| REFLECTION 1.2 |
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1 Can you think of other examples of symbols and symbolic actions in everyday life and how we attribute meaning to them?
2 How does that attribution of meaning influence our behaviour?
3 What are the possible consequences of symbols and symbolic actions being misinterpreted by others?
I’m sure that you were able to think of many circumstances where symbols influence your behaviour. Road traffic signs are a good example of how a symbol can influence our behaviour. The speed camera sign always makes me check my speed and traffic signage uses simple symbols to convey a whole host of messages targeted at influencing our driving behaviour. Symbols can create unity and symbols can create tension. Symbolic acts have started wars, sparked revolution and changed lives, and whether those changes were good or bad is down to your interpretation of them.
The definition offered by Wood (2004) raises some essential issues in studying communication that I was not able to raise in my definition earlier. It is important that we stop and make the time to explore definitions and try to see the world as others perceive it to be. It will enrich our understanding and enable us to make more positive decisions about how we communicate. Communication is about who we are. It isn’t a single one-off thing. It is a very complicated process and to assist you in understanding some of the complexities involved in communicating with yourself and with others, it has been broken down into different areas of study in Chapters 2 and 3.
MODES OF COMMUNICATION
Messages are communicated in many different ways. New methods of transmission and new channels of communication are developing at an incredibly rapid pace as we progress into the digital age. Over the last 50 years the developments in technology have had a massive impact on how we communicate with each other. We can connect online with someone on the other side of the world in an instant and with someone in space at the flick of a switch. Since the publication of the first edition of this book, smartphones have further revolutionised the way that we connect with others. Information technology has changed the world we live in more than any other technical phenomenon. When studying in any field of health and social care you will find that ICT plays a vital role in how we deliver, record and monitor care. As practitioners in whatever field you work in, you have a responsibility to develop and update your skills accordingly.
| WRITING ACTIVITY 1.2 |
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Think of all the different ways your grandparents and your great-grandparents may have communicated with each other and the rest of the world as young people, and draw up a list of these.
If you have the opportunity, speak with a person aged 80 years plus and see if they can confirm the ways you have identified. They may be able to add to your list with some very interesting examples of means of communication. No doubt some of their methods were quite innovative, particularly if they involved speaking with boyfriends and girlfriends without their parents being aware and, of course, communicating during the war years.
Perhaps your list will have included some of the following:
• face-to-face, person-to-person conversation;
• whistling, singing and calling out loud;
• telephone, via the operator of course;
• writing, including letters, postcards, poetry and song;
• handwritten records and ledgers and typed correspondence;
• telegraphy, telegrams and couriers;
• sign language and ticktack, and secret gestures;
• secret codes and messaging banners, flags and semaphore;
• flickering lights, and opening and shutting curtains;
• pigeon post and go-betweens, flares and other pyrotechnics;
• radio, television and cinema.
These are only the examples we could come up with but no doubt there are many more.
| WRITING ACTIVITY 1.3 |
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Cover the next section of text and extend your list to include all modes and methods of communication that you have seen or taken part in, either in your personal life or in your experience of work. It is likely to be quite long. Then compare what you have written with the list we have generated below.
• Computers, laptops, tablets;
• Text messaging, email;
• Social media like Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr;
• Telephone (land line), mobile phone and smartphones;
• Blogs and podcasts;
• YouTube;
• Snapchat, Instagram, Kik and Gifboom;
• Satellite communications such as GPS and SatNav;
• Electronic records and online forms;
• Care documentation and care plans;
• Voicemail, pagers, bleeps and alarms;
• Radio waves, X-rays and scans.
This is by no means a comprehensive list and we are sure you can think of others, especially if you are information technology natives. Channels of communication are developing all the time and this requires us to be engaged in learning and developing our skills in communication throughout our lives.
CHOOSING YOUR APPROACH WHEN COMMUNICATING WITH OTHERS
When communicating directly with people, you first need to choose the mode or the approach that you are going to use and, to be effective in getting your message across, you need to consider some key issues.
| REFLECTION 1.3 |
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Imagine yourself in the workplace and being involved in communicating with a person or several people about future plans. What methods or channels of communication might you consider before engaging in that communication? Share your considerations with a colleague.
Your reflection and discussions may have involved you considering some of the following:
• Will the communication be face-to-face, written or using technology?
• Will you use letters, pictures or leaflets in the communication to help clarify what it is you are communicating?
• How much control do you have over the environment and how much control do you have over the timing of the communication?
• How many people are you communicating with and what level of understanding do they have?
• Are there any language or disability issues to consider?