listening styles and effective listening

In many of today's cultures, comprehension may include a knowledge of people using neutral pronouns or preferred pronouns.

For example, if you are listening to someone communicate with a disability such as autism, you will need to pay close attention and forego common methods of organizing information as it is received. Attentiveness can be emphasized not just in one's ability to listen, but to listen and respond with sensitivity to particular needs or cultural norms. In addition, careful attention should be paid to repeated parts of the message being communicated. Bottom-up listening for comprehension will involve an attentiveness to emphasized words such as longer or louder words. Top-down listening for comprehension will involve preparing for what message is likely going to be given, attempting to organize what is being communicated, and listening for summarizations or shifts in topic. This can be done through top-down or bottom-up listening strategies. Comprehension is a shared meaning between parties in communication. The first step in the active listening process is that of comprehension. 'Many studies suggest that even the smallest improvements in a person’s listening ability can have a noticeable impact on the overall effectiveness of communication and productivity.' Developing this skill of active listening can positively impact the speakers and the listeners' mutual understanding and relationship.įrom the speakers’ perspective, listening is a multidimensional construct that includes attention, comprehension, and positive intention. People who have been listened to in this new and special way become more emotionally mature, more open to their experiences, less defensive, more democratic, and less authoritarian.' Technique Īctive listening comprises several components by the listener, who must pay attention to what the speaker is attempting to communicate and elicit clarification where necessary for comprehension. Listening brings about changes in peoples' attitudes toward themselves and others it also brings about changes in their basic values and personal philosophy. Despite the popular notion that listening is a passive approach, clinical and research evidence clearly shows that sensitive listening is a most effective agent for individual personality change and group development. Rogers and Farson write: 'Active listening is an important way to bring about changes in people. Practicing active listening also emphasized Rogers' (1980) concept of three facilitative conditions for effective counseling empathy, genuineness, and unconditional positive regard. Ĭarl Rogers and Richard Farson coined the term 'active listening' in 1957 in a paper of the same title (reprinted in 1987 in the volume Communicating in Business Today). I can keep my wandering mind a great deal more closely upon a conversation or a lecture if I actively re-echo to myself the words than if I simply hear them and I find a number of my students who report benefit from voluntarily adopting a similar course. articulating to one’s self the words seen or heard, ought to deepen one’s attention to the latter.

reading not merely with the eye, and of listening not merely with the ear, but. William James identified a variety of attention called 'the reproduction of the sensation from within.' He suggested that people could learn more by engaging this ability directly: Active listening was introduced by Carl Rogers and Richard Farson, in 1957. By actively listening to another person a sense of belonging and mutual understanding between the two individuals is created. It may also be referred to as Reflective Listening. The overall goal of active listening is to eliminate any misunderstandings and establish clear communication of thoughts and ideas between the speaker and listener. Speakers receive confirmation their point is coming across and listeners absorb more content and understanding by being consciously engaged. This form of listening conveys a mutual understanding between speaker and listener.

Active listening includes asking wide-eyed questions such as, 'How did you feel?' or 'What did you think?'.

It is listening with the intent to understand the other person fully, rather than listening to respond. Active listening is being fully engaged while another person is talking to you. Active listening is listening on purpose. ( March 2021)Īctive listening is the practice of preparing to listen, observing what verbal and non-verbal messages are being sent, and then providing appropriate feedback for the sake of showing attentiveness to the message being presented. This section needs expansion with: Summarise what active listening is.

Listening styles and effective listening