Communication Tips #1 Clarification

In communication, clarification entails returning to the speaker the essential meaning of what they have just said, as understood by the listener. As a result, the listener's understanding is checked, and any areas of confusion or misunderstanding are resolved.

??Clarification?? is essential in many situations, particularly when the message being communicated is difficult in some way. Communication can be 'difficult' for a variety of reasons, such as when sensitive emotions are being discussed, or when you are listening to complex information or following instructions.

Clarifying can entail asking questions or summarizing what the speaker has said.

When a listener is unable to understand the speaker's responses, he or she may request clarification. The messages that a speaker is attempting to convey can be extremely complex, involving numerous people, issues, places, and/or times. Clarifying assists you in sorting these out as well as checking the speaker's priorities.

Clarification allows both the speaker and the listener to make sense of these frequently perplexing and complex issues.???????

Examples of non-directive clarification-seeking questions are:

?? “I'm not quite sure I understand what you are saying.”

?? “I don't feel clear about the main issue here.”

?? “When you said ... what did you mean?”

?? “Could you repeat ...?”

Clarifying involves:

?? Non-judgemental questioning.

?? Summarising and seeking feedback as to its accuracy.

Clarification Questions

When you are the listener in a sensitive environment, the right sort of non-directive questioning can enable the speaker to describe their viewpoint more fully.?

?Asking the right question at the right time can be crucial and comes with practice.? The best questions are open-ended as they give the speaker choice in how to respond, whereas closed questions allow only very limited responses.

Open Questions

If your role is to assist a speaker to talk about an issue, often the most effective questioning starts with 'when', 'where', 'how' or 'why'.? These questions encourage speakers to be open and expand on their thoughts.? For example:

?? “When did you first start feeling like this?”

?? “Why do you feel this way?”

Closed Questions

Closed questions usually elicit a 'yes' or 'no' response and do not encourage speakers to be open and expand on their thoughts.? Such questions often begin with 'did you?' or 'were you?'? For example:

?? “Did you always feel like this?”

?? “Were you aware of feeling this way?”

Guidelines for Clarifying

?Clarification is the skill we use to ensure that we have understood the message of the speaker in an interpersonal exchange.?

Clarification guidelines:

?? Admit if you are unsure about what the speaker means.

?? Ask for repetition.

?? State what the speaker has said as you understand it, and check whether this is what they really said.

?? Ask for specific examples.

?? Use open, non-directive questions - if appropriate.

?? Ask if you have got it right and be prepared to be corrected.

Summarising

A? summary involves reviewing what has taken place during the whole conversation.?

It is important to keep only to the essential components of the conversation, and it must be given from the speaker's frame of reference, not an interpretation from the listener’s viewpoint.? The aim of a summary is to ?review understanding?, not to give explanation, to judge, to interpret or provide solutions.

?Summarising should be done at the end of a conversation, although sometimes it may be appropriate midway through as a way of drawing together different threads.? At the start of a conversation, it is useful to summarise any previous discussions or meetings as it can help to provide focus.? Whilst the summary is likely to be the longest time a listener will be speaking during a conversation, it is important to be as concise and straightforward as possible.

Summary of Clarification

Reflecting, clarifying and summarising are the tools used by active listeners to enable them to demonstrate understanding and encourage a speaker to talk openly.

For effective communication it is essential that the listener and speaker both have the same understanding of the discussion.?

Use clarification, reflection and summarising to help with your interpersonal relationships.