Speech

Speech Study Guide

Finally, a speech has to have an ethical purpose. Even if every other purpose of a speech is fulfilled, the speech can still be unethical. Ethical speakers pursue goals that are in the best interest of their audience and listeners. Boundaries of ethics are not always clear. There are conflicts of interest, usually over controversial debates. As with all purposes, ethical obligations ask how the audience might benefit or be harmed by the information and purposes of the speech. Clear goals and purposes include: • Informative goals: o General goal: To inform the audience o Specific goal: To want the audience to understand a concept • Persuasive goals: o General goal: To persuade an audience to behave a certain way o Specific goal: To want the audience to specifically alter their behavior o General goal: To encourage audience involvement o Specific goal: To encourage and persuade audience involvement in a specific arena 2.6 Key Terms • Receivers interpret messages sent by others by listening, interpreting, and providing non-verbal feedback. • Messages are typically verbal utterances, visual images, and nonverbal behaviors employed to convey thoughts and feelings. • Encoding is the process of creating messages. • Decoding is the process of interpreting messages. • Feedback is a message sent by receivers to let the sender know how their message is being interpreted and may indicate understanding and reaction via nonverbal behavior. • Channels are the routes of travel for a message. Primarily, messages travel via auditory and visual channels. • Mediated channels are communication channels that are enhanced by technology. • Interference (noise) is any stimulus that interferes with the process of achieving a shared message; sometimes it is physical or psychological. • Communication context refers to the environment in which communication occurs. The context differs by participant numbers and the balance of roles and values among those participants. • Intrapersonal communication is also referred to as “self-talk” or the idea of communicating with oneself. • Interpersonal communication occurs between two people with an identifiable relationship with each other. • Small group communication occurs when a small group of people, typically three to ten individuals, interact.

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