FLOW OF COMMUNICATION

The Flow of Communication

The Flow of Communication

Type 1

Today in criminal justice, formal message includes a planned format. Formal message or communication is prepared thoroughly by the sender or agents of the sender. It is planned in familiar mediums known or expected to be known by the receiver or receivers. (Littlejohn, 2002) Formal message in criminal justice may be in the form of written messages such as letters, memorandum, reports, etc. the sender ensures the message is properly formatted for effectiveness. Prepared speeches for meeting purposes or in rare cases, entertainment, is done to ensure effectiveness and optimum persuasion of the receiver or receivers involved. In formal written communication, since the reader can always go back and re-read the message, repetition usually is not desirable in written communication, except occasionally to emphasize a point. Lawyers are expected to exert enough effort to arrive at original ways of making a point instead of relying on clichés. Formal writing has a logical pattern that stays on track without digressing. (Littlejohn, 2002) Lawyers revise their message carefully so that sentences read smoothly.

Type 2

Informal message is unplanned presentations, conversations and other modes of communicating. In criminal justice, over ninety percent of all messages done daily are informal. Often conversations are personalized to appeal to a specific individual. Common interest and goals usually forms the backbone of everyday conversation (Miller, 2005). Informal conversation may contain (a) repetition or redundancy, to make sure the listener does not miss the message, (b) clichés or stock phrases—easier to produce when someone is speaking off the cuff ["hot enough to fry an egg," "as clean as a hound's tooth"]; (c) loose organization and digressions-making a point, moving on, but circling back; (d) loose sentence structure-grammatical parts may not fit together well or the structure of the sentence may be ...