What is communication and what are the basic modes of communication?

Answer 1

Not knowing how comprehensive and detailed you wish to have the answer, I will attempt to answer it concisely.

Communication can be defined as the process of conveying meaning from one entity to another. Most frequently it is done at an individual level ie one person to another. It can also be done at an organisational level and it can be argued that there are non-human forms of communication, for example between plants. This author has personal experience of seeing basil trees and roses grow at a faster rate when planted in close proximity to each other compared to when they are planted at a distance. Something which has been seen consistently over many years.

The basic modes of communication include body language, the spoken word, the written word and communication via an intermediary/intermediaries (reference: Reading People by Jo-Ellen Dimitrius Ph.D). This author would like to add an additional mode of communication: touch. Messages can both be transmitted and received via this method and this is linked to intimacy where transmission and receipt both occur simultaneously. This may also be used to describe the mode of communication between basil trees and roses.