Improving Listening Competence Study Notes
Listening Competence and Contextual Applications
The goal: develop competence at each stage of the listening process; define active listening; learn strategies for critical and empathetic listening; apply skills across academic, professional, and relational contexts; consider how culture and gender affect listening.
Listening Competence at Each Stage of the Listening Process
Framework (Ridge, 1993) identifies five stages; competence can be improved at each stage.
Stage 1 — Receiving
Prepare yourself to listen.
Discern between intentional messages and noise.
Concentrate on stimuli most relevant to your listening goals.
Be mindful of the selection and attention process.
Pay attention to turn-taking signals to maintain conversational flow.
Avoid interrupting to maintain your ability to receive stimuli and listen.
Stage 2 — Interpreting
Identify main points and supporting points.
Use contextual clues from the person or environment to discern additional meaning.
Be aware of how relational, cultural, or situational context influences meaning.
Be aware of different meanings of silence.
Note differences in tone of voice and other paralinguistic cues.
Stage 3 — Recalling
Use multiple sensory channels to decode messages and encode memories.
Repeat, rephrase, and reorganize information to fit cognitive preferences.
Use mnemonic devices as a gimmick to aid recall.
Stage 4 — Evaluating
Separate facts, inferences, and judgments.
Identify persuasive strategies and fallacies of reasoning.
Assess the credibility of the speaker and the message.
Be aware of biases and perceptual filters that can create barriers to effective listening.
Stage 5 — Responding
Ask appropriate clarifying and follow-up questions; paraphrase to check understanding.
Give feedback relevant to the speaker's purpose/motivation for speaking.
Adapt your response to the speaker and the context.
Do not let the preparation and rehearsal of your response diminish earlier stages of listening.
Active Listening (definition and purpose)
Active listening = pairing outwardly visible positive listening behaviors with positive cognitive listening practices.
It helps address environmental, physical, cognitive, and personal barriers to effective listening.
It enhances informational, critical, and empathetic listening.
Active Listening: Overcoming Barriers and Building Conditions
Preparation before receiving a message: strategic choices to set up ideal listening conditions.
Manage physical and environmental noises by adjusting location, lighting, temperature, and furniture; avoid high-noise times when possible.
Plan around psychological or physiological barriers (e.g., hunger, fatigue, anxiety) to improve listening effectiveness.
For college students, scheduling considerations (e.g., overnight classes) can affect listening opportunities (Toppo, 2011).
If schedules cannot be controlled, employ other effective listening strategies.
Cognitive barriers and preparation
Analyze the listening situation beforehand using guiding questions:
1) What are my goals for listening to this message?
2) How does this message relate to me or affect my life?
3) What listening type and style are most appropriate for this message?
The rate of speech vs. thought processing means attention can vary during reception (Wolvin & Coakley, 1993).
Find motivation to listen: intrinsic or extrinsic motivations aid memory and attention.
Consider how a message could affect life, career, intellect, or relationships to overcome selective attention.
Senders can help listeners by making relevance clear and presenting well-organized messages.
Internal dialogue (intrapersonal communication) can improve listening: covert coaching, self-reinforcement, covert questioning (Hargie, 2011).
Covert coaching: self-reminders to stay focused (e.g., "You're getting distracted… focus on what the supervisor says now.")
Self-reinforcement: self-praise for active listening (e.g., "You’re a good active listener; this will help on the next exam.")
Covert questioning: self-posed questions to focus attention (e.g., "What is the main idea?" "Why is he talking about his brother?")
Internal dialogue helps in resorting, rephrasing, and repeating information to fit cognitive preferences.
External concentration aids: occupy extra channels with related thoughts, resist unrelated thoughts to repair disorganized messages.
Mnemonic devices to aid recall: used since ancient Greece and Rome; impose order and organization on information.
Other memory aids: mental bracketing to separate intrusive thoughts; monitor concentration and let unrelated thoughts pass.
Mnemonic devices: three main types – Acronyms, Rhymes, Visualization.
Mnemonic devices with examples
Acronyms: HOMES to remember the Great Lakes (Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, Superior).
Rhyme: "Righty tighty, lefty loosey" to remember turns for screws and bulbs.
Visualization: imagine a glass of port wine (red) and a red navigation light to remember that the red light on a boat is on the port side; blue light is starboard.
Active Listening Behaviors (in practice)
Eye contact signals attentiveness; lack of eye contact can signal inattentiveness but may also indicate cognitive processing.
If you need a moment to think, signal with a brief phrase, e.g., "That’s new information to me. Give me just a second to think through it."
Back-channel cues: occasional nods and verbal cues ("uh-huh", "okay"); avoid autopilot pseudo-listening that leads to negative judgments.
Reference past statements to show listening and connect to the speaker's current thought; maintain flow with summaries and transitions.
Probing questions to sustain conversation and gain clarification; aim for questions that invite elaboration as well as clarification.
Nonverbal feedback remains important; if not read, follow up with paraphrase and clarifying questions.
Note-taking and engagement
Effective note-taking signals active listening and aids recall by transforming information into cognitive structures.
Note-taking isn't always viable in all situations (e.g., casual or intimate conversations), but in contexts like medical or financial information, taking notes can be prudent.
A suggested approach: ask for permission to take notes when appropriate: "Do you mind if I jot down some notes? This seems important."
Active Listening in practice: cues and boundaries
Active listening involves steady eye contact, positive facial expressions (smile), slightly raised eyebrows, upright posture, leaning toward the speaker, and appropriate nonverbal back-channel cues.
Avoid distracting mannerisms (doodling, fidgeting).
Verbal cues include responses like "okay" or "mmhum" to signal engagement without interrupting.
Summary of how to apply active listening in the classroom
Be prepared to process challenging messages; use internal dialogue to repair messages.
Act like a good listener: maintain eye contact, provide nonverbal feedback.
Take notes proactively; do not transcribe everything; focus on main ideas and locations where the instructor most often speaks.
Identify your preferred learning style and adopt listening strategies that complement it.
When miscommunication occurs, ask for rephrasing or examples and use clarifying questions.
Getting Competent Listening in the Classroom
The classroom context highlights listening’s importance for academic success.
Statistic (Conaway, 1982): 400 first-year students were tested; at year-end, 49\% of low scorers were on academic probation vs 4\% of high scorers.
Challenges for teachers: eliciting good listening behaviors; teaching methods influence listening and learning.
Learning styles and accessibility: teachers may attempt different approaches; not always feasible; students should develop personal listening strategies.
Practical tips for students:
Be prepared to process challenging messages; use internal dialogue to repair messages.
Act like a good listener: make eye contact; give nonverbal feedback.
Take notes even when not required; avoid transcribing everything; listen for main ideas.
Sit near the instructor; identify where the instructor speaks most; this facilitates attention.
Determine your preferred learning style; choose strategies that complement it.
If you don’t understand, ask for rephrase or an example; ask specific clarifying questions to request definition/explanation/elaboration.
Consider a question such as: "What are some listening challenges that you face in the classroom? What can you do to overcome them?"
Becoming a Better Critical Listener
Critical listening evaluates credibility, completeness, and worth of a message; described as a deep level of listening (Floyd, 1985).
In a democracy with free speech, critical listeners must assess value, ethics, accuracy, and quality of messages.
Key skills:
Distinguishing facts from inferences; evaluating supporting evidence.
Discovering biases and perceptual filters that affect processing.
Listening beyond the explicit message; think about broader implications.
Facts vs inferences
Facts are widely agreed-upon and verifiable; consider context in which they appeared.
Inferences are based on unverifiable thoughts or speculation; evaluate based on known facts.
Question to evaluate an inference: "What led you to think this?"
Evaluating sources and credibility
If speakers cite sources, use the credibility of those sources to judge the message.
Consider where information originated; cross-check with credible sources when possible.
Ask questions: "Where did you hear that? How do you know that?"
Recognizing biases
Biases are often hidden as normal thinking, not as deliberate prejudice.
Explore: "What led you to think this? How do you know that?"
Thinking beyond the message
Ask: What is being said and what is not being said? Whose interests are served? Who is included or excluded? What are the speaker’s goals?
Pause near evaluative moments to assess influences.
Beware persuasive shortcuts: central vs peripheral routes to persuasion (Petty & Cacioppo, 1984).
Be mindful of how likability or attractiveness of the speaker can bias evaluation.
Practical evaluation techniques
Be critical of evasive answers; ask for elaboration or evidence.
Avoid presenting either/or choices; look for nuance and additional options.
Watch for overgeneralizations and stereotypes; avoid judging the messenger’s appearance rather than the message.
Critical evaluation takes time; be prepared to withhold judgment and revisit conclusions later.
Avoid mind reading; do not assume what the other person will say or why they reached a conclusion.
Political spin and political fact-checking (Dobbs, 2012)
The rise of political fact-checking reflects more sophisticated rhetoric; media manipulation can distort truth.
Two competing journalistic approaches:
"We report; you decide" – traditional view of objectivity.
"Truth seekers" – journalists actively evaluate and challenge claims.
Michael Dobbs (Washington Post) emphasizes fairness as open-minded evidence-based evaluation rather than treating sides equally; outright lies are less common than exaggeration or spin.
Fact-checking resources: PolitiFact, factcheck.org, Washington Post Fact-Checker.
Caution: people tend to favor information that confirms their preconceptions (confirmation bias).
Practical exercise: compare and contrast different viewpoints with fact-checking tools; identify a viewpoint you agree with and one you disagree with and discuss what you learn.
Discussion prompts:
1) In journalism, which approach to information dissemination is better and why? (Your answer should reflect the merits of objective reporting vs. investigative evaluation.)
2) Explore examples of fact-checking; locate an example that critiques a viewpoint you typically agree with and one that critiques a viewpoint you typically disagree with; discuss insights gained.
Becoming a Better Empathetic Listener
Definition and foundation
Empathetic listening honors the dignity of others; it is caring and values the wisdom in others (Bruneau, 1993).
It involves openness to subjectivity and genuine engagement.
Active-empathetic listening
Combines active listening with empathetic engagement; the listener is emotionally involved and perceived by the speaker (Bodie, 2011).
Practices for empathetic listening
Suspend or suppress judgment to attend fully to the other person.
Paraphrase to place the speaker’s words in your frame of experience; speaking their words can evoke their feelings.
Mirroring nonverbal signals to build rapport and convey empathy (e.g., posture, tone).
Do not steal the spotlight; offer support without dominating the conversation with your own stories or advice.
Use questions that invite elaboration as verbal door openers; validate the speaker’s speech with active listening cues.
Resist unsolicited advice; empathetic listening can be time-intensive and not appropriate for untrained listeners.
Boundaries: recognize limits; refer to professionals if issues require evaluation or therapy.
Qualities of good empathetic listeners
Positive self-concept and self-esteem; nonverbal sensitivity; comfort with others’ subjectivity; ability to withhold excessive analytic thought.
Becoming a Better Contextual Listener
Contextual applicability
Active, critical, and empathetic listening skills are useful across professional, relational, cultural, and gendered contexts.
Listening in professional contexts
Listening is often neglected in organizational-communication research (Flynn, Valikoski, & Grau, 2008).
MBA programs often lack formal listening training (Alsop, 2002).
Effective listening improves sales performance and fosters an open communication climate that enhances motivation and productivity (Flynn, Valikoski, & Grau, 2008).
Empathetic and active listening support a positive organizational climate.
Creating a positive listening environment involves minimizing barriers to concentration, reducing noise, building shared reality (via shared language), designing spaces and opportunities for listening, training, and leadership modeling.
An open-door policy must be accompanied by genuine actions that demonstrate listening.
Becoming a listening leader (Bommelje)
Dr. Rick Bommelje popularized the concept of the listening leader; resources exist to train and certify listening professionals (CLP) through the International Listening Association.
Listening ability is linked to leadership effectiveness and decision-making; poor listening leads to problems across organizational levels.
Leadership requires versatility in listening types and styles to meet varied stakeholders’ needs.
Practical exercise prompts:
List behaviors of a listening leader; identify strengths and areas for improvement.
Reflect on factors contributing to the perceived shortage of listening skills in professional contexts.
Identify listening skills needed for your career goals.
Listening in relational contexts
Listening enables self-disclosure and relationship formation; listening provides psychological rewards through recognition.
Listening supports conflict resolution and relationship maintenance.
Early listening experiences shape personality and communication competence; being listened to correlates with higher self-esteem and lower anxiety.
For children, being listened to influences social development and future communication patterns.
Listening and culture
Cultural differences influence listening preferences and behaviors.
Collectivistic cultures tend to value listening more and may prefer indirect communication; high-context styles rely on nonverbal cues and context; low-context styles rely on explicit verbal content.
High-context cultures often view silence as meaningful; low-context cultures require explicit detail; mismatches can cause frustration.
Examples: Americans of European descent tend to be low-context; East Asian and Latin American cultures tend to be high-context.
Contextual listening styles and time orientation
High-context vs. low-context: meaning derived from nonverbal cues and context vs. explicit verbal detail.
Monochronic vs. polychronic time orientations
Monochronic: time is scarce; action-oriented listening; prefers concise, written conclusions (executive summaries); common in the US.
Polychronic: people-oriented; time is flexible; common in collectivistic, high-context cultures.
Listening and gender
Research yields mixed results; much depends on socialization rather than strict biological differences.
Societal expectations influence how men and women listen; e.g., men may suppress public emotional expression, which can be perceived as inattentiveness in some contexts.
Interruptions: earlier research (Dindia, 1987) found men interrupt more in same-sex encounters, but similar frequencies in cross-sex interactions; context matters.
Integrating across contexts
Professional contexts: foster environments that promote competent listening; leaders model listening behaviors.
Relational contexts: listening supports mutual self-disclosure and relationship maintenance; lack of listening can lead to loneliness and negative outcomes.
Cultural contexts: adapt listening behavior to high- or low-context cultures and to time orientations.
Gender considerations: differences often reflect socialization rather than biology; approach listening with awareness of cultural expectations.
Key points and practical takeaways
Different contexts require different listening approaches; develop a repertoire of listening styles.
Build environments and cultures that reward and model good listening across levels of an organization.
References (sample of cited sources)
Alsop, R. (2002). Playing well with others. The Wall Street Journal.
Beall, M. L., Gill-Rosier, J., Tate, J., & Matten, A. (2008). State of the context: Listening in education. The International Journal of Listening, 22, 124.
Bodie, G. D. (2011). The active-empathetic listening scale (AELS): Conceptualization and evidence of validity within the interpersonal domain. Communication Quarterly, 59(3), 278.
Bommelje, R. (n.d.). Dr. Rick Listen-Coach. Retrieved from http://www.listen-coach.com.
Brownell, J. (1993). Listening environment: A perspective. In A. D. Wolvin & C. G. Coakley (Eds.), Perspectives on Listening (p. 243). Norwood, NJ: Alex Publishing.
Bruneau, T. (1993). Empathy and listening. In A. D. Wolvin & C. G. Coakley (Eds.), Perspectives on Listening (p. 194). Norwood, NJ: Alex Publishing.
Conaway, M. S. (1982). Listening: Learning tool and retention agent. In A. S. Algier & K. W. Algier (Eds.), Improving reading and study skills. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Dindia, K. (1987). The effect of sex of subject and sex of partner on interruptions. Human Communication Research, 13(3), 345–371.
Dobbs, M. (2012). The rise of political fact-checking. New America Foundation.
Floyd, J. J. (1985). Listening, a practical approach. Glenview, IL: Scott Foresman.
Flynn, J., Valikoski, T-R., & Grau, J. (2008). Listening in the business context: Reviewing the state of research. The International Journal of Listening, 22, 143.
Hargie, O. (2011). Skilled interpersonal interaction: Research, theory, and practice. London: Routledge.
Hayakawa, S. I., & Hayakawa, A. R. (1990). Language in thought and action (5th ed.). San Diego, CA: Harcourt Brace.
Lustig, M. W., & Koester, J. (2006). Intercultural competence: Interpersonal communication across cultures (5th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education.
McCornack, S. (2007). Reflect and relate: An introduction to interpersonal communication. Boston, MA: Bedford/St Martin's.
Nelson-Jones, R. (2006). Human relationship skills (4th ed.). East Sussex, UK: Routledge.
Nichols, M. P. (1995). The lost art of listening. New York, NY: Guilford Press.
Petty, R. E., & Cacioppo, J. T. (1984). The effects of involvement on responses to argument quantity and quality: Central and peripheral routes to persuasion. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 46(1), 69–81.
Ridge, A. (1993). A perspective of listening skills. In A. D. Wolvin & C. G. Coakley (Eds.), Perspectives on Listening (pp. 5–6). Norwood, NJ: Alex Publishing.
Rubin, D. L. (1993). Listenability = oral-based discourse + considerateness. In A. D. Wolvin & C. G. Coakley (Eds.), Perspectives on Listening (p. 277). Norwood, NJ: Alex Publishing.
Toppo, G. (2011, October 27). Colleges start offering \"midnight classes\" for offbeat needs. USA Today.
Wolvin, A. D., & Coakley, C. G. (1993). A listening taxonomy. In A. D. Wolvin & C. G. Coakley (Eds.), Perspectives on Listening (p. 19). Norwood, NJ: Alex Publishing.
Licenses and Attributions
Included images and resources are cited within the content where used (e.g., Creative Commons attributions for photos).