Information Processing: Communicating for Clarity

Communication effectiveness depends on realistic message processing. Yet per­ception, as we have seen, is open to distortions and biases. If we often see and hear what we wish rather than what exists in fact, how can we communicate accurately and fairly? Let’s have a look at different ways in which message senders can make it easier for receivers to process information.

Steps in Information Processing

Information processing is an active process of creating and storing meaning. Although we never completely shut off this process (even when asleep, we make sense of the world through dreams), we may close down our processing of a particular message, especially if the message is poorly designed. Our attention can wander, we can misinterpret the message, or we can forget it almost before it is over. Because there are so many points at which processing can break down, it is important to understand factors that make messages vulnerable to distortion. One way to examine these factors is to divide information process­ing into three steps and look at each in turn, keeping in mind, of course, that the steps are interrelated.

The first step in information processing is attention. Here receivers filter out extraneous stimuli and focus on the elements that are central to a message. This step is important: if attention fails, receivers will focus on unimportant de­tails and miss vital information.

The second step, interpretation, consists of two parts: comprehension and acceptance. When receivers comprehend a message, they understand its mean­ing and intent, and they relate it to other information. If comprehension fails, re­ceivers are confused and uncertain about the point of the message. Acceptance occurs when receivers evaluate the message and decide it is worth further pro­cessing. As a result of acceptance, receivers incorporate message elements into their own belief systems and, in the case of persuasive messages, act on this in­formation. Comprehension and acceptance are interrelated. Without some de­gree of acceptance, receivers will dismiss a message without bothering to com­prehend it. Conversely, without comprehension full acceptance is impossible.

The third step is retention. If messages are to be of any use, receivers must store them accurately and retrieve them at appropriate times. All three of these steps must occur if a message is to be effectively processed, and good communi­cators design their messages so that all three steps occur.

Capturing Attention

Scholars who study information processing often distinguish between two kinds of attention: voluntary and involuntary. Voluntary attention occurs when we willfully focus our attention on a stimulus; it is attention guided by personal plans and goals. Involuntary attention is attention spontaneously at­tracted by the intrinsic properties of a stimulus; it lies outside our control. When we listen to a debate to find out a candidate's position on a particular issue or pore over a map to make sure we are going in the right direction, we are engaging in voluntary attention. When we have no particular plan but simply scan our surroundings and focus on interesting or unusual stimuli, we are en­gaging in involuntary attention.

A skilled communicator must consider both kinds of attention when de­signing messages. Voluntary attention can be increased by motivating receivers to focus on the message. If a receiver’s needs and desires are strong, the message sender merely needs to let the receiver know that the message is related to the receiver's needs. An unemployed person, for example, will be receptive to a speech on how to get a good job. To someone with a perfectly good job, how­ever, the same speech is less interesting, and the speaker may have to create mo­tivation, perhaps by showing the receiver that the information will be useful in the future or can lead to job advancement now. In either case, voluntary attention can be increased by relating message elements to receivers’ goals, needs, or plans.

Involuntary attention works differently. To increase involuntary attention, one must create vivid and compelling message elements that cannot be ignored. What kinds of stimuli have the potential to arouse involuntary attention? Stimuli that are intense, novel, complex, surprising, and incongruous. Vivid colours, loud sounds, and sharp contrasts instantly cap­ture our attention. In addition, evidence suggests that we prefer visual over other sensory modalities – that a picture is worth a thousand words. In terms of verbal material, therefore, vivid, concrete, easily visualized in­formation draws our attention more easily than does drier, more abstract information. We also pay special attention to information that is surprising or that violates well-established schemata.

Public speakers may add special “attention getters” to their speeches. By using humor, startling statements, or vivid descriptions, a sender can make a message immediately appealing. Similarly, color, contrast, and unusual images in a print ad capture our interest even when we are not particularly motivated to pay attention.

Of course, vivid stimuli are not always desirable. If audience members are anxious, intense stimuli may make them feel uncomfortable. And competing stimuli in the speaking environment can draw attention away from a message. When deciding where to speak, it’s important for communicators to choose environments that are interesting enough to keep receivers alert, but not so interesting that involuntary attention takes receivers away from the intended message.

Controlling Interpretation

Message elements can be vivid and compelling, but if the message as a whole is unintelligible or unacceptable, it will not be effective. Receivers often interpret and evaluate messages in ways the sender did not intend. Senders can overcome this problem by making sure that the message is easy to understand and that the information it contains is valuable and relevant.