Barriers to Effective Listening Essay

Tony Robins hit the nail on the head when he said, “To effectively communicate, we must realize that we are all different in the way we perceive the world and use this understanding as a guide to our communication with others.” There are several different factors that influence the communication between medical professionals like doctors, nurses and respiratory therapists and the patients they treat. A few of these include the ability to explain or comprehend information, time spent face to face with patients, and the inability to practice active listening. The first interaction with a patient will set the tone for their care and the more comfortable a patient feels, the more they will divulge during their initial interview.

I know how to speak, and I can hear when people talk to me, but why is it that we still consume ineffective listening skills between one another? When we think of effective listening at work or on the job, most of us think of what we actually say or what is said to us. What I am going to cover is the factors and barriers of effective communication, strategies for active, critical and empathic listening and understanding the impact of gender and culture on interpersonal communication.

A vital aspect of interpersonal communication is the style in which one listens. While every individual possesses their own preferred method of listening in communication, it can be enlightening to analyze our own strengths and weaknesses so as to maximize effectual communication. Within the confines of four main listening style categories, I have chosen those which best describe my own personal listening style.

In the book of “Why dont we listen better?” by James C. Peterson, he provides the readers with a strategic understanding of listening and how executing the skill can significantly impact your social life. While reading this book, I noticed a lot of repetition stated by Mr. Peterson, a method in which I found to be very interesting and helpful. Alongside of repetition, he also introduced various methods used to effectively communicate with each other separated into five sections. Part One: Options in Communicating, Part Two: The Talker-Listener Process, Part Three: The Listening Techniques, Part Four: Using the TLC in groups, and Part Five: Concluding Philosophy.

How do people communicate? How do they listen? These are some of the questions that I will answer. I will also provide examples of verbal and nonverbal communication as well as explain how knowledge of nonverbal communication can help when communicating with others. I will also analyze my personal results for the Student Listening Inventory and explain what I do well and where I can improve.

Given that listening accounts for 45 per cent of time spent on communication (Eunson 2012:310), argue the importance of listening skills in the workplace. Your analysis should identify three specific listening behaviors and provide examples to demonstrate how these skills promote communication and understanding. Support your analysis with relevant communication theory and evidence from appropriate academic sources.

Listening skill is a vital skill that everyone must obtain in order to succeed in any career field. According to Elmhost (2013), “Talking instead of listening can lead professionals to miss important information. One analysis of physician–patient interviews revealed that the more doctors talked, the more they got off track and failed to address concerns raised by the patients.” (p.61). All the listening styles in the textbook are all valuable and all of them are essential for developing and improving listening ability. There two types of listening styles that are very functional at a working environment which are critical listening and task-oriented listening and most people are using these styles every day at work. Critical listening is when

A good method on how to be a decent listener is learning to have an open and approachable understanding. As you look for openings to widen the awareness when listening, and to obtain fresh thoughts or perceptions, instead of supporting the current ideas or interpretation. The need to listen to others as well as to be heard. It occurred to me that the need to be heard is probably one of the most fundamental needs a individual can have. We need acknowledgement. We need someone to look at us. We need to know that others know we exist. We need to know that not only do others know we exist but that our existence means something. In my overview I gave a short analysis on the significance of listening. I discover that effective listening is vital and essential to communicating in cooperation to desires and demands inside an interactive

James Peterson’s book entitled “Why don't we listen better”; goal is to present ways to enhance our listening skills. Peterson believes good listening and talking skills are vital in order to communicate efficiently. Peterson describes two types of communications. Level 1 communication which involves facts and discusses each other’s point of view and Level 2 in which trust and sharing develops.

In today’s society, where communication is advanced, the importance of listening skills is often times discounted for its importance in communication. Research shows that 45% of adults spend their time listening which is a skill that must be developed. According to, “Skilled Interaction: Research, Theory and Practice”, (London: Routledge, 2011) (p.177), the average worker spends 50% or more of their day listening while managers spend over 65% of their day listening.

This paper evaluates the several main effective listening responses; prompting, questioning, paraphrasing, supportive, analyzing, advising, and judging. This paper also explains how they are applied in society, and how they can be used. The paper also goes over the definitions of these responses and when it is ideally appropriate to use said responses. We will also go over the importance of mindfulness. J. T. Wood (2014) says that the first step in finding an effective response is to be mindful. This paper explains the steps that are to be taken to have effective listening skills that will later bring you to having a response. Adia Lane (2012) suggests that we use the knowledge of knowing the other person's personal style. . We will also discuss

The ability to listen well is an important tool for understanding others. Sadly, very few people know how to listen well. In fact, most people can think of only one or two good listeners in their lives. Listening is not simply agreeing - it is much more. Good listeners are able to better understand and respond to others, complete assignments accurately, settle disagreements before they escalate, and establish rapport with difficult people.

Listening is more complex, and it encourages one to analyze and think about an idea, rather than to simply accept it (or “hear” it). Hearing is a skill that is beneficial for every aspect of life. As long as we have our ability to hear, we will always perceive different sounds, music, and voices. Listening, however, is beneficial to us in specific instances. It is important for us to attain good listening skills in education, the work force, and in our relationships with others in order to succeed. Good listening in education will bring about confident participation in class discussions; good listening in the workplace will lead to cooperation and good teamwork among colleagues; good listening in relationships is healthy and positive, for it is important to hear what an individual has to say in order to know how they feel.

Listening is a vital element of communication and it is very much different from hearing sense of human. A meaningful communication requires both a good listener and a speaker. However, the effect of a listening style may vary depending on the occasions and situations a listener is in. Sometimes, speaker exhibit ineffective style such as defensiveness, ambushing, pseudo-listening, stage hogging and selective listening in their communication tracks.

There are several methods to achieving effective listening. Concentrate on what others are saying. Make yourself shut out other challenges facing you and simply listen. Don't allow yourself to do other things as you listen, such as answering the phone, doing paperwork, or checking your e-mail. Effective listening is difficult and requires all of your attention and effort. The listener needs to focus on what is being said so they will not misinterpret what the speaker is trying to say. Paraphrase or rephrase what the speaker was saying in your own words to ensure that you heard the information accurately. It is important to