Page 16 - Ai Book - 10

u Gender Barriers: There are distinct differences between the speech patterns of a man and a woman. A
study shows that during childhood, girls speak earlier than boys, and have a vocabulary twice that of boys
at the age of three.

u Physiological Barriers: Physiological barriers can arise due to the receiver’s or sender’s physical state. Any
psychological disturbance can be a barrier to effective communication and these disturbances are in the
form of:

z Sadness
z Fear

z Anger
z Anxiety
z Excitement

u Attitudinal Barriers: Many times, people are not able to talk effectively due to some perceptions or
behaviour. These types of perception or behaviour that prevent people from communicating effectively are
called attitudinal barriers to communication.
Attitudinal barriers may arise due to the following factors like conflict of personality, resistance to change,
or a lack of motivation. Enthusiastic receivers attempt to overcome their own attitudinal barriers to initiate
effective communication. Emotions like anger or sadness can influence objectivity. This is also known as
emotional noise.

u Perceptual Barrier: As you know, each individual has a different perception about the world. Perceptual
barrier can be defined as an internal barrier or mental blocks that we create on the basis of perceptions. In
your daily life, you will see that people generally like to receive only those messages which are significant
to them. Any message against their values is not accepted. This is a great example of a perceptual barrier.

u Cultural Differences: In different cultures, the social norms of interaction vary greatly, as do the way in
which emotions are expressed. For example, in Arab countries, people express grief openly by mourning
loud, whereas the way of expressing grief in other countries is different.

u Information Overload: As you know, people are surrounded with a pool of information. It is essential to
control the flow of information, else the information is likely to be misinterpreted or forgotten or overlooked.
As a result, communication is less effective.

u Inattention: Many times, you have seen that when a presenter presents a presentation on stage, the
audience cannot listen to it carefully. This is an example of inattention that makes communication less
effective.

MEASURES TO OVERCOME BARRIERS IN EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION
To overcome these barriers, sufficient effort should be put into the communication process to make it effective
and efficient. It can be done by planning the conversation with clear ideas. The words should be reinforced with
action. The message should be conveyed clearly and effectively. Our communication skills play an important
role in enhancing our self-promotional skills. For example, people who listen attentively and make thoughtful,
informed comments are often seen as more influential than those who don’t listen well, or those who speak
thoughtlessly.
Here are some measures we can use to overcome barriers in effective communication.

u Face-to-face Interactions: Text messages or emails can be misinterpreted as they are not accompanied
by facial expressions, tone and inflection. Engaging in face-to-face interactions helps in understanding the
message easily and quickly.

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