DEFINING ‘COMMUNICATION’
المؤلف:
ALAN RANDLE
المصدر:
Caring for People with Learning Disabilities
الجزء والصفحة:
P24-C2
2025-10-06
270
DEFINING ‘COMMUNICATION’
This aspect will provide general definitions and explanations of what communication is. Within this section, there will be a description of a fundamental model of communication. This will be explored further where appropriate later, thus setting the scene.
The majority of work with adults with learning disabilities involves a considerable amount of communication in any given interaction. Therefore, it is important that an understanding of some of the main dynamics that take place during any communicative activity is gained.
Definitions of ‘communication’ generally describe it as a process between two or more people and that the transmission of a message occurs between the people interacting with one another. More complex definitions include aspects relating to the context within which the communication occurs and intentionality. However, a definition of ‘communication’ is required for the purposes of this topic. Thompson (2003, p. 10) discusses communication in great detail and draws on Fiske’s (1990, cited in Thompson 2003) definition of ‘communication’, which describes it as ‘social interaction through messages’.
The ‘social’ aspect of this definition indicates that communication takes place within a shared context (Thompson 2003). Within a healthcare setting, communication would be regarded as a social event during the transmission of more formal information-giving messages. The act of passing on health information would require ‘checking out’ understanding of the material, thus making it more of a communal and shared process, even though there will possibly be an imbalance with regard to relationship, roles and knowledge. The ‘interaction’ component demonstrates that there is likely to be more than one person involved during any communication and that messages will be passed from one to another. This is often where it can be important to consider the environment or context. Communicating with someone in a formal setting will differ from an informal environment, although the message being communicated could be the same. The final elements of the definition ‘through messages’ illustrate the variety of ways in which information can be transmitted from one person to another. Messages can be conveyed or passed to others in many ways and the following list illustrates some of these. Messages, according to Fraser (1997), can be communicated through:
• the use of vocabulary and grammar
• sequencing
• proxemics
• emotional and mental state
• coherence
• sophistication of the messages being offered or understood.
All these areas are relevant to adults with learning disabilities. For example, the vocabulary used by adults with learning disabilities may provide an indication of their level of understanding, and communication with them can be adapted accordingly. Also, in terms of proxemics, adults with learning dis abilities may be standing very close to the person speaking; this might also convey that they have a hearing difficulty and need to stand closer than what would be considered usual, to hear what is being communicated.
One very important factor that is not explicit within the above definition is the issue of intentionality of the messages being conveyed. When people are communicating or interacting, they are often doing so intentionally, i.e. they want to communicate with the other person. However, occasionally, messages may be passed on or communicated that were not intentionally meant to be. These more subtle messages may be sensed and perhaps understood. For example, someone may be talking very quickly and his/her voice may have a quavering quality to it. This person may be nervous and may be trying to disguise his/her feelings, perhaps trying not to intentionally communicate his/her anxiety. However, the person listening may notice these subtle messages and sense and understand that the person speaking is nervous about something. A key skill in this respect is to decide whether it is important to attempt to address the unintended message or not. Sometimes, it may help to mention that something else is also being communicated. However, it can also make another person feel misunderstood or even persecuted. No two situations are ever likely to be exactly the same; therefore, each time an unintentional message is being ‘read’ or noticed as such, it will need to be considered, depending on the circumstances, as to whether it is addressed or not. This is when it is important to consider the environment or context, as mentioned above. The skill here is to think, ‘Is the setting influencing what is being communicated?’ and ‘Is it relevant to mention it, or not?’
Understanding and misunderstanding are also important areas to consider alongside intentionality. These areas are sometimes discussed in terms of ‘meaning’ (Thompson 2003; Trevithick 2000). Sometimes, what is being communicated between two or more people is not always clearly understood and may even be misunderstood.
This is not necessarily a bad thing, as long as there is sufficient safety for the people involved to express that they do not understand, or to explain that they have misunderstood some part of the communication. This misunderstanding was not intentional; however, it may still have occurred. It is important, therefore, to communicate clearly and effectively as well as checking out that communication has been received and understood as it was intended (Department of Health 2003).
Communication is complex; so, too, is any definition of the term. Fiske’s (1990) definition of ‘communication’, cited in Thompson (2003), suggests that communication is social interaction through intentional and unintentional messages. You are encouraged to question and debate this definition amongst yourselves, your colleagues and peers. It is imperative to consider how these messages are transmitted from one of the communicators to the other.
The process model of communication is one of the simplest models that will provide a good grasp of how messages are sent and received by two or more parties. Thompson (2003) acknowledges Shannon and Weaver’s (1949) model as the classic model. This fundamental model is illustrated above (see Figure 1).
The sender or transmitter is the person who starts or initiates the communicative process, by sending a message. S/he sends the message to someone – the receiver. The message is transmitted between the two parties. However, many factors can influence this process and the ‘noise’ element indicates any aspect that could affect the message being sent and received (Lerner 2003). These will be discussed in more detail in the third section, below. What is important to remember here is the fact that you will not only be a sender of messages; you will also be a receiver of messages initiated by someone else. Adults with learning disabilities may not always initiate communication in familiar ways. The skill here is to observe, be aware of and sensitive to any communicative cues or endeavors made by the people whom you are working with (Fraser 1997). The following section will continue to discuss some aspects related to observational skills when communicating, i.e. noticing nonverbal communicative messages.
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