The Listening Process

1. The Listening Process

2. Listening • Listening is a physical and psychological process that involves acquiring, assigning meaning and responding to symbolic messages from others.

3. When is listening important? • School • Listening skills affect your ability to participate in class discussion, ask meaningful questions, give relevant answers and score well on assignments • According to recent research, “faulty listening, more than any other factor, determines student failure in colleges and universities”.

4. When is listening important? • Relationships • Good listeners are valued as friends-seen as caring/sensitive • Sought out as leaders • Able to avoid conflicts

5. When is listening important? • Public Dialogue • Good listening skills allows you to hear all that is being said and make good decisions • A clear understanding of what has been said allows you to participate in conversations both as a citizen and as a consumer

6. When is listening important? • Workplace • Reports from the Dept. of Labor indicate a “direct relationship between listening ability, productivity and job performance • Faulty listening costs businesses $86 billion/year • Faulty listening can lead to inconveniences as well as unsafe work conditions

7. Misconception about listening • Listening and hearing are the same thing • It is easy/automatic • It develops naturally • Anyone can listen if they try • The speaker is primarily responsible for the success of a message • Attitude and listening are unrelated • People remember most of what they hear

8. The Listening Process • Acquiring – hearing • Attending – choosing, consciously or unconsciously to focus your attention on verbal or nonverbal stimuli • Understanding – complex mental process that involves decoding symbolic codes • Responding – listeners internal emotional and intellectual reaction to the message

9. Factors That Affect Listening Process • Biases • Attitudes • Anger • Unfamiliar Language • Ignorance • Communication Overload • Stress • Tuning Out

10. Factors That Affect Listening Process • Hearing Problems • Fatigue • Fear • Beliefs • Needs

11. Effective Listening Skills • Repeat what is said to you. • Write it down. • Maintain eye contact and provide non-verbal cues. • Avoid outside distractions. • Practice • Accept that you will not like everything you hear