Communication messages take many forms. You send and receive messages through any one or any combination of sensory organs. Although you may customarily think of messages as being verbal (oral or written), you also communicate nonverbally. Everything about you communicates. For example, the clothes you wear and the way you walk, shake hands, tilt your head, comb your hair, sit, and smile all communicate messages.
In face-to-face communication, the actual message signals (the movements in the air) are evanescent; they fade almost as they’re uttered. Some written messages, especially computer-mediated messages such as those sent via e-mail, are unerasable. E-mails that are sent among employees in a large corporation, for example, are often stored on disk or tape.
Three special types of messages include metamessages, feedback messages, and feedforward messages.
Metamessages
A metamessage is a message that refers to another message; it is communication about communication. For example, remarks such as “This statement is false” or “Do you understand what I am trying to tell you?” refer to communication and are therefore metacommunication. Nonverbal behavior may also be metacommunicational. Obvious examples include crossing your fingers behind your back or winking when telling a lie. On a less obvious level, consider the blind date. As you say, “I had a really nice time,” your nonverbal messages—the lack of a smile, the failure to maintain eye contact, the extra long pauses—metacommunicate and contradict the verbal “really nice time,” suggesting that you did not enjoy the evening.
Feedback Messages
Throughout the listening process, a listener gives a speaker feedback—messages sent back to the speaker reacting to what is said. Feedback tells the speaker what effect he or she is having on the listener(s). This can take many forms: A frown or a smile, a yea or a nay, a pat on the back or a punch in the mouth are all types of feedback. Another type of feedback is the feedback you get from listening to yourself: You hear what you say, you feel the way you move, you see what you write. On the basis of this self-feedback you adjust your messages; for example, you may correct a mispronunciation, shorten your story, or increase your volume.
Feedforward Messages
Feedforward is information you provide before sending your primary messages; it reveals something about the messages to come (Richards, 1968). Feedforward includes such diverse examples as the preface or the table of contents in a book, the opening paragraph of a chapter, movie previews, magazine covers, and introductions in public speeches. Before you open your e-mail you get feedforward that tells you the sender’s name and the subject matter. In communicating bad news you might give feedforward that aims to prepare the person to receive this news with something like, “I’m sorry I have to tell you this, but . . .”
In face-to-face communication, the actual message signals (the movements in the air) are evanescent; they fade almost as they’re uttered. Some written messages, especially computer-mediated messages such as those sent via e-mail, are unerasable. E-mails that are sent among employees in a large corporation, for example, are often stored on disk or tape.
Three special types of messages include metamessages, feedback messages, and feedforward messages.
Metamessages
A metamessage is a message that refers to another message; it is communication about communication. For example, remarks such as “This statement is false” or “Do you understand what I am trying to tell you?” refer to communication and are therefore metacommunication. Nonverbal behavior may also be metacommunicational. Obvious examples include crossing your fingers behind your back or winking when telling a lie. On a less obvious level, consider the blind date. As you say, “I had a really nice time,” your nonverbal messages—the lack of a smile, the failure to maintain eye contact, the extra long pauses—metacommunicate and contradict the verbal “really nice time,” suggesting that you did not enjoy the evening.
Feedback Messages
Throughout the listening process, a listener gives a speaker feedback—messages sent back to the speaker reacting to what is said. Feedback tells the speaker what effect he or she is having on the listener(s). This can take many forms: A frown or a smile, a yea or a nay, a pat on the back or a punch in the mouth are all types of feedback. Another type of feedback is the feedback you get from listening to yourself: You hear what you say, you feel the way you move, you see what you write. On the basis of this self-feedback you adjust your messages; for example, you may correct a mispronunciation, shorten your story, or increase your volume.
Feedforward Messages
Feedforward is information you provide before sending your primary messages; it reveals something about the messages to come (Richards, 1968). Feedforward includes such diverse examples as the preface or the table of contents in a book, the opening paragraph of a chapter, movie previews, magazine covers, and introductions in public speeches. Before you open your e-mail you get feedforward that tells you the sender’s name and the subject matter. In communicating bad news you might give feedforward that aims to prepare the person to receive this news with something like, “I’m sorry I have to tell you this, but . . .”
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