8 MODELS OF COMMUNICATION BY PROPONENTS
Model of Brief
Communication Type of Model Description
Aristotle argues that we should look at five elements of a
communication event to analyze how best to communicate:
1. Aristotle’s Model Linear speaker, speech, occasion, target audience and effect.
Lasswell’s model is a basic framework for analyzing one-
way communication by asking five questions: Who, said
2. Lasswell’s Model Linear what, through which channel, to whom, with what effects?
The Shannon-Weaver model is the first to highlight the role
Shannon-Weaver of ‘noise’ in communication, which can disrupt or alter a
3. Model Linear message between sender and receiver.
Berlo’s S-M-C-R Berlo’s S-M-C-R model explains communication in four
4. Model Linear steps: Source, Message, Channel, and Receiver.
The Osgood-Schramm model looks at reciprocal
Osgood- communication, showing how we have to encode, decode,
5. Schramm Model Interactive and interpret information in real-time during a conversation.
The Westley and Maclean model shows that our
Westley and communication is influenced by environmental, cultural and
6. Maclean Model Interactive personal factors.
Model of Brief
Communication Type of Model Description
Barnlund’s Barnlund’s Transactional Model of Communication
Transactional highlights the role of private and public cues that impact our
7. Model Transactional messages.
Dance’s Helical Model sees communication as a circular
process that gets more and more complex as
Dance’s Helical communication occurs, which can be represented by a
8. Model Transactional helical spiral.
1. Aristotle’s Model
One Sentence Overview: A framework for thinking about how to improve your communication abilities, by looking at
key aspects underpinning a situation.
Aristotle’s model of communication is the oldest communication model, dating
back to 300BC. The model was designed to examine how to become a better
and more convincing communicator.
Aristotle argues we should look at five elements of a communication event to
analyze how best to communicate: speaker, speech, occasion, target audience
and effect. He also identified three elements that will improve communication:
ethos (credibility), pathos (ability to connect) and logos (logical argument).
Aristotle’s model does not pay attention to the role of feedback in
communication.
2. Lasswell’s Model
One Sentence Overview: A basic framework for analyzing one-way
communication by asking five questions: Who, said what, through which
channel, to whom, with what effects?
Lasswell’s model of communication tries to understand a communication event
by asking five important questions. It looks at who created the message (and
what their bias may be), what they said, the channel they said it through (e.g.
TV, radio, blog), who they said it two, and what effect it had on the receiver.
This model is effective as it provides a very simple and practical way of
critiquing a message and exploring five important elements that can help
explain the event under analysis in more detail.
3. Shannon-Weaver Model
One Sentence Overview: The Shannon-Weaver model is the first to highlight
the role of ‘noise’ in communication, which can disrupt or alter a message
between sender and receiver.
The Shannon-Weaver model sees communication occurring in five key parts:
sender, encoder, channel, decoder, receiver. It emphasizes the importance of
encoding and decoding messages for them to be sent (e.g. turning them into
written words, morse code, etc.). During the process of encoding, sending and
decoding, ‘noise’ occurs that can disrupt or cloud a message. In the most
traditional sense, this may be static on a radio broadcast, or even extend to
mishearing a conversation or misspelling an email. This model was the first to
introduce the role of noise in the communication process.
The idea of feedback was retroactively introduced to this model.
4. Berlo’s S-M-C-R Model
One Sentence Overview: Berlo’s S-M-C-R model explains communication in
four steps: Source, Message, Channel, and Receiver.
Berlo’s model of communication explains it in four
steps: Source, Message, Channel, and Receiver. The unique aspect of Berlo’s
model is that it gives a detailed account of the key elements in each step that
will affect how well the message is communicated:
• Source: Elements of the source include communication skills of the
sender, their attitude and their culture.
• Message: Elements of the message include its content, structure
and code.
• Channel: Elements of the channel include the senses of hearing,
seeing, touching, smelling, etc.
• Receiver: Elements of the receiver include their attitude, knowledge
and culture.
See a summary of all elements in the image below:
The Interactive Models
Quick Summary: Interactive models are best for explaining impersonal two-
way communication processes.
5. Osgood-Schramm Model
One Sentence Overview: The Osgood-Schramm model looks at reciprocal
communication, showing how we have to encode, decode, and interpret
information in real-time during a conversation.
The Osgood-Schramm model explores communication that is equal and
reciprocal.
It does not differentiate between the sender and receiver, but sees each as
being in an equal position as message encoders and decoders.
This model is best for explaining and examining personal synchronous
communication where feedback is immediate (such as face-to-face
discussions). As feedback is immediate, noise can be reduced through ongoing
clarification of messages during the conversation.
6. The Westley And Maclean Model
One Sentence Overview: The Westley and Maclean model shows that our
communication is influenced by environmental, cultural and personal factors.
The Westley and Maclean model embraces the importance of feedback in
communication. However, it also emphasizes the important role of
environmental and cultural factors in influencing communication. It shows that
the things we say and communicate are influenced by who we are, what our
background is, and what perspective we are approaching issues from. The
model takes into account the object of orientation (background, culture and
beliefs) of the sender and receiver of messages. It also considers the message
to have been received and sent within a broader social context that needs to
be considered to know and understand the message.
The Transactional Models
Quick Summary: Transactional models explain direct personal communication
processes where two-way feedback is immediate.
7. Barnlund’s Transactional Model
One Sentence Overview: Barnlund’s Transactional Model of Communication
highlights the role of private and public cues that impact our messages.
Barnlund’s Transactional Model of Communication is a model that explores
interpersonal, immediate-feedback communication. Central to this approach is
the idea that feedback for the sender is the reply for the receiver.
This model also highlights the role of ‘cues’ in impacting our messages.
Barnlund highlights the role of public cues which are environmental cues,
and private cues which are a person’s personal thoughts and background.
With this emphasis on cues, Barnlund’s model highlights the factors that
influence what we think and say.
8. Dance’s Helical Model
One Sentence Overview: Dance’s Helical Model sees communication as a
circular process that gets more and more complex as communication occurs,
which can be represented by a helical spiral.
Dance’s Helical Model builds on circular models by explaining how we
improve our messages over time by using feedback. When we communicate
with others, their feedback will influence our next statement.
We become more knowledgeable with each cycle of communication, enabling
up to ‘expand our circle’, as represented by the increasingly wider and wider
circles. The movement up the spiral indicates that each communication
practice is new and different from the previous, as communication does not
ever perfectly repeat itself.
Final Thoughts
There are many mass communication theories (see for example: media
richness theory, relational dialectics theory, muted group theory, and agenda
setting theory).
However, the 8 communication models listed in this article are central models
of communication that highlight how communication occurs. They are theories
that are necessary to know for communication studies students as they help
you understand the key components that make up communication in the 21st
Century.
