Communication Models
SUMMARY OF COMMUNICATION MODELS (1)Transmission model Laswell: who say what to whom in which channel what effect (2)Shannon and weaver source>transmiitter>reciever>destination Interactive model (1)Schrammn model encoder decoder interpreter interpreter decoder encoder v Inferential delayed feedback COMMUNICATION MODELS COMMUNICATION PROCESS The communication process is the inter-relationship between several inter-dependent components. It consists of a whole series of related actions and reactions which together result in the sharing of meaning.
COMMUNICATION PROCESS Sender Encoding Channel Receiver Decoding Feedback (Message) Elements of Communication Process Sender – It is the person who intends to make contact with the objective of passing the message to other persons. Message – This is the subject matter of the communication, which is intended to be passed to the receiver from the sender. Encoding – The process of converting the message into communication symbols. Channel – Message encoded into symbols are transmitted by the sender through a channel.
Receiver – The person or group to whom the message is directed. Decoding – The receiver translates the words and symbols used in the message into idea and interprets it to obtain its meaning. Feedback – It is the way of judging the effectiveness of the message. MODELS OF COMMUNICATION 3 Models of Communication * Gerbner Model/Transaction Model * Shannon-Weaver Model/ Transmission Model * Berlo’s Model/ Interactive Model Transaction Model Process (Contract, Operation) Sender Message Encoding Channel Receiver Decoding Message
Feedback This model consisted of 7 elements: Sender Message Encoding Channel Receiver Decoding Feedback TRANSMISSION MODEL (1)Laswell model: who say what to whom in which channel what effect (2)Shannon-Weaver Model source>transmiitter>reciever>destination This model of communication was developed by Shannon and Weaver (1949) This model consisted of five elements: An information source – which produces a message. A transmitter – which encodes the message into signals. A channel – to which signals are adapted for transmission
A receiver – which ‘decodes’ (reconstructs) the message from the signal. A destination – where the message arrives. Noise – any interference with the message traveling along the channel which may lead to the signal received being different from that sent. (INTERACTIVE MODEL) (1)Berlo model Berlo’s model of communication was developed by David Berlo (1960) This model consisted of four elements: Source Message Channel Receiver (2)Schrammn model encoder decoder interpreter interpreter decoder encoder v Inferential delayed feedback 3) Osgood Model encoder > message decoder interpreter interpreter decoder message History of models of communication 1950s: Early models Mass communication research was always traditionally concerned with political influence over the mass press, and then over the influences of films and radio. The 1950s was fertile for model-building, accompanying the rise in sociology and psychology.
It was in the USA that a science of communication was first discussed. The earliest model was a simple sender-channel-message-receiver model. (SMCR) Modifications added the concept of feedback, leading to a loop. The next development was that receivers normally selectively perceive, interpret and retain messages. Gerbner is important because he recognises the TRANSACTIONAL nature of much communication – ie the “intersubjectivity of communication”. The result is that communication is always a matter of negotiation and cannot be predicted in advance. Communication to mass communication
Early on, a sub-set of models began to refer specifically to mass communication. Westley and Maclean were important in this. Their model emphasises the significance of audience demand rather than just the communicator’s purpose. 1960s and 1970s The attention now moved away from the effects of the mass media on opinions, behaviour and attitudes, and began to focus on the longer-term and socialising effects of the mass media. The audience were less victims of the media, and more active in adopting or rejecting the guidelines offered by the mass media.
This an emphasis on “an active audience”. Nevertheless a healthy suspicion of the mass media has continued through the 1970s and 1980s, especially in terms of news selection and presentation. A more recent development is an interest in the ‘information society’ when the ‘boundary separating mass communication from other communication processes is becoming much less clear”. There has also been an accelerating “internationalisation” of mass communication. Model| Comment| Lasswell formula (1948)| Useful but too simple.
It assumes the communicator wishes to influence the receiver and therefore sees communication as a persuasive process. It assumes that messages always have effects. It exaggerates the effects of mass communication. It omits feedback. On the other hand, it was devised in an era of political propagandaIt remains a useful INTRODUCTORY modelBraddock (1958) modified it to include circumstances, purpose and effect| Shannon and Weaver (1949)| Highly influential and sometimes described as “the most important” model (Johnson and Klare)Communication is presented as a linear, one-way processOsgood and
Schramm developed it into a more circular modelShannon and Weaver make a distinction between source and transmitter, and receiver and destination – ie there are two functions at the transmitting end and two at the receiving endCriticised for suggesting a definite start and finish to the communication process, which in fact is often endless| Gerbner (1956)| Special feature of this model is that is can be given different shapes depending on the situation it describesThere is a verbal as well as visual formula (like Lasswell):1 someone2 perceives an event3 and reacts4 in a situation5 through some means6 to make available materials7 in some form8 and context9 conveying content10 with some consequenceThe flexible nature of the model makes it useful.
It also allows an emphasis on perceptionIt could explain, for example, the perceptual problems of a witness in court and, in the media, a model which helps us to explore the connection between reality and the stories given on the news| Westley & MacLean (1957)| Another influential modelThe authors were keen to create a model which showed the complexities of mass communication – hence the emphasis on having to interpret a mass of Xs (events which are communicated in the media)It oversimplifies the relationships between participants by not showing power relations between participantsIt makes the media process seem more integrated than it may actually beIt doesn’t show the way different media may have different interests of the state (eg difference between a state broadcaster and private one)| 3. Schramm’s Interactive Model, 1954 a. Background Wilbur Schramm (1954) was one of the first to alter the mathematical model of Shannon and Weaver. He conceived of decoding and encoding as activities maintained simultaneously by sender and receiver; he also made provisions for a two-way interchange of messages. Notice also the inclusion of an “interpreter” as an abstract representation of the problem of meaning. (From Wilbur Schramm, “How Communication Works,” in The Process and Effects of Communication, ed. Wilbur Schramm (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1954), pp. 3-26): b. Strengths i.
Schramm provided the additional notion of a “field of experience,” or the psychological frame of reference; this refers to the type of orientation or attitudes which interactants maintain toward each other. ii. Included Feedback 1. ) Communication is reciprocal, two-way, even though the feedback may be delayed. a. ) Some of these methods of communication are very direct, as when you talk in direct response to someone. b. ) Others are only moderately direct; you might squirm when a speaker drones on and on, wrinkle your nose and scratch your head when a message is too abstract, or shift your body position when you think it’s your turn to talk. c. ) Still other kinds of feedback are completely indirect. 2. ) For example, a. politicians discover if they’re getting their message across by the number of votes cast on the first Tuesday in November; b. ) commercial sponsors examine sales figures to gauge their communicative effectiveness in ads; c. ) teachers measure their abilities to get the material across in a particular course by seeing how many students sign up for it the next term. iii. Included Context 1. ) A message may have different meanings, depending upon the specific context or setting. 2. ) Shouting “Fire! ” on a rifle range produces one set of reactions-reactions quite different from those produced in a crowded theater. iv. Included Culture 1. A message may have different meanings associated with it depending upon the culture or society. Communication systems, thus, operate within the confines of cultural rules and expectations to which we all have been educated. v. Other model designers abstracted the dualistic aspects of communication as a series of “loops,” (Mysak, 1970), “speech cycles” (Johnson, 1953), “co-orientation” (Newcomb, 1953), and overlapping “psychological fields” (Fearing, 1953). c. Weaknesses i. Schramm’s model, while less linear, still accounts for only bilateral communication between two parties. The complex, multiple levels of communication between several sources is beyond this model. F. Non-linear Models
