Relationship between Communication Skills and Effectiveness

Intl. j. Basic. Sci. Appl. Res. Vol., 1 (4), 101-106, 2012

International Journal of Basic Sciences & Applied Research. Vol., 1 (4), 101-106, 2012 Available online at http://www.isicenter.org ISSN 2147-3749 ©2012 VictorQuest Publications

Relationship between Communication Skills and Effectiveness Nasiri Mehran1*, Shafiee Shahram2, Sepasi Hossein1 1Department

of Physical Education, Karaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Karaj, Iran 2Assistant Prof., University of Guilan, Rasht, Iran

*Corresponding Author Email: [email protected] Abstract The purpose of this study was “analyzing the relationship between communication skills and effectiveness of personnel of the department of sports and youth and Sport Boards of Guilan”. The statistical population of this study consisted of all of the Department of Physical Education and Sport Boards of Guilan personnel. The number of Samples was equal to statistical population and was 194 persons. The present Study is of the correlation and descriptive studies. The measurement tools of this study were effectiveness (Korick, 1995) and communication skills which their content validity was approved by the experts in the field of sport management. The internal reliability of the questionnaires was also obtained (0.714) for communication skills questionnaire and (0.814) for efficacy questionnaire with using alpha Cronbach test. Kolmogorov–Smirnov test, Spearman Correlation Coefficient, Kruskal Wallis tests, U Mann-Whitney, Korick and Wilcoxon T in significant level of (P ≤0.05) and SPSS software was used for data analyzing. Results showed there is a significant relationship between the three variables of the research, namely communication skills and effectiveness. Also there was a significant relationship between the components of communication skills (verbal, listening, and feedback) and effectiveness. In addition, a significant difference was observed between the communication skills and its components and those with low, medium and high level of effectiveness. With respect to the research results it seems that the more desirable communication skills of the personnel of the department of sports and youth and Sport Boards of Guilan, The more effective will be the organization. Keywords: Communication skill, Effectiveness, Verbal, Listening, Feedback. Introduction The organizations are created and developed to achieve various goals. These goals are achieved when the appropriate actions are accurately performed. Also to carry out these activities, the organizations should have the tools, material equipment, capital and budget and finally human resources. Among these sources, in all organizations the most important source is human resource and has a special importance in organizational behavior management. Management of sports organizations such as the Youth and Sports Department and Sport Boards, are not apart from this fact and has a particular importance in the field of physical education and sports. Management science and organizational experts believe that management is the knowledge and art of making relations with the others and performing tasks through them. For example, Parker Follett has defined the management as performing tasks through the others. Managers also have found that making effective relation with the employees and understanding their communicational motives are effective factors for reaching the organizational goals and because of effective communications deficiency there are many individual, organizational and social problems. Therefore good communication skills are essential prerequisite for satisfactory performance in all management situations. As a result of their training, experience and personal success there are different degrees of communication skills for everyone. Effective communication among the different components of an organization is one of the key factors of successful management. Barnard says providing a communication system is one of the three main important administrative functions for the survival of an organization. Effective communication with people and understanding their motives will lead to a successful management and leadership. Communication is a mechanism that human relations will be created based on it and all intellectual matters and transmission tools and maintaining them at the time and the place will develop based on it. Modern organizations have understood the need to have good communications with people; But what

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still remains is a lack of understanding and awareness of how and what is the communication and its role within an organization (Korick, 1995). Effective communication relies on a set of skills that can be listed as verbal skill, listening skill and feedback skill. Verbal skill is important because it is one of the effective tools of human beings to control and understand the environment and to have an impact on it. Moreover at least for most people verbal skill is one of the best tools in order to obtain the greatest rewards in life and minimize the punishments. The definitions of verbal communications can be divided into two categories:  First, definitions in which verbal communication is considered as speech and writing (Helrygel 1996).  Second, definitions in which verbal communication is only considered as oral kind (Thompson 1996). The latter is considered in this study; therefore the verbal skill is defined as attentively using the verbal symbols in order to encourage the others to do tasks (Tracy, 1989). When a manager sends a message he or she should try to considerately and carefully use the language to reduce misunderstandings. Thus verbal communication skills are essential for the manager. Hence verbal communication skill is necessary for managers and they must try to make their speech clear, intelligible and far from unambiguity. Another element of communication skills is listening skills. Some of communication experts believe that effective listening is the cornerstone of communication skills of modern managers. Various studies show that managers spend 45 to 63 percent of their time for listening. Good listening is the key of our perception, understanding and thoughts and has a direct and important impact on human`s perceptional, educational and learning processes; in addition to this impact, it is one of the basic tools for human evolution and acquisition of spiritual values. Therefore effective listening can be used as one of the most important tools for improving the quality of work life in the organization (Salmon, 2011). Messages given back from the recipient to the sender will then be referred to as feedback. Without feedback, it is difficult to know whether a message is received and understood. About the importance of feedback skill Rabinson, Dusen and Tracy say: skill in providing feedback to employees, strengthens and reinforces communications and is effective for improving motivation, interactions and organizational commitment (Tracy, Duosen and Robinson, 1998). On the other hand organizational effectiveness is the purpose which all efforts in organization are made to achieve it. Theories and manuscripts in this field demonstrate that effectiveness is a multidimensional phenomenon, including reaching the goals, maintaining and reinforcing the system, solidarity and integrity of the components, adaptability and making changes which can`t be measured with one or two factors, in this fact managers are confronted many problems. Effectiveness or efficiency of the organization is usually defined in the form, amount or degree to which an organization achieves its objectives. The cause of ambiguity in organizational effectiveness study of sport boards is the issue of human resources. Different beneficiaries such as the community, board of directors, volunteer employees of the board, referees, technical staff and athletes have to cooperate and collaborate with each other for boards to be successful and effective in providing services. Investigating and identifying the factors which have an impact on the effectiveness of such sports organizations are the prerequisite to do so. Much research has been focused on communication skills and effectiveness. Many studies have been accomplished about the communicational skills and effectiveness. Hassan Jorfi and Mohsen Jorfi (2012) in their research with the subject of " the relationship between emotional intelligence and communication effectiveness" concluded that there was strong correspondence between organizational culture, communication effectiveness and emotional intelligence in educational administrations. Rahnama and colleagues (2011) from their research with the subject of " the relationship between employee creativity and organizational effectiveness" concluded that there is a statistically significant relationship between employee creativity and organizational effectiveness in educational departments of East Azerbaijan and Ardabil provinces. Fazel and Aghamolaei (2011) in their research with the subject of " the attitudes of medical students toward learning communication skills" concluded that there were statistically significant differences between male and female students and between basic sciences and pathophysiology students on the one hand and clinical course students on the other as regards their attitudes toward learning communication skills. Neeru and Paul (1999) from their research with the subject of "The impact of communication effectiveness and service quality on relationship commitment in consumer, professional services" concluded that The hypothesized model and show communication effectiveness to be a key driver of all antecedent variables, and the single most powerful determinant of relationship commitmen. Salmon and Young (2011) from their research concluded that for development of communication skills, it should be taught to the people. Zarei Matin and colleagues (2010) in their research with the subject of “Relationship between Interpersonal Communication Skills and Organizational Commitment" concluded that the findings of the research show that among existing skills in the model, just team building skill has a significant relation with organizational commitment. In a descriptive study with the subject of “required skills for managers in california in 2020” Lavoi (2007) described and identified the most important required skills and attributes for managers. It showed that making relationships, having good communication skills and reaching the objectives, were respectively evaluated as the most three important skills for managers in 2020. Neeru (1999) in an interesting study with the subject of “comparative study of interpersonal communications in the organization” concluded that women managers have better communication skills than men in the U.S. Methodology The research is a descriptive-correlative study in which the data were collected with survey. Society of interest was the personnel of the department of Sports and Youth and active Sport Boards of Guilan province. According to the Department of Youth and Sports of Guilan province reports in 1391, the number of people working in this office was (104) persons. Also the number of boards in the province of Guilan was reported (47), among which only 30 boards had active physical presence. From each board three members (President, Vice President and Secretary) were selected. Hence the number of people working in the boards was estimated (90). Therefore the population size of statistical society was calculated 194 persons and 174 questionnaires

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(approximately 90%) were collected from these persons and were used. Due to the number of society population in this study statistical sample was considered equal to the statistical society (N = n). In order to measure communication skills, Barton (1990) standard questionnaire and to measure the effectiveness, group effectiveness of Korick (1995) standard questionnaire was used. The effectiveness questionnaires with the point (0 to 0.33 percent), point (0.33 to 0.66 percent) and point (0.67 percent and above) were respectively considered as low, moderate and high effectiveness. Also the internal reliability of the questionnaires was calculated with using Crohnbach’s alpha method. Internal reliability coefficient was obtained (0.714) for communication skills questionnaire and (0.814) for effectiveness. After collecting and obtaining data and information they were analyzed statistically by the spss software. Results Before testing hypothesis of the study, normality of data distribution was investigated using the Kolmogorov – Smirnov test. Table 1. Test results of the Kolmogorov – Smirnov (communication skills and its dimensions and effectiveness). Average Standard deviation Z Sig

Communication skills 3.4524 0.48456 1.593 0.013

Verbal skills 3.6239 0.51173 2.182 0.000

Listening skills 3.1322 0.71678 2.194 0.000

Feedback skills 3.6011 0.51900 1.686 0.007

Effectiveness 3.5395 0.69237 1.482 0.025

As shown in table 1, communication skills variable and its dimensions and effectiveness have abnormal distribution. Therefor due to hypothesis content, nonparametric statistical methods were used for testing hypothesis of the study. Table 2. The relationship between communication skills and its dimensions (Verbal, Listening and Feedback skills) with effectiveness. Variable

Statistics Spearman correlation coefficients Significance level Spearman Feedback correlation coefficients Significance level Spearman correlation coefficients Significance level Spearman correlation coefficients Significance level

Communication skills Verbal skills Listening skills Skills

Effectiveness 0.416 0.000 0.848 0.000 0.332 0.000 0.268 0.000

Table 2 shows the relationship between both variables of the study (communication skills and effectiveness). There is a significant relationship between communication skills and its dimensions (Verbal, Listening and Feedback skills) with effectiveness. Table 3. Kruskal-Wallis test results (the difference between communication skills of people with low, middle and high effectiveness). Variable

Communication skills

Statistics Number Chi-square df Significance level Mean ranking

Low effectiveness 66

59.75

Middle effectiveness 57 33.079 2 0.000 100.55

High effectiveness 51

108.82

As shown in table 3, there is a significant difference among communication skills of people with low, middle and high effectiveness due to significance level (0.000). U Mann Whitney test was used to determine differences between each group.

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Table 4. U Mann Whitney test results (the difference between communication skills of people with low, middle and high effectiveness).

Communication skills

Variable Low effectiveness Middle effectiveness Low effectiveness High effectiveness Middle effectiveness High effectiveness

Z

Significance level

-4.944

0.000

-4.728

0.000

-1.415

0.157

Mean ranking 47.25 79.08 46.00 75.82 47.50 59.00

Table 4 Shows that there is a significant difference between communication skills of people with low and middle effectiveness, and low and high effectiveness which rejects the hypothesis of the study and accepts the opposite hypothesis; but there is no significant difference between communication skills of people with middle and high effectiveness which shows the hypothesis of the study is accepted. Table 5. Kruskal-Wallis test results (the difference between communication skills dimensions (Verbal, Listening and Feedback skills) of people with low, middle and high effectiveness. Variable

Verbal skills

Listening skills

Feedback skills

Statistics Number Chi-square df Significance level Mean ranking Chi-square df Significance level Mean ranking Chi-square df Significance level Mean ranking

Low effectiveness 66

54.70

64.73

74.27

Middle effectiveness 57 46.788 2 0.000 105.07 22.649 2 0.000 97.66 8.772 2 0.012 90.62

High effectiveness 51

110.30

105.61

101.14

Table 5 shows that there is a significant difference between verbal skills and listening skills of people with low, middle and high effectiveness, but there is no significant difference between feedback skills of people with low, middle and high effectiveness which shows the hypothesis of the study is accepted. U Mann Whitney test was used to determine differences between each group. Table 6. U Mann Whitney test results (the difference between verbal skills of people with low, middle and high effectiveness).

Verbal skills

Variable Low effectiveness Middle effectiveness Low effectiveness High effectiveness Middle effectiveness High effectiveness

Z

Significance level

-5.527

0.000

-6.083

0.000

-0.478

0.633

Mean ranking 45.68 80.89 42.52 80.32 53.18 55.98

Table 6 shows that there is a significant difference between verbal skills of people with low and middle effectiveness, and low and high effectiveness which rejects the hypothesis of the study and accepts the opposite hypothesis, but there is no significant difference between verbal skills of people with middle and high effectiveness which shows the hypothesis of the study is accepted.

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Table 7. U Mann Whitney test results (the difference between listening skills of people with low, middle and high effectiveness). Variable Low effectiveness Middle effectiveness Low effectiveness High effectiveness Middle effectiveness High effectiveness

Listening skills

Z

Significance level

-4.201

0.000

-3.769

0.000

-1.504

0.133

Mean ranking 49.55 76.42 48.69 72.34 50.24 59.26

Table 7 shows that there is a significant difference between listening skills of people with low and middle effectiveness, and low and high effectiveness, so the hypothesis of the study is rejected and the opposite hypothesis is accepted, but there is no significant difference between listening skills of people with middle and high effectiveness which shows the hypothesis of the study is accepted. Table 8. U Mann Whitney test results (the difference between listening skills of people with low, middle and high effectiveness). Variable Low effectiveness Middle effectiveness Low effectiveness High effectiveness Middle effectiveness High effectiveness

Feedback skills

Z

Significance level

-2.037

0.042

-2.689

0.007

-1.366

0.172

Mean ranking 56.01 68.94 51.76 68.37 50.68 58.76

Table 8 shows that there is a significant difference between feedback skills of people with low and middle effectiveness, and low and high effectiveness; so the hypothesis of the study is rejected and the opposite hypothesis is accepted, but there is no significant difference between feedback skills of people with middle and high effectiveness which shows the hypothesis of the study is accepted. Table 9 .Korick test results- the difference between the dimensions of communication skills. Dimensions of communication skills Verbal skills Listening skills Feedback skills

Chi-square

df

Significance level

108.667

2

0.000

Mean ranking 2.34 1.39 2.26

Table 9 shows that there is a significant difference between the dimensions of communication skills. T Wilcoxon test was used to determine details of differences between each dimension. Table 10 .T Wilcoxon test results- difference between the dimensions of communication skills. Dimensions of communication skills Verbal skills Listening skills Feedback skills

Statistics Z Significance level Z Significance level Z Significance level

Verbal skills ---------8.561 0.000 -0.391 0.696

Listening skills -8.561 0.000 ---------0.445 0.657

Feedback skills -0.391 0.696 -0.445 0.657 ---------

Table 10 shows that there is a significant difference between verbal and listening skills; so the hypothesis of the study is rejected and the opposite hypothesis is accepted, but there is no significant difference between verbal and listening skills with Feedback skills which shows the hypothesis of the study is accepted. Discussion and Conclusion Correlation between communication skills and effectiveness was acquired (0.416) and the relationship between these two variables was significant. Also due to the correlation coefficient between the effectiveness and verbal skills (0.848) we can conclude that a positive and strong correlation exists between these two variables. So the more the verbal skills of the people, the higher will be their effectiveness. Also due to the acquired correlation coefficient of the relationship between listening skills and effectiveness (0.332) observed in significance level (0.05> P) we can conclude that the better listening skill of the people, the higher will be their effectiveness.

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Due to the low correlation between feedback skills and effectiveness (0.268), a significant relationship was observed between them. The results show this fact that higher feedback skills of the people, improves their effectiveness. It can be inferred that the better communication skills and its dimensions (Verbal, Listening and Feedback) for the personnel of the department of sports and youth and Sport Boards of Guilan province, the more effective will be the organization. Therefore, improving the communication skills of the personnel of the department of sports and youth and Sport Boards can make the organization more effective. The prerequisite is good management of human resources; to do so, the organization can consider the short-term training of communication skills for its staff. In the Kruskal-Wallis test results, significant difference was observed between the communication skills of the people with low, medium and high effectiveness. Therefore, in order to determine the differences of each group, U Mann Whitney test showed that there is a significant difference between the communication skills of the people with low and medium effectiveness, and communication skills of the people with low and high effectiveness, but there is no significant difference between communication skills of the people with medium and high effectiveness. Due to the comparison between the mean ratings for each group these results are tangible in duad comparisons, So that in comparison of the mean ratings of communication skills of the people with low effectiveness (59.75) and average effectiveness (100.55), the difference was dramatic. Also comparison of the groups of the people with low effectiveness (59.75) and high effectiveness (108.82) had the same conclusion, but there was no significant difference in comparison of the mean ratings of communication skills of the people with moderate effectiveness (100.55) and high effectiveness (108.82) in significance level (0.05>P). Furthermore, the results of the Kruskal-Wallis test showed a significant difference between verbal skills, listening skills and feedback of the people with low, medium and high effectiveness. To determine the difference of each group U Mann Whitney test was used and the results showed that there is a significant difference between the verbal, listening and feedback skills of the people with low and medium effectiveness and verbal, listening and feedback skills of the people with low and high effectiveness, but there is no significant difference between verbal, listening and feedback skills of the people with medium and high effectiveness. These results show some proximity in scores of two groups, one with moderate effectiveness and another with high effectiveness in communication skills and its dimensions. Therefore with a glimpse it is emphasized again that people who have better communication skills have more effectiveness and vice versa. According to the theoretical basis of the study, communication skills refers to a set of behaviors which help people through making relations between their emotions and needs and reach interpersonal and social goals. On the other hand effectiveness is defined as the level of reaching the goals. In other words, social skills are educated behaviors which have an impact on interpersonal relationships with coevals and other adult persons. Thus, managers from different levels should be aware of the importance of communication skills in their area so as to reach the organizational objectives. References Fazel I, Aghamolaei T, 2011. Attitudes Toward Learning Communication Skills Among Medical Students of a University in Iran. Acta Medica Iranica. 49(9): 625-629. Hellriegel D, Slocum JW, 1996. Management. 7th ed. South – western college pubishing Cincinnati, ohio. Jorfi H, Jorfi M, 2012. Management: A Study of Organizational Culture and the Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Communication Effectiveness (Case Study in Organizations of Iran). Journal of Management Research. 4(1): 1-14. Korick RE, 1995. Communication in Organization Hay/Mcber Group. 3th ed. Jossey- Bass, Sanfransisco. Lavoi, debra E, 2007. A descriptive study of the attributes and skills needed by California super intendents in 2020. University of Levern, united states- California. Neeru S, Paul GP, 1999. "The impact of communication effectiveness and service quality on relationship commitment in consumer, professional services", Journal of Services Marketing. 13 (2): 151 – 170. Rahnama A, Mousavian CJ, Alaei A, Salimi Maghvan T, 2011. The survey of relationship between creativity of staffs and organizational effectiveness. Australian Journal of Business and Management Research. 1 (6): 97-104. Salmon P, Young B, 2011. Creativity in clinical communication: from communication skills to skilled communication. Medical Education in Review. 45: 217–226. Thompson N, 1996. People Skills: A Guide to Effective Practice in the Human services. Macmillan Press Ltd. Tracy, Dusen, Rabinson, 1998. “INTER-ACT, Using Interpersonal Communication Skills”. 8 th ed. Wadsworth Publishing Company. Zarei Matin H, Jandaghi G, Haj Karimi F, Hamidizadeh A, 2010. Relationship between Interpersonal Communication Skills and Organizational Commitment (Case Study: Jahad Keshavarzi and University of Qom, Iran). European Journal of Social Sciences. 13(3): 387-398.

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