When we are involved in oral / aural communication, it is impossible for us to give /receive all of the information required so as senders / receptors, we have a tendency to make certain assumptions about what is being said based on the context, the content, the other participant(s), etc. When certain elements are missing, we instinctively tend to fill-in the “blanks” with information drawn from our own experiences so that instead of having partial information, we need to feel that we have “all” of the information – even if it is wrong! – This, in turn, can lead us to draw inappropriate or incorrect conclusions about the message being delivered and respond in an erroneous manner.
Problem 2: Law of Field.
In order to listen effectively, we need to be able to focus on the person we are communicating with and concentrate on what they are saying (and NOT saying) and any distractions such as the movement of people in the same area, ringing telephones, etc., are things that may prevent us from effectively completing this task. This is noticeable during presentations & meetings when someone stands up during a presentation and leaves the room – the audience gets distracted, stop listening to the presenter and focus on the person moving thereby possibly missing an important part of the message from the presenter. The same result occurs when a mobile phone rings or a person starts using a tablet or laptop. People usually focus on the moving object instead of the static one!
Problem 3: Prejudice
A common problem that occurs in listening is that of prejudice; either conscious or subconscious. This might be related directly to the other participant(s) based on our previous experiences with them either directly or indirectly or based on the topic being discussed, the environment, our own emotional or physical state or other factors. A frequent example of this can be found in the treatment of politicians by people opposed to their views. We need to be aware of our prejudices and learn how to separate the person we are communicating with from the topic of conversation (separate the person from the problem!).