Business Communication

1. Chapter 4
The Filter of the Mind

2.  Our inabilities to perceive the reality is not only due to our
perception limitation but it is also a matter of how we
handle (interpret)the reality that our senses detect.
 This task is specially done in the mind. So the filtering
process is important for the realization of the reality.
 The filtering process of the mind includes:
1. Knowledge
2. Viewpoints
3. Emotions.

3. 1. A Storehouse of Knowledge
(How knowledge affect our communication?)
 Knowledge stored in the filter determines the meaning that
we give to the perception.
 We only stored what we learn. And we learn from
experience and reading.
 Our learning process start from our childhood. However,
the trend of getting and forgetting knowledge goes on.
 The knowledge stored is forever changing. We go on
acquiring new knowledge and revising the old one.

4. Knowledge determines the interpretation of
the meaning. Correct knowledge leads to the
correct interpretation. But the lack of
knowledge leads to the misinterpretation.
Knowledge can be both true or false. And they
both determine the meaning.

5. 2. The Role of Opinion, Attitudes, and
Beliefs (Viewpoints)
What does it mean?
- Viewpoints (opinions, attitudes and beliefs) are
not like knowledge. They are based on human
sentiments and emotions. So they do not convey
the complete truth. Or, they are not factual.
- In the surface level, the term mean same.
However, they differ in the degree of intensity
with which we hold them.

6. Opinion
(less important matter of reality)
- It refers to those areas of reality that are least critical in our
life.
- For example- opinion on fashion and the way of life etc…)
Attitude
(more important matter of reality)
- It refers to more important matter of reality because they
are the intermediate concern of in human life.
- For example- the viewpoints of the employment for people
and the rights for the women…

7. Beliefs
(most important matter of reality)
- It refers to the most critical values in human life.
Those values which define the human culture,
civilization and identity as a whole.
- For example- the viewpoints on the God, morality
and ethics…
However, the demarcation lines among them do
not properly work. They overlap one another.

8. How Viewpoints are Formed?
The study of viewpoints are quite complex task because it is a
psychological phenomena. However, they can be formed in five
different ways:
1. Through objective reasoning
- It is a rational process of taking decision (finding knowledge).
- Most knowledgeable and wise people follow this process before
taking decision.
 But it has also a drawback because most of the time we response
to the things on the basis of our feelings than facts- Harold Leavitt
- Human beings are not always rational.

9. 2. Social strata and viewpoints
- Social strata plays an important role in determining the viewpoints.
- Here social strata refers to the levels of society. That is it divides the
people in different backgrounds: religious, economical, racial and
gender.
- So we always form our viewpoints according to the social strata we
belong.
- The experience (knowledge) that we get from social strata affects
our viewpoints.

10. There are five components of social strata that influence
our viewpoints:
(I) Economic class
It includes: economic status, education and occupation.
- Class always shape the thinking of human beings.
(ii) Residence or geography
- Geography determines our thinking.
- People from different geography think differently.

11. (iii) Ethnic inheritances
- It studies the people’s thought on the basis of their national, religious
and racial origin.
- Thus, this ethnic inheritance shape people psychology and
ultimately their thought.
(iv) Sex
- Sex determines the thinking. For example: male and female’s
position in the society
(v) Age
- Age is also a crucial factor that determines our thinking. People from
different age group think differently.

12. 3. Early Influence of the Family
- We learn most of the things from our family
(members). And they play an important role in forming
our viewpoints through out our life.
- We are like parrot. We copied from the family
members.
- Our viewpoints on religion, politics and culture are
reflected from our families.

13. 4. Change Effects of Group
- Some of our viewpoints may later be changed according to
the groups (friends, social and religious, political etc.) we
belong to.
- We speak and behave according to the group we belong.
- Here, somehow we may either correct our thought or may
change it.
- When we change the group we adopt the viewpoint of the
new group.

14. 5. Self- interest as a Determinant Viewpoint
- We hold viewpoint because of our self
interest.
- We try generalize our self interest and treat it
as a truth.

15. How Viewpoint Affect
Communication ?
- Once formed viewpoints are difficult to change it. It may persist within us
through out life.
- The longer we hold a viewpoint, the more we resist changing them.
- The resistance to change is especially happen to those viewpoints in which
we are emotionally involved. For example: the religious group and the
political party…
- Sometimes we may change it, but it takes time.
- Here, we only accept those information that support our viewpoints, and
rejects those which do not support us.
- Such an activity really affect the meaning in communication.

16. 3. The Influence of Emotion
 It is the third important factor in filtering.
 Emotion- it is something that identifies the human
beings. Without emotion we are equal to the plants.
- It is a source of energy that makes our mind work and
make us alive.
 We emotionally response to the thing that we perceive
through our senses. And this response is automatic.
Even we try to stop it, we can not.

17. Our emotion to the perceived thing determined
the meaning that we impose on that certain sign.
Or the mind’s emotional state at the time of
receiving the sign determines the meaning that
we gives to them.
For example, even a cheerful good morning may
give negative implication to the person who is
upset. And the same greeting may get a positive
meaning to a happy person.