4 DEC SS Q.14
0. Which of the following groups has the components of paralanguage communication?
- Option : A
- Explanation : There are 8 different types of non-verbal
communication
(a) Social space
(h) Time
(c) Physical characteristics
(d) Body movements
(e) Touch
(f) Paralanguage
(g) Artifacts
(h) Environment
Of these, paralanguage constitutes the following:
(i) Voice quality, e.g., sweet, soft, musical, cultivated, pleasant, nasty, clear or indistinct, among other things; it reveals a speaker's background, mental state, education, sex and temperament
(ii) Word stress or optimum emphasis on the right words for right effect
(iii) Intonation or the modulation of the voice and the shift in stress; e.g., a message with serious content is delivered in a sombre rather than high tone.
(iv) Pitch or the vocal slant of the voice; it reveals the speaker's frame of mind, e.g., an unusually high pitch may reflect agitation, an unchanging pitch may get monotonous. The pitch also indicates the speaker's social position; e.g., a person in a position of authority uses a higher pitch than a subordinate.
(v) Pause which is akin to punctuation in prose; it introduces variety, and lays emphasis on a message; used at the wrong place, it may lead to miscommunication.
(vi) Volume variation of voice to suit the size of the audience; the larger the audience, the louder the voice must be to be audible and effective.
(vii) Mixed signals which occur when the tone, pitch and facial expressions of the speaker do not match the spoken words, and confuse the listener about the speaker's intent; e.g., praise delivered in a sarcastic tone will amount to ridicule.
(viii)Overall impression or the speaker's manner, attitude, dressing style, physical appearance, etc., which contribute much to the audience perception.
