Effective Listening: Essentials Of Human Communication

“Effective listening is listening that is tailored to the specific communication situation” (DeVito 2013). According to Essentials of Human Communication, effective listening is also known as situational listening. Depending on the situation that you are in, you may alter your listening skills to listen more effectively. Do you know how well you listen? This question will be illustrated in further detail throughout the course of this paper, as well as the different styles of effective listening, and ways to improve listening effectiveness. On page 57 of Essentials of Human Communication, I took the assessment titled “How Do You Listen” (DeVito 2013). By doing so, I was able to recognize both my proficient listening skills as well as those that need improvement. For number one, which illustrated active listening and accepting and prompting the speaker, I listed sometimes as my answer. Although I do listen actively and let the speaker know that I accept him, I only sometimes ask the speaker about what he is saying. Number two described …show more content…
With most of my answers as sometimes, and only a few as frequently and seldom, I feel as if I can alter my listening in appropriate situations. There are a few ways in which I can improve my listening skills, though, and I have created an improvement plan to implement them. Under the five dimensions of effective listening, there is a category called empathic and objective listening. While I do frequently demonstrate empathy, seldom do I exhibit objectivity. Our textbook lists a few recommendations in adjusting listening from empathic to objective, “striving to be objective” (DeVito 2013) being the last of these. This means that instead of expecting John Doe’s speech to be boring and therefore hearing it that way, I would listen objectively and hear what he is actually saying. This is a far better way to listen