Verbal Communication Study Guide

Verbal Communication is an agreed-upon and rule-governed system of symbols used to share meaning.

Symbols are arbitrary representations of thoughts, ideas, emotions, objects, or actions used to encode and decode meaning
Symbols have 3 distinct qualities:
- Arbitrary- no direct relationship to the idea or object they
  represent
- Ambiguous- several possible meanings
- Abstract- words are not physical or material.
Rule-Governed: We all follow an agreed upon set of rules to make sense of the symbols we use.
Phonology: study of speech sounds. It has the rules that tell us what letters sound like and how they are pronounced
Semantic Rules: focuses on the meaning of words based on rules we accept

• Denotative meaning: the standard definition of the word. What you see in the dictionary

• Connotative meaning: based on the meaning according to your personal experience and belief.

• Syntactics: study of language structure and symbolic arrangement

• Pragmatics: studies how people use verbal language and communication

Spoken versus Written Communication

• Synchronous: takes place in real time
• Asynchronous: not immediate, occurs over time

Verbal communication helps us define reality
Verbal communication helps us organize complex ideas and
experiences into meaningful categories.
Verbal communication helps us think.
Verbal communication helps us shape our attitudes about our world.