Using Semantics to Improve Language Clarity

Semantics is a concept that helps define a word within the context of other words. It is often derived from word selection and connotation. Semantics can come from multiple forms of subtle meaning to create impressions in the listener's mind. Those who can master semantics can create higher forms of communicative ability and influence. From sales opportunities to leadership semantics has a huge impact on how each of the individual parts of a message creates a whole understanding of that message.

In general, semantics can take information from multiple sources such as tone, word choice, word order, facial expressions (paralanguage), and other subtle impressions that help define the full message. When used in combination the clarity of language is enhanced due to its focus of symbolism to create a single shared meaning both in part and together. To understand how they work together can create a powerful message.

Each sentence and word is associated with those around it and within the context of the environment. The way in which people make connections between this information can be argued as either an inborn part of natural language or developed throughout cultural vantage points. Many researchers are still unsure of which philosophical approach to take. However, they do agree that the connection of words to their meaning occurs through cognitive abilities and is associated with higher thought. 

Research helps show how semantic enhancement of language is associated with the personal abilities of individuals. For example, those who are in tune with music are also more capable in semantic usage (Bidelman, et. al, 2013). This is associated with their higher perceptual understanding of tones and the ability to discern between subtleties. A large body of research associates artistic endeavors with sensitivity to environmental information. 

Strong communication and use of pitch can enhance presentation skills and overall sales. Sales departments that are strong on their use of semantics are likely to be more effective in their transference of information that allows the buyer to come to their own conclusions.  People can often judge the meaning behind the words, attitude, tone, and sincerity of message (Gitomer, 2013).  This creates higher levels of verbal continuity which can translate into dollars.

The use of semantics can also help listeners created categories in their minds making the message much easier to follow. Semantics usage contributes to perception and cognition when they lead to the proper categorization of information and create spatial understandings (Choi & Hattrup, 2012). Those speakers who use semantics to enhance their messages can also create categorization and clarity within the mind’s of listeners. 

Semantics is a fundamental aspect of natural language. Research conducted on motion verbs in 100 languages found similarities between words of related meanings (Walchli & Cysouw, 2012). Similarities of meanings exist in multiple languages and create a more basic form of semantic identity. This identity indicates that semantics is more basic than abstract thought and is part of a fundamental building block.

Semantic language usage enhances the power of leaders to communicate their message with clarity by creating categories in the minds of readers. It also allows the ability to influence actions and behaviors of others who use these messages to cue expectations and behaviors. Even though semantic language is an inherent part of communicating it is often outside of the average person’s awareness. Yet awareness does not mean that they are not taking these cues subconsciously to make meaning and decisions. It could be argued that unconscious use of semantic language may be more powerful than its conscious use. Sales, executives, and public speakers would do well to learn how semantic information influences their communication abilities. 

Tips:

-Learn semantic language for higher level presentations.

-Beware of tone, spacing, and pitch.

-Be aware of body language.

-Understand the context of the message

-Know how to work with various mediums.

-Understand how semantic cues lead and influence a larger concept.

Bidelman, et. al. (2013). Tone language speakers and musicians share enhanced perception and cognitive abilities for musical pitch: evidence for bidirectionality between the domains of language and music. PlosOne, 8(4). 

Choi, S. & Hattrup, K. (2012). Relative contribution of perception/cognition and language on spatial categorization. Cognitive Science, 36 (1). 

Gitomer, J. (2013). Presentation and communication skills. Corridor Business Journal, 9 (35).

Walchli & Cysouw, M. (2012). Lexical typology through similarity semantics: toward a semantic map of motion verbs. Linguistics, 50 (3).

Effective Use of Paralanguage in the Workplace

Paralanguage is related to the use of subtle messages that includes tone, prosody, intonation, tempo, syllable emphasis, and other hints that create additional meaning beyond the words themselves. Knowing and understanding how paralanguage influences clarity can help in creating more effective conversation in the workplace. Managers who are capable of creating higher levels of congruency between the words they use and the paralanguage associated with those words can increase their communication effectiveness and organizational influence.

Most information comes from non-verbal aspects of communication and alignment between these two concepts creates congruence. A study of university lecturers helped identify that those who used appropriate pitch, loudness, variability, pauses, and fluency increased audience satisfaction (Md Zani, et. al, 2011). The audience paid more attention and were more focused on the concepts. This helps ensure that the messages not only came across well but were also received by members of the audience.

If the use of paralanguage can benefit the quality of communication in a public forum it can also benefit management and employee relationships. As employees seek to understand expectations, directions, and practical information they will listen beyond the words into paralanguage to determine both intent and hidden meaning. This intent, whether positive or negative, will help ensure the truthfulness of the message. 

In many cases employees are not consciously aware of these messages and intuitively prescribe them to the words being spoken. The use of paralanguage is a system that develops within a cultural heritage to further expand the language capabilities between members (Wang De-hue, 2007). Because we are raised within a particular culture we may have some difficulty interpreting the meaning of messages from other cultures. The more we associate with other cultures the more able we are to understand their subtle messages.

We begin to become aware of that language at a young age in the same way that we become aware of social context. At the age of six children are still more likely to judge the actual words versus the subtle differences in paralanguage (Morton & Trehub 2001). Yet by the time they become adults they are much more astute at this overall judgment between spoken language and its subtle paralanguage. 

To create congruence of language also creates clarity in the message as well as its perceived honesty. For many managers it is about being aware of such language and its potential impact on employees that will help them create stronger relationships with employees as well as more effectiveness within their management style. It is through continuous practice that managers can improve both the giving as well as the reception of such messages. 

Organizations should consider a level of training in language usage as it pertains to the workplace. A number of studies have indicated that both written and verbal communication skills are important factors of success in the workplace. Employee resistance, misinterpretation, wasted employee effort, conflict, and general labor relations are all associated with the proper use of language. The concept becomes even more important as leaders grow in influence and power. It is difficult for them to clearly articulate their strategic visions if they are inadvertently giving off mixed signals that are interpreted differently by different sectors of society.

Md Zani, et. al. (2011). The relationship between lecturers’ paralanguage and student’s satisfaction in Universiti Teknologi Mara, Kendah, Malaysia. Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary Research in business, 3 (6). 

Morton & Trehub, S. (2001). Children’s understanding of emotion in speech. Child Development, 72 (3).

Wang, D. & Li, H. (2007). Nonverbal language in cross-cultural communication. US-China Foreign Language, 5 (10).

Global Team Performance Improvements through the Development of Trust

Modified from Sarker, et. al (2011)

Business enhancement requires a level of thinking beyond the concrete efficiencies we have enhanced through statistical turnip twisting over the past few decades. Some have argued that future gains from efficiency will be much harder to realize. The next era may possibly be based on the use of virtual networks that enhance the fuzzy nature of human performance to new levels that not only create new layers of efficiency but also higher levels of output. Research conducted by Sarker, et. al (2011) indicates that trust within communication networks can increase team performance.

Trust is an important aspect of business success and social development. People are longing for more trust as a result of an extra emphasis on collaboration and changes in interconnectivity of technology (McEvily, et. al., 2003). As exchanges occur in a virtual world people are seeking higher levels of trust in their cultural exchanges. They want to be sure that people they are communicating with have some level of concern over their needs.

This trust is needed even more so when people do not have a shared history, are geographically separated, do not share a previous social context, and interact primarily through electronic media (Jarvenpaa & Leidner, 1999). As such communication becomes more common across the world and through multinational corporations the development of the trust factor may lead to higher levels of performance.

The ability of trust to impact communication and performance is not well defined. Some believe that trust interacts with communication to enhance performance (Dirks & Ferrin, 2001). Other researchers have put forward the argument that it is more of an additive role alongside communication (Jarvenpaa & Leidner, 1999). Whether trust enhances or simply adds to performance is a significant debate of performance. 

If trust enhances performance, it takes on a more useful role and can be considered a beneficial trait that further develops performance. If trust is more additive, it means that it is a supplemental additive to a communication strategy but is not necessarily a performance enhancer. It is something to use in addition to other activities but doesn’t change, influence, or enhance those factors. 

Performance is a level of motivation and effectiveness that relies in part on other group members. People do not act in isolation but do so in the context of other individuals within their social networks (Wellman, et. al., 2003). They seek to understand the implications of their behavior in relation to others. These implications are based upon cues and the meaning of the performance in relation patterns to others within their networks (Galaskiewicz & Wasserman, 1994). Trust is earned by the leader but also given by others.

The concept of trust in leadership and communication is an important one in order to create influence. Trust can be defined as the “willingness of a party to be vulnerable to the actions of another party, based upon the expectation that the other will perform a particular action important to the trustor, irrespective of the ability to monitor or control the other party” (Mayer & Davis, 1995).  The parties should feel that their leader will be consistent in his/her patterns and promises regardless of whether or not that leader is being watched.

A trust that they will do what they say they will do as well as what they have done in the past. It is a trust of the future. For example, if a leader has a particular pattern of behavior and people follow that leader based upon their actions they would expect that the leader will continue to do what they say they will do. When the leader professes something different than what they are doing the trust disappears and is slowly replaced by doubt. This doubt can lead to lower performance of team members who may no longer believe their efforts will be fruitful because of hijacked intentions.

Furthermore, such team trust is influenced by the perception that members will not be injured or be taken advantage of. Collective trust is based upon the belief that leaders will continue with commitments, be honest during discussions, and will avoid taking undue advantage of their members (Cummings & Bromiley, 1996). When such elements of trust are together they can influence a higher level of team performance (Dirks & Ferrin, 2001). Such team members do not have a problem putting forward effort if they are relatively sure of the results of such efforts.

The researchers Sarker et. al. (2011) sought to understand the effect of communication and trust on performance within globally distributed teams.  They used data from globally distributed teams working on systems analysis and development projects. The teams included U.S. with Norway and U.S. with Denmark to capture conceptual linkages between communication, trust, and individual performance.

Results:

-There were regional differences in performance. Scandinavians had higher performance than U.S. members. U.S. and Norway teams had higher performance than U.S. and Denmark teams.

-Gender had an influence on the success of teams with males performing at a higher level.  

-Trust had a significant impact on performance outcomes. 

-Communication centrality (importance in network) had an impact on trust centrality.

-Communication centrality (importance in communication network) had a significant effect on performance. 

-Trust centrality (center of trust) had an impact on overall performance.

Business Analysis:

Trust is a practical aspect of communication. It is difficult to encourage others to complete tasks and raise themselves to higher levels of performance unless there is a level of trust in relationships with leadership. The gaining of a leadership position rests in the ability to put oneself in the center of importance and information networks. Those leaders who achieve a level of power can either enhance team performance or lower its ability based upon the level of integrity and congruence between words and action. When people believe that these actions and words match together they will be more motivated to complete their work tasks with the knowledge that they are not being taken advantage of and their work is moving in the right direction. The study did not indicate this concept but the cultural factors that allow people to share a level of similarity in perception may influence performance. If the leaders and followers are unable to understand each others perspective that trust will be more difficult to gain and would require more communication, blending of networks, and congruence between action and words. To change patterns means to change perception.

Cummings, L. & Bromiley, P. (1996). The organizational trust inventory (OTI): Development and validation. In R. Kramer and T. Tyler (eds.), Trust in Organizations. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage

Dirks, K. & Ferrin, D. (2001). The role of trust in organizational settings. Organizational Science, 12 (4).

Galaskiewicz, J., & Wasserman, S. (1994).  Introduction advances in the social and behavioral

sciences from social network analysis. In S. Wasserman and J. Galaskiewicz (eds.), Advances in Social Network Analysis. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Jarvenpass, S. & Leidner, D. (1999). Communication and trust in global virtual teams. Organizational Science, 10 (6).

Mayer, R.,  Davis, J., and Schoorman, D. (1995) An integrative model of organizational trust. Academy of Management Review, 2, (3)

 McEvily, B., Perrone, V. & Zaheer, A. (2003). Introduction to special issue on trust in an organizational context, Organizational Science, 14 (1).

Wellman, B, et. al. (2003). The social affordances of the Internet for networked individualism. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 8 ( 3).

Sarker, S., Ahuja, M. Sarker, S. & Kirkeby, S. (2011). The Role of Communication and Trust in Global Virtual Teams: A Social Network Perspective. Journal of Management Information Systems, 28 (1).

The Five Best Ways to Build Relationships in the Workplace (Online Classroom)

For the online faculty member, his or her workplace is behind a computer.  Often we feel isolated and alone.  Imagine what it must be like for our students who may need someone to connect to virtually (e-connectivity).  

“It’s not enough for a course to be accessible online, it must also be designed in a way that keys into the digital pulse of current events, trending topics and insider knowledge endemic to the web. The three-quarters of 18 to 29 year-olds who have profiles on social networks are likely wondering why online course offerings aren’t nearly as enticing as the content that they find on their favorite social websites.” (Masoni)

As the current Allstate ad says… “we want more, we just want more”.  Students want a relationship with the instructor.  Students need reassurance there is a real instructor and person behind the text who is active and engaged. Two methods to provide more for your students are to build trust and to model behavior that you expect from the students.

Techniques to Build Trust

 In the online classroom, faculty members need to build trust in an effort to create an effective learning environment.  Without trust, a student – teacher relationship does not exist.  Bowman (n.d.), a human resources expert, posits five techniques for gaining trust.  If these techniques apply in the work world, they could be applied in the online learning environment.

The first is to “establish and main integrity” (Bowman).  Creating integrity in the classroom is akin to three of Spears’ ten tenets of servant leadership, listening, empathy, and awareness (Spears, 2010, p. 27).

 The second technique is to “communicate vision and values” (Bowman).  Communication is a very important aspect of creating a relationship.  Spears states that the servant leader must conceptualize and persuade their vision and values.  “The servant leader seeks to convince others, rather than coerce compliance” (Spears, p. 28).

 The third technique is to “consider all employees as equal partners” and the forth technique is to “focus on shared, rather than personal goals” (Bowman).  Both of these techniques build community.  Here is an opportunity to express true servant leadership. Approach new and old employees (students) with respect and humility.  Spears offered the concept of creating community; however, within this is the element of communication and trust.  If one’s communication is not clear and honest, one cannot develop a community of coworkers or students.  Clear communication can be achieved by selecting words carefully when writing in the online environment.  “Servant leadership suggests that true community can be created among those who work in businesses and other institutions” (Spears, p. 29).  When there is a community, the element of trust appears.

 The final technique is “do what’s right, regardless of personal risk” (Bowman).  This is back to the basic concept of servant leadership. “Servant leadership, like stewardship, assumes first and foremost a commitment to serving the needs of others. It also emphasizes the use of openness and persuasion, rather than control” (Spears, p. 29).

 Modeling Behavior

 Overall, the instructor is modeling the behavior he expects from students online.  The goal is to provide security and responsiveness between instructor and students.  Being comfortable online is the biggest prerequisite to successful classmate relationships.  Showing respect and interacting when needed is the best way for students to “feel” and develop friendships online.  A method to show respect is to address the students by "Mr" or "Ms", rather than the student's first name.    

Conclusion

Bowman may not be in a peer-reviewed literature, but his techniques for building trust are solid and supported within the academic resources.  Servant leadership appears as a strong leadership model to follow when building relationships at work and in the online classroom.

Authors:

Andree C. Swanson, EdD

Paula J. Zobisch, PhD

References

Bowman, D. (n.d.). The five best ways to build and lose-trust in the workplace. Retrieved from http://www.ttgconsultants.com/articles/trustworkforce.html

Latch, C. (2012). Tips to building relationships with your online classmates. Retrieved from http://edudemic.com/2012/03/tips-to-building-relationships-with-your-online-classmates/

Masoni, M. (2010). Why online education needs to get social. Retrieved from http://mashable.com/2010/08/05/online-education-social/

Spears, L. (2010). Character and Servant Leadership: Ten characteristics of effective, caring leaders. The Journal of Virtues & Leadership, 1 (1), 25-30. Regent University. School of Global Leadership & Entrepreneurship.