STUDENTS' CORNER - 121

We will see some more kinds of barriers to communication.

After physical barriers such as short of hearing, next we shall study Perceptual barriers.

Perceptual barriers are in fact most difficult ones to identify and act without their influence on the conversation.  The perception of an individual takes its origin generally from the conditioning to which he is subject.  To explain, your intellect, your feelings and emotions and your very thinking--- all these are conditioned without break by the religion in which you are born and by the concomitant factors like the society ,  the community and its inevitable caste,  the language, the culture , the traditions and the conventions, so on.  In other words, you are given the basic code of behavior by these factors: how to talk and what to eat and not to eat;  which gods to believe in and which are not; whom to trust and whom not to trust immediately, what to study  and whom to choose for your friends , so on.  Since these influences function from the very beginning of one’s life, majority of the people are not aware of the fact of deep conditioning.  The result is obviously different points of view on everything from different types of people. People are fully loaded with preconceived ideas and definite conclusions guide their everyday life. When two individuals meet, actually it is meeting of two groups of ideas and conclusions.

This sort of situation easily lends itself to misunderstanding unless the persons engaged in conversation are keenly conscious of the differences that exist between them. This consciousness will help in carefully speaking or writing, knowing full well what meaning is attached to the words used.  With this kind of understanding, communication will take place between two parties despite perceptual differences. Instead of assumptions clear understanding will form the basis for communication.

A point would be clear now: perceptual barriers are barriers which are internal, which are in the minds of the people engaged in communication.  Prejudices,  premeditated conclusions, concepts, beliefs --- all these are some of the sources of assumptions which must be carefully and completely understood and avoided for proper communication to take place.

These barriers are commonly referred to as ‘filters’.  Filters select through specific screening already built in. Prejudices and assumptions also filter information according to the likes and dislikes of the listener, of the reader.

We will see some more details about communication barriers. Miscommunication sours relationship, both personal and professional.