Effective Communication

Verbal and nonverbal communication

Communication can be much more complex than it seems, there is more to it then listening and responding. There are different types of communication and different things to look for during a conversation. Verbal communication are the words that are used when delivering a message. In the criminal just system the verbal messages that are being delivered during an interview with a suspect, a victim, or even with a fellow criminal justice professional are not always completely truthful. For this reason sometimes the most valuable bits of information come from what the interviewee is doing and not what they are saying. Nonverbal communication is the tone that the person delivering the message is speaking in or the way they are moving (a person rolling their eyes can be an obvious form of nonverbal communication) or even small twitches. There are many small things that a professional can look for when a person is speaking to see if the individual is being truthful or not, these are all forms of nonverbal communication.

Difference between listening and hearing

Hearing is one of our five senses and is a simple act (unless there is a physical hearing impairment), your ears are perceiving a vibration or sound wave, that is hearing. In many cases it can actually be difficult not to hear things but with listening it can actually be quite the opposite. Listening can be quite a difficult process, especially if it is a subject that is not of interest. It requires paying attention and processing the information that is being heard. This is often difficult because the mind constantly wanders. Active listening skills are a must for law enforcement officers so they constantly need to keep their minds active and put in the effort to pay attention. Note taking can actually help to do this, it helps to keep the mind more active and provides a record to reference later.

Formal and informal channels of communication

The formal channel of communication is usually considered the more traditional channel. It usually involves the chain of the command and involve the politics of the law enforcement system. All information is required is required to be documented in reports, logs, formal orders, directives, memorandums, etc. and required to follow specific channels. This may seem like a lot of work and often times it may be difficult or tedious but this is all done for a reason, to keep record. Good record keeping is what leads to changes or what leads to arrest in difficult cases. This type of formal communication channel is what ensures all officers are informed of all pertinent information in an inter-agency task force or what shows when a policy or procedure needs to be changed.

The informal channel of communication allows for a flow of information between criminal