such as: individual vs group job performance,
worker motivation, and production standards.
The findings were as follows:
 Group dynamics (Social Factors) are important determinants of job performance and output.
 Groups have their own norms and beliefs, independent of the individual members.
 Individuals are not solely motivated by compensation. Perceived meaning and importance of ones
work are the primary determinants of output.
 Employees prefer a cooperative attitude from superiors, rather than command and control.
 Communication between management and employees is essential to understand employee issues.
 Workplace culture sets production standards - despite standards set by managers.

63. Theory of Professor Mary Parker Follet
 In her collective works, Dynamic Administration, Follet used psychology to
explore various aspects of the organizational environment:
1. Workers must participate in the decision-making process through defined
communication channels.
2. Employees prefer to be integrated into the decision-making process rather than
subject to the command and control of managers.
3. Working in groups is generally more productive than working individually.
4. Authority and order in an organization should be de-personalized. The facts of a
situation determine the basis of authority and responsibility.
5. Managers must integrate employee input in the resolution of conflicts that provide
a benefit to all interested parties.
 Integration between departments or groups within the organization is preferable

64. Three major concept of Follett’s theory
A. Universal goal : The universal goal of an organizations is an integration
of individual effort into a synergistic whole. Integration is a method of
settling conflicts instead of compromise or domination.
B. Universal principles: it is a circular or reciprocal response emphasizing
feedback to the sender considering two way communication.
C. Law of the situation: According to the law of the situation there is no
one best way to do anything, but it all depends on the situation. Fact of
situation the basis of authority and responsibility.

65. Chester Barnard's Acceptance Theory of Authority
Chester Barnard lists four conditions, the satisfaction of which
usually results in an acceptance of authority. These are:
 The subordinate is able to fully interpret the communication.
 The subordinate believes that the communication is consistent
with the objectives of the organization.
 The subordinate believes that the communication is consistent
his/her personal objectives.
 The subordinate is physically and mentally capable of accepting
the communication.

66. Guidelines which a manager must follow in order to
ensure that his/her authority is accepted.
 First, the manager needs to utilize a formal channel of communication since it is familiar to all
members of the organization.
 Secondly, the manager needs to assign a formal communication channel to each individual
member of the organization in order to communicate orders.
 Thirdly, it is in the best interest of the business to maintain as direct a line of communication
between manager and subordinate as possible.
 Orders need to be issued using the complete chain of command.
 Managers need to possess communication skills that are at the least, adequate.
 It is mandatory for the manager to use formal communication lines for organisational business
only.
 Lastly, for a command to be accepted, it must always be authenticated as coming from the
manager

67. Contributions of Herbert Simon towards Management
Some of the major contributions of Herbert Simon towards
management are as follows:
1. Concept of Organization
2. Decision-making
3. Bounded Rationality
4. Administrative Man
5. Organizational Communication.

68. 1. Concept of Organization:
 Simon has described an organisation as a complex network of
decisional processes, all pointed towards their influence upon the
behaviour of the operatives. He has viewed the organisation containing
distribution and allocation of decision-making functions.
 According to him, physiology of the organisation is to be found in
the process whereby organisation influences the decisions of its
members, supplying these decisions with their devices. Thus, the best
way to analyses an organisation is to find out where and by whom
decisions are made.

69. Decision-making:
Perhaps the greatest contribution of Simon is in the field of
decision-making. Decision-making is the core of management and
management is synonymous with decision-making. This is why he
has been referred to as decision theorist. According to him, the
decision process can be broken into a series of three sequential steps.
These are:
Intelligent activity the initial phase of searching the environment
for conditions calling for decisions
Design activity the phase of inventing, developing, and analysing
possible course of action to take place; and
 Choice activity the final phase of actual choice selecting a
particular course of action from those available.

70. Bounded Rationality:
 Simon is of view that man is not completely rational. He has
criticized the theories which are based on the assumptions of complete
rationality. He has advocated the principle of bounded rationality.
Accordingly, managers do not go for maximum satisfaction of a
decision but are satisfied with good enough satisfaction from a
decision.

71. Administrative Man:
Simon has given the concept of administrative man as the model of decision-
making. The model is based on the following assumptions:
 Administrative man adopts satisfaction approach in decision-making rather than
the maximizing approach of economic man.
 He perceives the word as a simplified model of real world. Thus, he remains
content with simplification
 He can make his choice without first determining all possible alternatives and
without screening that these are in-fact all the alternatives,
 He is able to make decisions with relatively simple rule of thumb, or tricks of
trade, or force of habit. The administrative man model describes the decision-
making process of mangers tarty then alternative thereby of economic man.

72. Organizational Communication:
 Simon has emphasized the role of communication in organization.
According to him, there are three stages in the communication process;
initiation, transmittal, and receipt of information. There may be
blockade of communication and any of these three stages. In order to
overcome the problem of communication, he has emphasized the role
of informal communication and has attached less importance to the
formal network of authority.

73. Management by Objectives (MBO) by Peter Drucker
 Management by objectives (MBO) is a process in which a manager and an employee
agree on specific performance goals and then develop a plan to reach them.
 It is designed to align objectives throughout an organization and boost employee
participation and commitment.
 There are five steps: Define objectives, share them with employees, encourage
employees to participate, monitor progress, and finally, evaluate performance and
reward achievements.
 Critics of MBO argue that it leads to employees trying to achieve the set goals by any
means necessary, often at the cost of the company.

74. Advantages
 Employees take pride in their work and are assigned goals they know they
can achieve that match their strengths, skills, and educational experiences.
 Assigning tailored goals brings a sense of importance to employees, boosting
their output and loyalty to the company.
 Communication between management and employees is increased.
 Management can create goals that lead to the success of the company.

75. Disadvantages
 As MBO is focused on goals and targets, it often ignores other parts of a company, such as
the culture of conduct, a healthy work ethos, and areas for involvement and contribution.
 Strain is increased on employees to meet the goals in a specified time frame.
 Employees are encouraged to meet targets by any means necessary, meaning that shortcuts
could be taken and the quality of work compromised.
 If management solely relies on MBO for all management responsibilities, it can be
problematic for areas that don’t fit under MBO.

76. Conclusion
Communication and human relation models and theories
help us solve our workplace communication and
management problems. Communication and human
relation in real life is too complex to be truly represented
by communication models or different theories, but they
help us examine the steps in the process of
communication, so we can better understand how we
communicate both at the workplace and outside of it.