Effective Communication Process

Communication is a process which has many steps. The primary goal of communication is to exchange information, thoughts, and feelings between people through verbal and nonverbal channels. Communication is an essential need in law enforcement and individuals in the field must become proficient in sending and receiving information as well as verbal and nonverbal communication within their agency and in the community they serve. There is a difference between listening and hearing as well as many barriers to effective communication. In a criminal justice organization there are formal and informal channels of communication.

When there are barriers of communication some strategies may be applied to overcome them. The process of communication has two ways in which an individual can communicate with another person which are verbal and nonverbal. The first step of communicating is having one or more ideas or thoughts and wanting to express them.

The second step of the process is choosing how an individual will deliver the message whether it is verbal or nonverbal, or a combination of both.

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Verbal communication requires language and an individual's emotion to deliver a message to other people. An important aspect of verbal communication is the message an individual is going to deliver and the usage of their words. Criminal justice organizations need to be able to communicate with each other along with victims, suspects, and the community. Language and word usage can hinder an officer when communicating with members of the community, which is why it is important to deliver a clear message.

When speaking to the community or other individual's redundancy or repeating words can help an officer deliver a clear message if the individual is only half listening or do not understand or know the meaning of the words. Repeating words or a message to make their point clear and understandable can be very beneficial when using their radios as they may get interference from static or other noises. Feedback is essential when it comes to verbal communication because the receiver of a message may interpret the initial message incorrectly. When one or more steps of the process fails, communication becomes ineffective.

Nonverbal communication can be written communication or forms of body language such as facial and hand expressions, posture, and eye contact (Berkowitz, 1981). Nonverbal communication such as police reports are important for all criminal justice organizations because it helps officers refresh their memory on incidents as well as helps prosecutors while in court. Body language can help an officer tell if somebody is lying, nervous, or acting suspicious (Berkowitz, 1981). Hearing and listening in regards to communication are different. Hearing is the first step in communication and is simply the ability to hear an audio message and but cannot ensure that the message was understood of fully heard. Using body language and tone can help an individual understand a message easier. Listening to an actual message rather than simply hearing it can help understand what is being said completely receive a message.

Active listening is important in communication because it helps not only receive and understand a message but it helps understand the information that is being said to the receiver. An officer must actively listen to information being transmitted to them so they can understand what is going on even if the information is boring or they are uninterested in the topic. Concentrating on listening and using feedback can help make sure a message was completely understood. Channels of communication in a criminal justice organization demonstrate how information moves from one person to another. The channels of communication include both formal and informal methods.

Formal channels of communication such as orders and directives follow the chain of command and provide a sense of order. This type of communication usually moves downward from the highest command such as the chief down to the individuals below. One advantage of using a formal channel of communication is it helps promote uniformity within the department because all officers receive the same information.

A disadvantage of using formal channels is it can stop the free flow of communication because officers may not have much room to exchange information as freely. Informal methods of communication are unofficial routes of delivering information within a criminal justice organization. These channels can include officer to officer exchanges or departmental chatter. Informal communication helps encourage communication between officers and other departments within the criminal justice organization. One advantage of informal channels is the promoting and sharing of information amongst peers which can contribute to completing their duty of serving and protecting the community as a whole. Informal channels exist but do not appear on any organizational chart and are not sanctioned officially by the department (Wallace & Roberson, 2009). There are many barriers that can prevent effective communication within the criminal justice system.

These barriers are emotional, physical, semantic, ineffective listening, and listening speed. Emotional barriers can prevent an individual from communication because they may be too shy to speak or they may have a fear of rejection or mistrust in others (Button & Rossera, 1990). Physical barriers can include long distances, a lack of technology, or equipment may malfunction.

A physical barrier can be any obstruction that impedes or slows down free flowing information (Wallace & Roberson, 2009). Semantic barriers are related to the meaning of the words and there is always a possibility of misunderstanding the meaning of words or the emotions expressed with the words. Ineffective listening can be attributed to many factors such as uninteresting topics, emotional involvement, distractions or offensive words. An individual may only be "half-listening” to the speaker and not completely hear the full message being delivered. Listening speed can be a carrier of communication because the speaker may be speaking too fast and the listener cannot evaluate the meaning of some or all of the words. This can cause the listener to lose concentration and become an ineffective listener. Before a strategy can be implemented it is important to understand what barrier is preventing the communication.

Emotional barriers can be overcome by working on improves one's self or providing support and help for depression or other self-esteem related problem. Physical barriers can be solved by ensuring equipment is properly functioning. Semantic barriers can be improved by using proper word selection and studying grammar. To overcome ineffective listening the individual must learn to become an active listener and if necessary, ask the speaker to repeat the message. When a criminal justice organization can find the barrier preventing communication, they can supply the proper help and support needed to overcome the barrier preventing communication. Effective communication has many steps.

The goal of communication is to exchange information, thoughts, and feelings between people through verbal and nonverbal channels. Criminal justice organizations have formal and informal channels of communication they can use to pass information down from a higher up, or from officer to officer. Hearing is simply hearing audio around an individual whereas listening is understanding and processing what is being said. There are barriers that prevent effective communication, but these barriers can be overcome by finding the cause and implementing the proper strategy to overcome it.