Reducing Communication Barriers

Barriers in communication often exist in workplace relationships. Barriers can occur due to individual differences, situational factors or transmission problems. Individual differences would occur when people are differing in ages or have conflicting personalities. Situational factors include emotional feelings like a person being sad or angry which cause disruptions in communication. For example, when the agency I work for was preparing to be surveyed for accreditation, a member of the team was extremely overwhelmed with the amount of work that needed to be completed, instead of expressing their concern they threw the accreditation manual on the floor and stormed out of a meeting with our consultant. After that situation occurred management is often reluctant in giving the individual too many assignments because it left a lasting memory, others find it extremely hard to communicate with the person due to their sudden anger in multiple situations. Transmission problems are improperly communicating. When conversing with others we should always use vocabulary that is well understood. Also it is important to use proper vocabulary and avoid slang that can form from social media.

In order to reduce or overcome barriers within communication, both senders and receivers must be present in the conversation. The text states, “To be an effective communicator, you must employ both sender and receiver tactics and behaviors at every point of the conversation” (Baack, 2012, p. 43). The receivers of the conversation must be attentive and actively listening, they should ask for clarification when needed. The sender must be aware of their body language to ensure that nonverbal cues are not being sent. Also the sender should communicate with a goal in mind to show that the conversation and topic is important. The sender must ensure they are not angry or placing blame which will also cause barriers to rise.