Effective Communication
CJA/304
July 28, 2014
Professor

Effective Communication Communication is the key to a healthy, fully operational workplace. Criminal justice organizations use communication to connect with suspects, victims, co-workers, and management. Communication can sometimes be simple, but often individuals must overcome barriers to get the message through. Over time, strategies for overcoming these barriers have been applied in the criminal justice world. Connecting with others effectively requires effort and relying on the communication process. Verbal communication is the use of words sent to a receiver from a sender. The process of verbal communication starts with a sender taking a message and sending it thorough a medium to a receiver. For example, one officer talking to a suspect and asks, “Where were you around 10:30 p.m. last night?” The officer initiated verbal communication to the suspect by asking the question. From here, the suspect responds by verbally communicating back to the officer. The idea transmitted to the suspect is then processed. The final step in this process is feedback to the officer. Feedback is an important piece in the verbal communication process. “Feedback is the process that allows persons transmitting messages to adapt to the receiver. Various forms of feedback exist, all of which may be combined or merged to present data to the person transmitting the message” (Wallace & Roberson, 2009, p. 58). Unlike verbal communication, nonverbal communication can come in different forms. Body language, writing and even sign language for the deaf is in the nonverbal category. Nonverbal communication requires feedback, but it does not happen as quickly as verbal or oral communication. Feedback is returned to the sender in various ways. Positive feedback can be initiated by a pleasant, verbal response or unspoken gesture. This feedback assures the sender that the message was acknowledged and accepted. Negative and positive feedback plays vital roles in the communication process. Negative feedback lets the sender know his messages were not agreed with. This allows the sender and receiver to continue communication to come to an understanding of the information contained in the message. There are two speeds that feedback is given. Immediate feedback is delivered in the physical presence of the sender and receiver. Feedback that is given immediately can help to diminish any misunderstanding of the message. Delayed feedback can be given orally or written messages. Often the delayed messaging can cause communication to become confusing, but nevertheless, the message is being received. Feedback can be beneficial whether you are receiving, giving or using it. Receiving feedback is not only about listening to what the receiver is being told, but actually taking action on that information. Overall, the feedback process is all about trust. For an officer to use feedback from another officer there must a mutual understanding that information is factual and useful. If there is no trust, the officer’s messages will be bounced around with no meaning or end state of understanding. When officers communicate with each other they hear the sounds of one another’s voice. “Hearing occurs when your ears physically pick up sound waves, which are then transmitted to the brain” (Wallace & Roberson, 2009, p. 51). There is a huge difference between hearing and listening to information. Listening entails actively taking in information, evaluating it, and responding to the message sender. Listening to information is a vital piece of the communication process. Like many organizations, police departments use a chain of command. The chain of command is used to bring order to a department. Communication through formal channels is described as formal orders, directives, and written memorandums. These forms of communication allow the department to stay organized and the employees to follow strict guidelines. Unlike formal channels, informal channels are more disorganized but can be beneficial for a department. Some investigations need cooperation between departments to solve a case. Police officers and investigators use these communication channels to bypass the chain of command and directly connect to each other. “These are the highways and back roads on which information moves from one point to another” (Wallace & Roberson, 2009, p. 19). Although these communication channels are useful, there are still barriers that need to be overcome. Emotional, semantic, physical and ineffective listening is among the barriers we run in to. Emotional barriers can come from officers who bring their home life to work with them. Excitement and stress can cause disarray in the communication process. Ways to overcome emotional barriers is to keep your work and home life separate. Stress can come from a heavy workload. Officers overcome stress by eating healthy, exercising, and using their peer support group to talk things out. Semantics in criminal justice organizations comes from officers taking words out of context and not entirely understanding the meaning. Simple feedback from one officer to another can clear this confusion up. Malfunctioning equipment such as radios can become a physical barrier to communication. Radio malfunctions happen because of the environment or from lack of preparation by officers before their shift. Properly preparing for an upcoming shift can help to overcome this barrier. Sometimes environmental issues can’t be fixed but relocating is always an option to get radio communications. Lastly, ineffective listening is a barrier that is only overcome by the receiver becoming an active listener. Police officers become active listeners by paying attention when communicating with another officer. Eye contact, instant feedback, and understanding the message are ways to accomplish active listening. Criminal justice organizations rely on communication to operate proficiently. Police officers rely on effective feedback, understanding, and strategies for overcoming communication barriers to do their duties. Without efficient communication, police departments would have trouble connecting with other officers and bringing people to justice.

References
Wallace, H., & Roberson, C. (2009). Written and Interpersonal Communication Methods for Law Enforcement (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall.