ACTIVE LISTENING & PURPOSEFUL LISTENING

EFFECTIVE LISTENING KEEP QUITE- as much as possible. DON’T LEAD- unless you want to hear the opposite of what is being said DON’T REACT DEFENSIVELY- if what you hear bothers you AVOID CLICHES- to make meaningful statements REMAIN NEUTRAL- no matter what you think of others RESIST GIVING ADVICE- until asked for directly

RESPONSIVE LISTENING LYNETTE LONG defines communication process as one in which: What the speaker feels and what s/he means to say are not the same What s/he means to say and what she/he actually says are different What s/he says and what the listener hears are also different .It is a wonder, then, that what the speaker thinks is ever what the listener hears

LONG’S BASIC CONCEPTS OF RESPONSES BASIC REFLETIVE RESPONSE The easiest way to do this is to reflect Which can be done by the listener if he paraphrases the message of the sender. This helps the speaker know that the message has been heard accurately Examples.

COMPONENTS OF A MESSAGE Experiential component : which answers the question what happened? Cognitive component : describes what the speaker thinks about what happened. Affective Element: reveals what the speaker feels about what happened. This is more emotional than analytical.

SO IT IS FOR THE LISTENER TO LISTEN TO UNDERSTAND TO RESPOND TO THE COMPONENTS

BASIC CLARIFICATION RESPONSE A clarifying response is more refined than a reflective response The clarifying listener tries to understand the thoughts and feelings of the speaker by placing him or herself in the speaker’s position. Clarifying listeners integrate both verbal and non verbal messages to gain full understanding of the message and bring into focus and attend to details of the communication that otherwise may go unnoticed.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO Reflective Listeners repeat the content of the message whereas the clarifying listener amplifies the stimulus statement. A clarifying response responds to what is said as well as not said. They add deeper feeling and meaning to the expression of the speaker.

PLEASE REMEMBER !!! Amplify means to explain something that you have said by giving more information about it. Elaborate means to give more details or new information about something. Clarify means to make something clearer or easier to understand.

Difference between Clarifying and Interpretive Listeners The focus of clarification is on the speaker and the listener remains engaged in understanding the speaker’s feeling and thoughts The clarifying listener adds NO new information to the speaker’s statement The listener expands the message but does not interpret it. This is done also to help the speaker understand his or her feelings in a better way.

Interpretive Listeners Add new content and feeling to the expressions of the speaker These expressions are not contained in the message but are based upon the listener’s projection about the speaker Interpretations are based on the listeners knowledge of the speaker, on the way humans react in similar situations or the listeners personal biases and opinions The speaker may or may not agree with this

Continued…. Incorrect interpretations shows lack of understanding on the part of the listener To develop as a listener one should first listen to what is said and not ask why it is being said The listener should develop the ability to clarify rather than interpret what others say to be able to respond succesfully

Thank you