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CHAPTER 4
Problems of Communication
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Upon completing this chapter, the student should be able to:
• Know the five steps of the communication process.
• Be familiar with the nine barriers to communications.
• Understand how communication and information flow through an agency’s chain
of command.
• Understand informal communication networks in the workplace.
KEY TERMS
absolute information
barriers to communication
communication with the environment
communication ethics
decoding
denial of contrary information
distributed information
dyad
encoding
interorganizational communication
intraorganizational communication
lack of communication skills
lack of motivation or interest
linking pin
noncredibility of the source
participatory management
poor organizational climate
preconceived ideas
transmits
use of complex channels
use of personal meanings
LECTURE OUTLINE
I. Basic Theory of Communication
A. Process
1. Encoding: Sender determines to send the message.
3. Decoding: Receiver interprets and determines meaning.
1. Preconceived ideas: Receiver hears what he wants to hear.
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3. Use of personalized meanings: Words chosen by the sender may have
different meaning to the receiver.
5. Noncredibility of the source: The sender may not be believable for several
6. Lack of communication skills: Poor communication skills can be attributed to
7. Poor organizational climate: Very formal organizations may discourage all but
formal and approved communications.
9. Communication gap: These barriers to communication can create a
communication gap, which is the difference between the message the sender
intended to communicate and what the receiver understands the message to be.
II. Communication in Organizations.
A. Chain of command
1. Downward communication allows a clear path to send information to staff.
3. Horizontal communication facilitates coordination.
B. Informal communication
2. Informal gatekeepers filter information.
C. Organizational rules for communication
2. Rules include standard word usage procedural rules, methods of interactions.
D. Informal communication networks
2. Exchange of new ideas is an innovation network.
3. “Kinship networks” are made up of members of a social group.
E. Nonverbal communication
1. Symbols may stand on alone but they are usually integrated with verbal
messages.
3. Individuals convey nonverbal messages through facial expressions, hand
gestures, and other physical language.
F. Information and communication
1. Communication is the process of passing on information.
2. Communication becomes the exchange of symbols that represent information.
G. Communication load
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1. Load is the rate and complexity of communication inputs.
2. Rate is the number of pieces on information that are received.
4. Three determinants of load
a. Stable v. unstable structure
b. Capacity of individual or system to assimilate information
c. Individual’s or system’s desire to receive or send information
H. Absolute vs. distributed information
1. Absolute information is an idea or piece of knowledge expressed in recognized
symbolic terms.
2. Distributed information is an idea or piece of knowledge that is dispersed through
a system.
2. Motivational communications provide information about organizational
or personal goals or values.
3. Instructional information, or communication, tells individuals how to
proceed or what course of action to take to reach a goal.
III. Communication roles for the criminal justice practitioner
2. Police officers
4. Jail administrators
J. Linking pin
1. Likert (1961) found that productivity in industry was highest in companies
2. The interlocking groups are bound together by linking pins, persons who serve
3. Linking pins are individuals who make a concerted effort to have credibility
4. The linking pin acts as an informal coordinator, making ad hoc efforts to
smooth the work flow between units. The person acting as the linking pin
could overcome the barriers of communication between units and probably
establish an exchange system between units.
IV. Developing informal communication networks
1. Informal networks within and among agencies are often based on one of two
principles:
b. Linking pins
V. Implications for Criminal Justice Management
A. Communication with the environment
2. Administrators need to develop routine methods of providing useful information to
the public and political systems.
4. Victims who are kept advised of case progress are typically satisfied.
B. Intraorganizational communications
2. High quantity and quality of contact between staff of agencies decreases conflict.
C. Inter-organizational communications
2. Terrorism has created a need for better inter agency communication.
3. Centralized information gathering centers can allow for greater flow of
information.
D. General considerations
2. Agencies should teach values, priorities, and language of groups they regularly
deal with to their organizational members.
4. Large organizations should seek to promote and control lateral communication
within and between agencies.
VI. Communication and Technology
A. Information technology
1. The efficiency with which organizations communicate has increased dramatically
with the development of information technology.
3. Computers and laptops connect agents, whether they are working from work, their
home, or even their vehicles.
B. 1. Information systems are not immune from criminal or hacker attempts to pilfer
information or corrupt data.
3. Administrator may face restructuring, streamlining and training issues with
regards to communication protocols.
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VII. Ethical Problems in the Communication Process
A. Flow of information from management and between members should be valid,
reliable, and accessible.
1. Formal transmittals of information need to be considered truthful and consistent
rather than manipulative, self serving, and opaque.
2. Administrators should create, promote, and protect ethical boundaries for
conversation and information sharing in their agencies.
B. An executive’s role is to create and maintain an effective communication structure
within his or her agency.
2. To maintain ethical formal discourse, managers need to make extraordinary
attempts to include everyone.
CHAPTER SUMMARY
The quote from Manning (1992) at the beginning of the chapter tells us that
communication is shaped by “non-informational” matters. Encoding and decoding of
practitioners work hard at imposing their paradigm for communication on the rest of the world.
This is an important consideration for administrators who wish to develop or improve agency
relations with citizens, legislators, media, or other groups. It is also a significant obstacle within
agencies, as work groups at different levels of the hierarchy or with differing functions will
develop unique frameworks for encoding and decoding information based upon significant
administrators find it desirable to expand the agency’s boundaries into the territory of external
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groups or agencies, the communication paradigm of indigenous members of the new territory
needs to be understood before communication in any depth can take place.
Merely training staff in communication skills and upgrading computer skills will not in
1967). Hence, an important step toward improving communication in criminal justice agencies
and within the criminal justice system is for policy makers, administrators, and managers to start
moving away from boss-centered management toward subordinate-centered management. This
prescription is certainly not new. The literature on criminal justice management is rich with
discussions of the value of participatory management, theory Z, management by objectives, and
communication. Speech and expression within or among criminal justice agencies is limited.
Information on clients, inmates, or evidence in cases may at times be legally confidential. At
times, prudence may require that information be kept confidential, therefore ethically restricting
communication.
Chapter 5 will apply theories of motivation to the criminal justice system, revealing the
importance of effective communication in motivating agency personnel. We will see that
effective communication between administrators and subordinates becomes the vehicle by which
subordinates can participate in the mission of their organization.
REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. As we have seen throughout this chapter, law enforcement agencies, especially
intelligence gathering agencies, keep information to themselves rather than share
information. Discuss why agencies horde information. If you were giving advice to the
director of Homeland Security, what steps would you recommend to promote the flow of
vital information among intelligence agencies?
2. Think about the college class you liked the most and contrast it with a class you liked
least. Compare the quality of communication between the two classes. What are some of
the barriers to communication that typically emerge in a college course? If you were a
3. How can communication be improved in an organization that is structured in a traditional
bureaucratic form? How might computerized communication be utilized to improve the
effectiveness of communication in a bureaucratic organization?
4. What are the drawbacks of computerized information systems? From a management
5. Discuss the ethical issues involved in sharing information about inmates or supervisees
within a criminal justice context. Can all information be shared? What about medical, or
HIPPA information?
6.
DISCUSSION TOPICS/STUDENT ACTIVITIES
1. Form the students into three groups. Give the groups 20 minutes to analyze the case
study on page 125 of the text (Creating Intelligence Systems in Corrections). Assign
3. Have the students discuss how to support the media’s approach to communicating
information relating to the operation of criminal justice agencies.
5. Have the students debate the Wiki Leaks story, involving the release of
governmental classified documents and the dangers of “ease of discovery” among
internet sources.
INTERNET CONNECTIONS
1. Access the Free Management Library article “Basics in Internal Organizational
2. Navigate to Lee Hopkins’ Better Communication Results web site at
3. Visit the Vera Institute of Justice Website for a report on the barriers of communication
4. Visit the Colorado Bar Association web site for a review of the issues involved in ex
5. Visit the MindTools web site for a collection of communication tips, including writing
