Overcoming Barriers in Communication Communication is a key part in everyone’s life. Communicating is a skill that requires constant learning. As easy as communicating may seem to be, communication is a rather complex skill for all people to master. Multiple barriers exist for communication. For the purpose of this paper there will be three specific communication barriers discussed, which consist of: differences in people’s cultures, language interpretations, and a person’s ability to listen properly. When it comes to the differentiations between cultures, three prominent aspects are present. These are: language, cultural background (i.e. age, gender, level of education), and economic status. People must understand that every language
One example of a word with different meanings is the British English word hire, which means to rent versus the American English word hire, which means to employ. One word having different meanings within different cultures can create barriers in communication within a team.
Additionally, using slang can create challenges in written communication. The reader may not be able to differentiate the meaning of the slang word from the traditional word. Furthermore, various writing styles between cultures can affect the manner in which the reader interprets the written word. In addition, using idioms or a special vocabulary can pose as a barrier to effective communication. An example developed by the team is the phrase: “it is raining cats and dogs.” To the members of our team this phrase means that the rain is coming down hard, nevertheless, another group might interpret each word’s meaning separately and have the confusion that the sentence means literal falling of cats and dogs from the sky.
To overcoming language barriers, an individual or team can use words that the average reader can understand by first properly identifying the audience. The author can use more specific and accurate words as much as possible to illustrate the correct meaning while avoiding slang word usage. As a reader, try to deduce what the writer is attempting to achieve in his or her writing. Furthermore, the reader should try not