COMMUNICATION MODELS

Communication allows us to convey meaningful information, using a variety of methods both verbal and non-verbal.  To interpret the communication, we must consider the system in which it takes place.  The study of Communication can be traced back over 2500 years!  During that time, several different Communication Models have been introduced.

The Linear Model of Communication was designed by Harold Laswell in 1948.  It presented communication as a one-way process in which one person acts based on another person.  It poses the questions:

1.       Who?
2.       Says what?
3.       In what channel?
4.       To whom?
5.       With what effect?

For more information on the Linear Model of Communication, visit The Communication Theory.



In 1949, the Shannon & Weaver Model was introduced.  It refined Laswell’s model by adding the concept of noise.  While this model literally referred to noise interference on a telephone line, it has since been adapted to mean anything that interferes with the intended meaning of communication.

For more information on the Shannon & Weaver Model of Communication, visit The University of Rhode Island.

Wilbur Schramm introduced the concept of feedback and a two-way interchange into the communication model.  He believed that the more communicators’ field of expertise overlapped, the more they were able to understand one another.

For more information on Schramm’s Model of Communication, visit SHKaminski.

The Transactional Model of Communication introduced the concept of communication taking place simultaneously between people.  It recognized that communication is not a constant and that it is constantly evolving over time.

You can find more information on the Transactional Model of Communication at Changing Minds.