Perception: A Determinant for Effective Communication

Communication may be the process whereby a source encodes a message and sends it through a medium to a receiver. It may even involve the sending of a feedback by the receiver to the source; however, effective communication goes far beyond this level. It has been observed that the fact that a receiver receives the actual message does not guarantee that he interprets it in the way intended by the source. Any message received is interpreted in the light of the perception of the receiver. This study therefore examines the relevance and significance of perception to communication. It also examines what communication is, and how the process is mediated by the perceptual process. A Perceptual Communication Model is proposed in the study to explain the relationship between communication and perception. The study concludes by suggesting that communicators should design messages in terms of their receivers' perceptual inclination rather than focusing entirely on the elements of the communication SOPHIA: An African Journal of Philosophy Vol. 9 (1) 2006: pp. 148-15