Communication as a process can be easily understood in terms of what can be called as models. These models, although aren’t exact replicas of what communication actually is, tend to give an understanding into the process of communication. These models are actually concepts that help us better understand how communication takes place and what are the elements involved.
The first models that came into existence were merely technical models which comprised of simplistic terms for a general understanding of the process. S-M-C-R model developed by Berlo is one of the examples for this type of a model wherein the elements are the Source, Message, Channel and Receiver. As the studies progressed, a 5th element was added to it, ie: the Effect.
Yet, the S-M-C-R-E model wasn’t advanced enough to explain the complex process of communication, and thus further theories and models developed. These theories and models have been classified under categories like Mechanical, Psychological, Sociological, Socio-pyschological etc.
When seen as a sociological model, it is generally governed by how the society influences a particular set of communication taking place. Many sociological factors are taken into consideration in the model. This includes cultural, economic, social and political aspects of communication.
A psychological model on the other hand goes beyond the standard functions defined by communication and tends to attach a originator-receptor perspective into the communication process, thereby making it dynamic and unrestricted. The psychological model derives its aspects from the individuals perspective, basing the communication on a variety of internal factors of the individual’s psychology and attempts to explain the thought process and linguistics involved.
PSYCHOLOGICAL MODEL: A General Understanding
In a psychological model, there is necessarily a sender and a receiver. The number can be as low as a single person acting both as the sender and receiver or can go upto hundreds of thousands of people based on the medium of communication. The first step in this process begins with the formation of an idea or a thought that the sender wishes to convey to the receiver. Then the sender now translates this idea or thought into a tangible form of code that can be sent to the receiver. This process is generally called encoding. The code can be in the form of speech, gesture or written content.
Now this content has to be transmitted via a certain medium. This is generally known as a channel which can be a telephone line, the air, paper or a computer. At this phase, it is essential to keep noise to a minimum as it can affect the reception of the receiver. The message can be lost or misinterpreted in the case of excessive noise, here again based on the capacity of the individual to effectively decode the message which is sent. This is where the psychological aspect of an individual kicks in.
Once the transmission of the message is done through a medium, it is sent to the receivers end where it is decoded. This decoding process is very essential as it is the point where the integrity of the communication is tested. If, based on psychological factors the receiver makes an error in decoding, then it can have widespread implications on the communication process, which may end up as a failure.
Interpretation of the communication is entirely based on the receivers psychological set up and hence, the psychological models are employed to understand the communication process.
SOCIOLOGICAL MODEL: A General Understanding
Society affects an individual in every instance of life. Communication is no exception to this, and thus everything communicated is affected by our surroundings and the state of affairs prevalent around us. This is not just true in the case of a sender of the message, but also with regard to the receiver. Thus, it is extremely essential to understand social implications when we intend to communicate with people.
The sociological approach is primarily guided by four major aspects – Society, Culture, Politics and Economics. Society comprises of accepted relations, structures, institutions and associations. Culture on the other hand, comprises of differences in between social setups. This can include identity, values, ethos, religion and ideologies. Politics and economy also have a prominent role to play in some of the major communication that occurs in the present day. Thus it becomes essential while communicating to understand that while interacting with diverse groups, it can have different effects based on the sociological factors affecting those groups.
Thus it can be seen that while psychological models primarily deal with an individual’s perception of communication, the sociological models primarily deal with the societies’ perception of communication with respect to the initiator.
COMPARISIONS between SOCIOLOGICAL and PSYCHOLOGICAL models:
Newcomb’s ABX Model of 1953 is a good example for a sociological model, which was one of the first models to introduce the concept of the role of society in a communication process and vice versa. According to Newcomb, the primary role is to maintain equilibrium in a social relationship. In his model X becomes the sociological factor which strives for equilibrium. When X is at equilibrium, according to him there is harmony in between the source and the receiver, ie: A and B. Thus, when A and B are in agreement with the concept based on sociological aspects, then the communication is successful. Here we are able to notice the dependence on societal factors and hence, this becomes a sociological model.
Gerbner’s Model of 1956 on the other hand is a complex model which deals with psychological aspects of an individual and his perception of an event which is occurring. Hence, it is a Pyschological model. In this model, the process begins with an event E, which is an external event that is perceived by M (which is to be interpreted as a receiver, this can be either a human or a machine like a microphone or a camera). Thus, M’s perception of E is taken as E1. This relationship is complex in the case that M cannot perceive the whole complexity of E, and hence there is a selective difference between E and E1.
“Human perception is not a simple reception of stimuli, but is a process of interaction or negotiation.” – Fiske, John.
In this case, the receiver (M) tries to match the external event (E) with internal patterns of thoughts and ideas derived out of his/her own experiences. When this happens, perception of the event is said to have occurred and this in itself is termed as a perceived event (or rather a perceived notion of the event) E1. Thus, meaning is derived by matching external events with internal concepts.
REFERENCES:
1) Johnson, D.W., & Johnson, F.P. (1994). Joining together: Group theory and group skills (5th ed.). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
2) Fiske, J., (1998) Introduction to Communication Studies, 2nd ed., London, Routledge.
3) Narula, Uma., (2006) Communication Models, Atlantic Publishers and Dist.
4) Littlejohn, Stephen; Foss, Karen (2008). Theories of Human Communication (9 ed.). Thomson and Wadsworth.
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