The Brain-Net of Communication

Abstract

This book aimed at answering the question trying to explore to way in which the perception of the brain influence the communication that is prevailing within human interaction. Further to that, does communication result to conflict or conflict resolution? What is the problem represented to be? What presuppositions underlie the conceptions concerning the communication process? What effects are produced by such representations? How are subjects constituted within the communication?

Keywords:

Communication; Perception; Brain

1. Introduction

Every entity has to continuously get strengthen to sustain a competitive advantage (Barney, 2008), in order to exist (Brown and Kaka, 2003). Further to that one must keep in mind that people are stimulated by two the types of environments, the external environment which includes the market, the customers, the stakeholders that has to be carefully defined and assessed, and the economic, political, social and technological situations, etc. and the internal environment the strengths and the weaknesses etc. (Kelly and Bowles, 2006).

This book aimed at answering the questions, in which way does the perception of the mind influence the communication that is prevailing within human interaction. Further to that does communication result to conflict or conflict resolution? What is the problem represented to be? What presuppositions underlie the conceptions concerning the communication process? What effects are produced by such representations? How are subjects constituted within the communication?

In summary, the view taken in this book is: (a) in every entity a specific forms of communication that prevail and, (c) the forms of communication are combined in a unique pattern of communication.

1.1. Defining the Problem:

Communication Pattern:

- The focus of the book is on the forms of communication and the communication pattern.

1.2. The Research Questions

The overall strategic question to be answered is:

- In which way does the perception influence the communication that is prevailing in an entity?

The secondary questions the present study is answering are:

- Does communication result to conflict or conflict resolution?

What is the problem represented to be?

- What presuppositions underlie the conceptions concerning the communication process?
- What effects are produced by such representations?
- How are subjects constituted within the communication?

2. Supporting Bibliography

To explore how communication is shaped it is necessary to define the base concepts that will be used in the book research. In this part the different aspects will be introduced and basically defined while the elaboration of the aspects will be completed further during the second part of the book.

2.1. Conceptualizing the Entity

The organization theory is supported by sociological disciplines focusing on the organizational stability (Burke, 2002) and are concerned with open-systems theory derived from the biological sciences field, and organizational psychology based on the management field (Schein, 1985). The open-systems viewpoint concerns the bond developed between the company and the environment it inhabits (Beer, 1980).

There are three schools of thought in institutional theory the historical institutionalism, where procedures, routines, norms and conventions embedded in the company structure, the rational choice institutionalism, where company employees have a fixed set of preferences, behave instrumentally, so as to maximize the attainment of these preferences and the sociological institutionalism , where a company include rules, procedures, norms, symbols, offering a frame of meaning guiding behavior (Hall & Taylor, 1996).

There are differences in communication patterns, preferences for leadership style, different principles of hierarchy, organizational structures, decision styles, and dyadic relationship (Kuchinke, 1999). There are five dimensions that provide a framework for identifying similarities and differences which are the Power Distance, Individualism, Masculinity, Uncertainty Avoidance and Long term Orientation (Hofstede, 1993). It is less risky to communicate with more similar cultural clusters (Gupta, et al, 2002).

2.2. Forms of Human Communication

“Communication,” which is etymologically related to both “communion” and “community,” comes from the Latin communicare, which means “to make common” (Weekley, 1967) or “to share.” Communication is the flow of information in order to share the meaning and each company has its own approach to transmitting the information throughout the entity and may assume different forms such as verbal or written, formal or informal (Bovee & Thill, 1992)

Verbal communication is used to discuss events, ideas and for sharing information and is equally, if not more important as written communication while formal communication refers to the exchange of official information that follows the chain of command, whereas, informal communication uses the unofficial lines of activity (Bovee & Thill, 1992). In order to communicate a reaction by the receiver is required as feedback where, features of context such as “who communicates, why, when, where and how, contribute overt and covert information to the exchanges produced and have to be taken into account for the decoding of the intended message (Sifianou 2001: 2).

Effectiveness of communication depends on the closeness of meaning that the sender and the receiver attribute to the message (Hodgetts & Luthans, 1991). To have an effective argument, the emotion should be recognized by the incentive and should not be supplementary; otherwise, these may seem as a biasing factor, making receivers try to remove the unfitting influence by correcting it (Wegener & Petty, 1997).

2.2.1. Communication Process

When two people communicate they attempt to change the way of thinking, feeling, knowledge or behavior (Argyris, 1977). Communication is interactive where the sender and the receiver are interdependent due to the fact that we depend on the other for a response or the interaction is scattered, through a channel and with the interference of noise and is intentional and conveys meaning in order to bring about change (DeVito, 1986).

Sometimes, there is pointless communication intended only to fill silence, weakening from the message to be communicated. The effective communicators should persist much focused on the communicated idea by making sure that their words and actions communicate without any distractions of their message. People communicate through symbols which can take the form of a language, sound, behavior, letter, image that has the meaning of something else and sometimes leads to misunderstanding which requires a correction of the sent message.

The perceptions of the sender are the source of information to be communicated towards the receiver, while the perceptions of the receiver outline the result of the communication. The memory and perception are selective about the acceptable and the information remembered in temporary or long-term memory, so perceptions are not directly correlated to specific events or objects, but are created by the individual system of perception.

2.2.1.1. Message Content

Message is a signal, combination of signals or symbols that serves as a stimulus for a receiver (DeVito, 1986). Content of a message is the substantive information that is being transmitted and the style with which it is being conveyed. Consider the following:

- Persuasive is a carefully reasoned message or one stimulated by emotion? The debate is between reason and emotion. If the receiver is educated and analytical, the rational appeal works better since they are open to reasoned arguments than receivers not familiarized to analytic thinking (Brinol, Petty, Gallardo, &De Marree, 2007).
- Support an idea that is different other’s or to an extreme point of view? New ideas produce discomfort, which causes people to change their opinions in response to a new idea. A more direct and bold approach is preferable, although, sometimes an uncomfortable message causing people to lose credibility. People are open to assumptions within their range of acceptability. Greater difference between the new and the sender’s established attitude result smaller change in attitude (Brinol, Petty, Gallardo, &De Marree, 2007).
- Message is expressing one side of the argument, or should present the opposing view? The messages content is more persuasive as it is connected with good receiver feelings. Happy people make quick decisions and unhappy make slow decisions, so it would be helpful to make people feel positive. Contrariwise, some messages are persuasive because they appeal negative emotions such as fear and anger, which are strong motivators(Brinol, Petty, Gallardo, &De Marree, 2007).
- Does the order of speaking give the speaker any advantage? There are circumstances when people weaken their argument and confusing the audience. Primacy and recency effect designates that the person or argument making the first impression has the most influence on the decision outcome.
- The primacy effect states that in the short term, the first argument is the most influential, all things being equal. People think in duality terms as they view argument on a continuum with the truth lying somewhere between the two extremes.
- The recency effect state that after some time, the primacy effect fades from lively thoughts and feelings. So, forgetting has the effect of creating a more powerful recency effect when sufficient time separates the two messages and people must decide soon after the second argument (Brinol, Petty, Gallardo, &De Marree, 2007).

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