Communication is complex.
The evolution of the circular explanation of communication was com- pleted with the development of Barnlund’s transactional model. The transac- tional approach assumes that messages are sent and received simultaneously by source/receivers. The ongoing, continuous nature of the process of commu- nication is implicit in this model.
In the transactional model, communicators simultaneously transmit and receive messages. Effective communicators pay close attention to the mes- sages being sent to them as they talk with others. The typical classroom lec- ture demonstrates how we act as senders and receivers at the same time. Even though only one person (the instructor) delivers the lecture, students provide important information about how the lecture is being received. If the lecture is interesting, listeners respond with smiles, head nods, and questions. If the lec- ture is boring, class members may fidget, fall asleep, surf their e-mail, or glance frequently at their watches. These responses are transmitted through- out the lecture. Thus, both the instructor and students simultaneously act as message source and receiver.
Communication is complex. Communication involves more than just one person sending a message to another. The process involves the negotiation of shared interpretations and understanding. Barnlund explains that when you have a conversation with another person there are, in a sense, six people involved in the conversation.
1. Who you think you are 2. Who you think the other person is 3. Who you think the other person thinks you are 4. Who the other person thinks he or she is 5. Who the other person thinks you are 6. Who the other person thinks you think he or she is Communication is irreversible. Like a permanent ink stain, communication
is indelible. If you have ever tried to “take back” something you have said to another person, you know that while you can apologize for saying something
An Interaction Model of Communication
SOURCE RECEIVER
feedback
A Transactional Model of Communication
SOURCE
SOURCE
SOURCE
SOURCE
RECEIVER
RECEIVER
Hackman-Johnson 6E.book Page 9 Tuesday, March 12, 2013 12:54 PM
10 Chapter One
inappropriate, you cannot erase your message. Many times in the heat of an argument we say something that hurts someone. After the argument has cooled down, we generally say we are sorry for our insensitive remarks. Even though the apology is accepted and the remark is retracted, the words con- tinue to shape the relationship. The other person may still wonder, “Did he/ she really mean it?” We can never completely un-communicate.
Communication involves the total personality. A person’s communication cannot be viewed separately from the person. Communication is more than a set of behaviors; it is the primary, defining characteristic of a human being. Our view of self and others is shaped, defined, and maintained through communication.
Now that you have a better understanding of the process of human com- munication, we will examine the special nature of leadership communication.
Leadership: A Special Form of Human Communication One way to isolate the unique characteristics of leadership is to look at
how others have defined the term. According to James MacGregor Burns, the scholar attributed with founding contemporary leadership studies, “Leader- ship is one of the most observed and least understood phenomena on Earth.”9 Indeed, Joseph Rost found there were 221 definitions of leadership published in books and articles between 1900 and 1990—a number that likely has dou- bled given the recent interest in leadership since his review.10 With so many definitions of leadership in print it is helpful to classify these conceptions into broader categories. Four primary definitional themes emerge.
Leadership is about who you are. This definitional theme focuses on leader traits and attributes and is one of the oldest ways of conceptualizing leadership. The emphasis is on identifying the characteristics that define “born leaders.” Examples of such definitions of leadership published in the early part of the twentieth century are “personality in action . . . in such a way that the course of action of the many is changed by the one,”11 and “[the] person who possesses the greatest number of desirable traits of personality and character.”12
Leadership is about how you act. From this perspective, leadership is defined as the exercise of influence or power. To identify leaders, we need to determine who is influencing whom. For example, Paul Hersey defines leader- ship as “any attempt to influence the behavior of another individual or group.”13 Bernard Bass argues that “an effort to influence others is attempted leadership.”14 When others actually change, then leadership is successful. Swedish researcher Mats Alvesson focuses on the influence process from a communication perspective, arguing that leadership is a “culture-influencing activity” that involves the “management of meaning.”15
Leadership is about what you do. This definitional thread focuses on the importance of followers. Leader influence attempts are neither random nor self-centered. Instead, leaders channel their influence and encourage change in order to meet the needs or to reach the goals of a group (task force, business organization, social movement, state legislature, military unit, nation). Note the group orientation in the following definitions:
• the behavior of an individual when he/she is involved in directing group activities;16
Hackman-Johnson 6E.book Page 10 Tuesday, March 12, 2013 12:54 PM
Leadership and Communication 11
• the process (act) of influencing the activities of an organized group toward goal setting and goal achievement.17
Placing leadership in the context of group achievement helps to clarify the difference between leadership and persuasion. Persuasion involves changing attitudes and behavior through rational and emotional arguments. Since per- suasive tactics can be used solely for personal gain, persuasion is not always a leadership activity. Persuasion, although critical to effective leadership, is only one of many influence tools available to a leader.
Leadership is about how you work with others. This definitional theme emphasizes collaboration. Leaders and followers establish mutual purposes and work together as partners to reach their goals. Success is the product of leaders’ and followers’ joint efforts. Joseph Rost highlights the interdepen- dence of leaders/followers this way: “Leadership is an influence relationship among leaders and their collaborators [followers] who intend real changes that reflect their mutual purposes.”18 Others, such as Peter Block and Robert Greenleaf, discuss concepts such as “stewardship” and “servant leadership” in defining leadership as a partnership with followers.19
Combining our discussion of human communication with the definitional elements above, we offer the following communication-based definition of leadership: Leadership is human (symbolic) communication that modifies the attitudes and behaviors of others in order to meet shared group goals and needs. (For a sampling of how some other textbooks have defined leader- ship, see box 1.4.)
Leaders vs. Managers Management is often equated with leadership. However, leading differs sig-
nificantly from managing. Managers may act as leaders, but often they do not. Similarly, employees can take a leadership role even though they do not have a
