Bcom 275 - Business Communication and Critical Thinking

"Demonstrative Communication"

June 3, 2012

Axia University

BCOM 275 - "Business Communication and Critical Thinking"

Alicia Snedeker

Communication is defined as the imparting or exchanging of information or news. It involves the exchange of thoughts, messages or information such as speeches, signals, tone of voice, writing or a behavior. Communication is accomplished through verbally and nonverbally. Verbal communication includes both oral and written communication. Nonverbal communication includes such things as facial expressions, body language, eye contact and gestures.

Demonstrative Communication can be both effective and positive:

It deals with sending and receiving wordless communication. Demonstrative communication is used to reinforce verbal communication though it can stand alone and convey messages on its own. The most common nonverbal communication is facial communication.

Demonstrative communication reinforces verbal communication. For instance a person who dresses properly, uses a firm handshake and has a friendly demeanor can say a lot about the person, especially during something like a job interview. These qualities can be relied on to reinforce a persons' verbal performance. When meeting another person one pays attention to whether they are approachable or not by watching to see if the person is smiling or not. A person can gain insight into what others might think about them by the nonverbal communication they use. Also someone could gauge another's reaction to get either positive or negative feedback and be able to use it to their advantage. For example a realtor tells a customer the price of a house they are looking at to purchase and the customer whistles, rolls his eyes and turns away. It would be safe to assume to the realtor that the price of the house is too high for the customer and that he should look for houses with a lower price.

Demonstrative communication allows for self expression. How a person presents themselves can say a lot to others about a person. For example s business person dresses in a power suit and walks with pride and confidence to show that he or she is successful and in charge which allows them to demand respect without overtly seeking it.

Demonstrative Communication can be both Ineffective and Negative

Demonstrative communication is used by people everyday such as hairstyles, their clothing, tattoos, symbols, and architecture just to name a few. People need to be aware of how demonstrative communication is perceived because it can also be wrong and easily misread. People can perceive facial expressions, gestures and appearances differently. Each one means something different to each person. For example,