Communication: Definition 2
Joseph A. Devito in Human Communication (9th ed.) writes, “Communication occurs when one person (or more) sends and receives messages that are distorted by noise, occur within a context, have some effect, and provide some opportunity for feedback” (2).
Observations
1. This definition does not reference either meaning or intention, but the former is probably implied in “messages” and the latter in “sends and receives.”
2. This definition assumes, but does not explicitly state, that the sending and receiving is with another person. Devito does say “one person (or more),” but it is not at all clear how communication can happen with only one person. That is a theoretical question to pose, I suppose: Can one person alone communicate?
3. The statement “occur within a context” is true but perhaps so obvious as to be unhelpful, at least in a definition. After all, would anyone try to communicate in a vacuum? Is a vacuum not still a context? Is a non-context possible?
Observations
1. This definition does not reference either meaning or intention, but the former is probably implied in “messages” and the latter in “sends and receives.”
2. This definition assumes, but does not explicitly state, that the sending and receiving is with another person. Devito does say “one person (or more),” but it is not at all clear how communication can happen with only one person. That is a theoretical question to pose, I suppose: Can one person alone communicate?
3. The statement “occur within a context” is true but perhaps so obvious as to be unhelpful, at least in a definition. After all, would anyone try to communicate in a vacuum? Is a vacuum not still a context? Is a non-context possible?
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