Ch. 2 - The Nature of the Communication Process

transactional

a process that involves an exchange

sender-receiver

the person who sends a message to someone

receiver-sender

the person who receives or believes he or she has received a message

message

the information that is exchanged between communicators

channel

the space, method, or medium in which a message is transmitted

noise

anything that interferes with a message and is usually temporary

barrier

any obstacle that blocks communication

feedback

one person's observable response to another's message

data

those things that catch a communicator's attention such as objects, people, sounds, thoughts, memories, or the messages sent by others

sensory-perception

the complex physical process of taking in data through the five senses

encoding

the mental process of assigning meaning and language to data

transmitting

the physical process of sending verbal and nonverbal messages

acquiring

the physical process receiver-senders use to take in the sender's message

decoding

the mental process receiver-senders use to create meaning from language

intrapersonal communication

the communication that occurs in your own mind

self-talk

the inner speech or mental conversations that we carry on with ourselves

interpersonal communication

communication between two people

small-group communication

communication within formal or informal groups or teams

one-to-group communication

involves a speaker who seeks to inform, persuade, or motivate an audience

mass communication

the electronic or print transmission of messages to the general public

mass media

outlets of communication such as radio, television, film, and print that are designed to reach large audiences