Introduction

Communication is defined as the process of understanding and sharing meaning

(Pearson & Nelson, 2000). And what we usually know about the process of communication is
that it involves the sender, the receiver, and the message. Those are the major components of
communication that we are taught. However, as for modern ethnographic descriptions and
analyses, many more components should be taken into consideration in order to fully
understand any particular instance of communicative behavior.

These components are the participants, setting, purpose, channels, codes, message
content and form, genres, key, rules of interaction, and norms of interpretation. These
components may be a lot and may have quite similar functions that can be confusing, but
these components are important in achieving the goals the communicators (especially
members of a society) set for themselves.

Participants and Setting

Participants are what we know as the speaker or the sender and the receiver. This
component includes anyone who may be interested in or happens to hear or see the message,
which is the audience. Therefore, the participants are not only the sender and the receiver,
and the participants are not limited in numbers. There can be instances where there is only
one participant, and instances where there can be thousands of participants. For example,
talking to oneself as a practice for a job interview means that there is only one participant
posing as both the sender and receiver. In contrast, at a concert, one artist acts as a sender,
with the audience, which can number in the tens of thousands, acting as the recipient. Also, as
previously noted, even if the message is not meant for specific individuals, if they can
perceive it, they are still considered participants.

However, we must remember what we have discussed previously about language in

its social context: that there are different cultures, and that there are different members of
different societies that use their language under differing circumstances for different goals.
Therefore, a thorough ethnographic account of communicative behavior must carefully note
the characteristics of the participants. For example, there are cultures where ordinary humans
are not limited in their ability to communicate. There are cultures that believe they can
communicate with the dead, forest fairies, monsters, and more. Because of that, those beings
are also considered participants.

Characteristics of participants that must be noted:

● Age
● Gender,
● Ethnic Affiliation,
● Relationship among participants,
● Their relative social status and
 ● the degree to which they are acquainted

The example given previously is a good example of who anyone talks to and whose
presence, whether respectfully or casually, also determines their communicative behavior.
People with those beliefs do not talk to those non-human beings casually; rather, they talk to
them respectfully. Considering these characteristics of participants allows other participants
in speech situations to move beyond simply observing actions to understanding the deeper
meanings and reasons behind them.

Setting characterizes when and where any communicative act or event happens. Even
if the event is the same, the setting can vary within culturally recognized limits. On April
Fool’s Day, in some cultures, people pull pranks on each other or make jokes that can be
considered very offensive on any other day, but only on April Fool’s Day can they be
accepted.

According to Hymes, the term scene contributes to the definition of setting, as it is the
‘psychological setting” of an event. The mood during an event in a particular setting may
invite or inhibit certain communicative acts or events. As an example, imagine a company
making announcements. The setting and the participants are the same during these
announcements, but the scenes can be very different and can affect the atmosphere and the
way people communicate. One time, there is an announcement about an increase in wages,
and another time, there is an announcement about the company going bankrupt. We can
easily see the difference in atmosphere between these two situations.

Purpose, Channels, Codes, and Message Content and Form

Exchanging ideas or transmitting information is not always the purpose of speaking.

The purpose can also be to establish sociability, like the feeling given by a hug or a sincere
handshake. This is called Phatic communication, a speech behavior that aims to have an
emotional effect.

The purpose of communicative behavior varies from occasion to occasion and can
quite frequently determine the manner in which one speaks or acts. For example, depending
on the occasion, an individual’s purpose is to offer something, make a request, threaten or
plead, praise or blame, and so on. And depending on the purpose, even an aggressive person
can act meek or solemn when faced with occasions where they need to ask for favors or
apologies.

Although spoken words are the best examples of acoustic channels and are the most
frequently used, we should not overlook other forms of channels. But what is a channel in
communication? According to the Cambridge Dictionary (2024), a channel is a system or
method that is used for communicating with other people, like the acoustic and optical
channels. We must take note that communicative behavior that makes use of one channel
frequently depends on other channels for reinforcement. If one cannot talk, one can use
gestures as their way of talking or communicating with people. Waving is an example.
Because people who are at a distance from each other cannot communicate orally because
they may not hear each other, Instead, they wave at each other to show that they acknowledge
their presence.

Codes are defined as specific systems used for communication, distinct from general
language. These codes are understood and used by a particular group of people, like a
specific language or dialect. Codes can exist within other, broader codes. If one language is a
code, there are sub-codes within that language (dialects and such) and sub-codes within the
sub-codes of the language. They are not only spoken languages but also non-verbal
communication systems like drumming or whistling signals. An example is the code of the
Ashanti people. The main language or code is Twi, which already has a lot of varieties.
However, they also use codes that signify the different social roles of people, like priests and
priestesses. They also use not only verbal codes but also non-verbal ones like drum language,
horn language, gong language, and whistling that have different purposes. Anything can be a
code, even silence, as it may signify a certain meaning.

According to Hymes, it is true that how something is said (message form) is part of
what is said (message content). Therefore, message form and message content are closely
related. Paraphrasing a statement that is said in a particular way may wash away some of the
meaning of that statement, although it can still be enough to indicate the message content.
Only the quoting of the exact words with the same way of delivery as the original can
adequately represent the message of a speech act. It is very important to match how
something was said and what was said when relaying messages to other people from other
people. Not doing so could create misunderstandings. For example, whenever people retell
how a conversation or a fight went, there can be instances where people conclude who is in
the wrong or not because if the teller paraphrased the conversations, they might miss details
and even get the conversation wrong. So, we must consider, when we communicate, the
manner in which our messages are passed on and whether they are appropriate or match what
we want to convey., as there are no exact paraphrases of statements.

Register is a variety of language that serves a particular social situation. It is used for
different purposes. For example, register can be used to differentiate between vernacular or
everyday casual speech and the standard or prestige form of speech, particularly English.
Also, there are things called legal registers, scientific registers, religious registers, and
intimate registers. Because of this, we can conclude that register is just the way a person
speaks in relation to their audience, as a speaker modifies their language register to signal
levels of formality according to their relationship to their audience and intended purpose of
speech.

Genres, Key, Rules of Interaction, and Norms of Interpretation

Genres are the speech acts or events associated with a particular communicative
situation and characterized by a particular style, form, or content. For example, rituals or
religious occasions use genres like prayers and sermons. The words used in these kinds of
events are different from what we use in our day-to-day lives. Old-world fairy tales also have
distinct characteristics as they are another type of genre. These tales consist of statements that
are somewhat formulated already, just like the almost mandatory “Once upon a time” at the
beginning and the “And they lived happily ever after” in the end. Myths and war talks are
also different genres, as some of their features cannot be found in other genres.

We’ve established that genres or other components vary widely among cultures, but
we are yet to discuss the one component that perhaps varies the most. This component is key,
as it varies widely among cultures. According to Hymes, the key is the tone, manner, or spirit
in which the act is done. Act may differ in key, just like between mocking and serious, and
perfunctory or hasty and painstaking or careful. For example, in a speech act, the words that
someone uses may be positive, praising, encouraging, or the like, but the key may be
different because the person said those words sarcastically. The thing that makes key the
most varied component among cultures is that every situation, person, social group, and
community might have their own key that they use that is different from others. If the person
that person is talking to is not used to people talking like that, they might have a hard time
grasping the social meaning of those words, causing them to genuinely think that the other
was talking to them positively. Otherwise, if the one being talked to is used to people talking
like that, they can pick up that they were sarcastic.

Rules of interaction guide communicative activity, but they still vary among
cultures. In normal situations, members of a speech community know what is and is not
appropriate during a communicative activity. For example, in the classroom, the most
obvious rule of interaction may be to listen whenever someone is discussing something in
class; do not talk while they are talking. And when students fail to follow that somewhat
unwritten rule, they are reprimanded. Embarrassment ensues when rules of interaction are
violated or outright disregarded, and unless an apology is extended, future interactions
between the parties may become tense or even avoided.

Norms of interpretation are the shared understanding of how to interpret

communication cues within a culture. Just like the other components, this one also varies
among cultures, even within the same society if that society is diverse enough. When
interlocutors or the people communicating share the same norms of interpretation,
communication is going to be smooth and harmonious. However, clashes may occur when
communication cues are interpreted based on different cultural norms. For example, a child is
asking for permission from their parents to do something or go somewhere. The parent
responds seemingly on a positive note. They say, “Na sige bahala ka." These words can be
interpreted as a cue to go and do what they asked permission for, but the child understands
the implications of those words. Their parent is not agreeing, and there would be
consequences if they did not follow. This is quite common in Filipino households, where
parents or older people say these words as a form of warning. If this norm of interpretation is
applied to people in different cultures, they may not pick up the cues, and that would start
misunderstandings. Being aware of these cultural differences in interpreting communication
is crucial for avoiding misunderstandings and fostering appreciation in intercultural
communication.

Hymes’ SPEAKING Mnemonic

Hymes used a mnemonic device that is SPEAKING in discussing various components of
speech. The letters stand for:

S- Settings,

P- Participants

E- Ends (purpose)

A- Act sequences (the arrangement of components)

K- Keys

I - Instrumentalities (channels, codes, and message forms)

N- Norms (of interaction and interpretation)

G- Genres

Frames

In recent years, there has been a concept frequently used, and it is termed
frame/framing. It is the context that shapes how an interaction is interpreted. It is closely
related to Hymes’s Key and to modern folklore’s performance. This performance is what the
participants in a face-to-face interaction are doing when they speak. This determines the
frame in which the exchange is to be interpreted or understood. Like all the other
components, frames also vary from culture to culture. Authentic frames are culture-specific
and can vary from one society to another. Examples of frames are bargaining, complaining,
congratulating someone, joking, mimicking someone, interviewing someone, and more.
These have meanings that participants are familiar with if they have very similar
characteristics or cultures. Just like in "Key," if interactions happen between individuals with
very different cultural backgrounds, there could be misunderstandings that would occur.

References:

● Publisher, A. R. A. R. O. O. (2015, November 25). 1.2 What Is Communication?

Retrieved from https://open.lib.umn.edu/businesscommunication/chapter/1-2-what-is-
communication/

● channel of communication. (2024, March 6). Retrieved from

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/channel-of-communication
● Salzman, Z., Stanlaw, J., Adachi, N. (Fifth Edition) Language, Culture, and Society.
P. 130-132