Definition of Listening - Listening Vs. Hearing

Listening

Some communication experts content that listening is the keystone communication skill for today's manager. J. Hart Seibert (1990:119-127) estimates that managers typically spend about 9% of a working day reading, 16% writing, 30% talking and 45% listening. Thus, the ability to listen is a vital skill in business. Unfortunately research evidence suggests that most people are not very good at listening. Communication experts estimate that people generally comprehend about 25% of a typical verbal message (Pearce, 1993: 79-80)

Interestingly, this problem is partly due to the fact that we can process information faster than most people talk. The average speaker communicates 125 words per minute while we can process 500 words per minute (Kreitner and Kinichi, 1998: 438). Moreover, the average person remembers only half of what's said during a 10 minutes conversation and forgets half of that within 48 hours (Morgan and Baker, 1985: 35-36) But Means (1991: 70-72) mention that no one is born with the ability to listen, the skill is learned and improved through practice. The understated discussion will help us to develop such skill.

Definition of Listening

Listening involves much more than hearing a message. Hearing is merely the physical component of listening. Pearson and Nelson (1997:48) said, "Listening is the process of receiving an interpreting aural stimuli". Wolvin and Coakley (1998:91) define, "Listening is the process of receiving, attending to and assigning meaning to aural stimuli". That is, listening is using your brain to help you understand the sounds you hear. Your brain helps you give meaning to the sound. You hear with your ears, you listen with your brains. Kreitner and Kinichi (1998:438) define, "Listening is the process of actively decoding and interpreting verbal message". Thus, listening requires cognitive attention and information processing.

Listening Vs. Hearing

Hearing is the sense that allows you to perceive sound. It is a physical act only and only requires reception of sound waves.

Listening is a mental process that requires concentrating on sound, deriving meaning from it and reaching to it. Listening is an active process while hearing is a passive process. Listening is the most important communication skill. We probably spend more time using our listening skill than any other kind of communication skill. Like other skills, listening takes practice. Real listening is an active process and requires attention. Effective listening needs a conscious effort and willing mind. Because listening is a routine activity, few people think of developing listening skill but it's one of the best ways to improve communication skills.

Purposes of Listening

Why do people listen? There are some good reasons for listening. These purposes are discussed below:

1. To gain new information and ideas: Listening intends to gain new information and ideas that indoctrinate us with increased capacity to deal with situations of business. We can arrive at a conclusion that is true, workable and acceptable to many people.

2. To question and test evidence and assumptions: Listening is aimed at testing assumptions and evidences placed by the talker by asking questions and getting justifiable explanation.

3. To be inspired: Listening is destined to inspire people to go into certain action. Sales meetings are known for their rousing kickoffs, their enthusiastic openings seeking