Advanced Business Writing Professor Carol Cron WA-1: Communication Inhibitors Your first writing assignment will be a report on communication inhibitors in your workplace or community. This assignment consists of four parts. Please note that your final paper in WRTG 394 is a research-based report. For this assignment, you are asked to collect real-life examples of barriers (inhibitors) to communication that occur in your work or community environment. The examples of communication barriers that you collect can be from documents, conversations (face-to-face or digital), messages, or meetings. Part I: During the first week of this course, collect real-life examples of barriers (inhibitors) to written and verbal communication occurring in your work environment. The communications you collect can be from documents, conversations (face-to-face or digital), e-mails, or meetings. Then write two paragraphs of 150-200 describing your workplace or community setting you are analyzing, the types of communication in that setting that you are describing, and other details you think might be relevant to the context. Types of communication inhibitors and examples of them can be found in the four articles that are available to you through eReserves. They include but are not limited to: Connotative meanings of words ,Motivational barriers, Personal censors and filters, Emotional barriers, Noise (real and semantic), Organizational barriers, Audience expectations, Artificial voice, Communication structure (or lack of), Linguistic barriers, Direction of communication, Non-verbal barriers, Physical barriers, Competitive barriers , Cultural barriers, Lack of writing purpose, organization, support or clarity Experiential barriers, Forced collaboration, Perceptual barriers, Faculty level of technicality, Poor timing, Faulty level of formality, Excessive subjectivity, Faulty direction.
Part II: After you've collected a minimum of 10 communication samples, identify the inhibitors they represent and define the inhibitors in a bulleted list. The definition you provide should identify the general characteristics of the inhibitor and how it works to impede communication. The definitions should not reference your specific work environment. NOTE: The 10 samples on your list do not have to come from the same place. For example, four can come from your workplace, two can come from a social situation, and two can come from a group (i.e., place of worship, civic association) in which you are involved.
Part III: Analyze the communication samples you have collected in a table with three columns: 1. the communication example either as a direct quote or paraphrase 2. the name of the inhibitor(s) in the example 3. a justification of your selection of the inhibitor(s)
Part IV: Using a scale of 1 to 100, rank your organization's communication effectiveness. Justify and explain the score you award.