WRITTEN COMMUNICATION: CHARACTERISTICS, TYPES, ELEMENTS - LITERATURE - 2025

The written communication is any kind of interaction that makes use of the written code. Although it is based on the same linguistic system of orality, its properties are different. Thus, unlike others, the written form is completely conventional. This must follow defined patterns according to the rules established by the language.

On the other hand, written communication is the most common form of formal communication between human beings, and performs social functions of various kinds. Among its uses, it is very often used to document various types of events and to carry out interpersonal interactions.

In addition, another of its most relevant characteristics is that it does not require the presence of the sender and receiver in the same space and time. Therefore, the message is received lazy and the interaction of the writer (sender) and the reader (receiver) is very limited.

On the other hand, written communication is essentially a creative activity that requires conscious effort. This effort comes from the stimuli produced by the mind.

In this it differs from the oral one, where they are picked up from the outside by sensory receptors. Those of writing, on the other hand, come from internal intellectual activity.

characteristics

Delayed reception of the message

One of the characteristics of written communication is related to the time factor. In a face-to-face communication situation, the sender's encrypted messages are instantly received by the receiver.

But, in a written communication there is always a delay. In general, there is no fixed time limit for this delay.

Limited cycles

The communication cycle comprises four basic communicative elements: the sender, the message together with the communication channel, the receiver and the response or reaction. As the reception of the message takes place delayed, the cycle of written communication is more limited.

However, due to new advances in communication and information, many channels allow the last step of the cycle (the feedback or response) to be completed in almost the same time as in a face-to-face communication. An example of these are instant messaging services.

Little space for redundancy

The written record limits the possibility of redundancy. In oral communication, gestures and paraverbal elements - such as intonation - support verbal language.

This is not the case in written communication. For this reason, the level of demand is higher, forcing the issuer to use the words with greater precision.

In fact, written communication has a high social value. This assessment decreases with the repetition of words and the use of the same syntactic patterns. Here originality and even formal innovation prevail.

Advance planning

Generally, written communication is not an impromptu act. Writing often meets a number of conditions or requirements. Among them, if effective communication is sought, it is necessary to be clear about the content of the message as a whole and its internal articulation.

To do this, the issuer must have a text organization scheme. As the text progresses, all the elements of the message are concatenated until obtaining relevant ideas with meaning.

Types

As for the types of written communication, there are as many as the multiple and diverse areas of human action. In this way, each time some (telegrams) disappear and others appear (e-mail, for example). Only some of these will be described below.

Memos

A memo is a popular means of internal written communication among members of an organization. It is a short form letter form with minimal forms of courtesy and immediate access to the specific subject of the message.

In this type of communication, there are generally pre-established formats. The main rule to comply with include the correct wording and personal and hierarchical respect. The way of writing must be direct and without familiarities of any kind.

Reports

Reports are another type of written communication. They can be used for commercial, educational, legal or scientific purposes.

Depending on the nature and purpose of the report, there may already be pre-established formats. However, in general terms, a report should contain a brief introduction, key objectives and results.

In some cases, graphs and tables are included to facilitate understanding of the results. Similarly, many reports contain a list of recommendations.

Brochures

Brochures are publications in which companies present their products and services. They are also posted to assist sales representatives in their customer visits.

Companies produce brochures in many shapes and sizes. Some brochures are letter size, while others are folded in half or three sections.

On the other hand, they are characterized by being very colorful and with an abundance of images in their main products or services. The texts are few and with a lot of white space so that the brochure can be read easily.

Emails

Emails are currently a very common form of communication. They are used to send documents, organize meetings, confirm appointments, and contact job candidates. Furthermore, they are employed to deal with personal matters.

Despite its relative informality, emails must follow certain conventional rules. For this purpose, its format assigns spaces for sender, recipient, subject and a space where the message must be written.

Even if they are used for non-commercial purposes, there are certain conventions that must be followed to avoid negative reactions. Among them, we can mention the correct writing of names and titles, the correct use of punctuation marks and the correct conformation of sentences and paragraphs.

Proposals

Proposals are documents that describe future projects. These are usually only one or two pages long. These include the associated costs of each specific task of the project.

Other costs not direct to the project can be included such as printing, postage and mail costs, among others.

Letters

Letters are one of the oldest forms of written communication. The subject of the letters can be personal or business. Before the advent of electronic forms, these were a very popular means of communication. As in e-mails, commercially sober forms of courtesy and concise messages were used.

However, the personal letters showed less conventionalism in their writing. Complimentary treatments were minimal. The development of the theme was at the convenience of the sender and receiver of the message. The number of pages was limited by the capacity of both. Progressively, these have been replaced by electronic messages.

Telegrams

The telegram is a short, simplified version of a letter. Here courtesy formulas are kept to a minimum and sometimes omitted. The text of the message is written omitting as many words as possible and keeping the minimum necessary to make sense of it.

Also, the forms of courtesy were generally standard and abbreviated forms (Mr. for Mr., Mrs., for Mrs., and the like). As in letters, its use has been decreasing with the advancement of electronic media.

Faxes

This was the pioneering way of transmitting written messages electronically. Although both its writing and its reading were done on written paper, its transmission was done by electronic means. Its use has declined due to the growing use of electronic media.

Elements of written communication

In general terms, the three main elements of written communication are considered to be structure (form of content), style (writing), and content (theme).

In terms of structure, it helps readers understand the topic. That is why it is recommended to be clear about the purposes} before starting to write.

In relation to style, this is related to the issuer in the first instance. However, it is also important to consider the potential recipients of the written material. Sometimes, the use of short sentences or paragraphs, with a simple vocabulary, is required. Sometimes the message needs to be a bit longer and elaborate.

Finally, in terms of topic, it can be of a great variety. All areas of human interaction can be the object of a written communication. This includes everything from scientific to personal, through laws and procedures.

Advantage

Permanence in time

Written communication is a permanent means of information. Therefore, it is useful when record keeping is required. Similarly, it is very important in the correct delegation of responsibilities and in the establishment of rules and procedures. On the other hand, it allows the repetitive query of messages.

Control mechanism

Thanks to its possibility of permanence in time, written communication is ideal as a control tool. Control or results sheets, laws, agreements, among others, are the documents most commonly processed through this mode of communication.

Preservation

Written communication has a high level of preservation. This allows it to be safe and durable. Technological advances have made possible other means of preserving information. However, up to the present time, the original written document continues to be the final proof of its existence and originality.

Higher reflective level

People who use this medium efficiently reflect before writing. The action of writing a message is always preceded by a process of thought and definition of what you want to express. Even the writing itself is a reflective process. Therefore, this communicative mode is ideal for transmitting accuracy and precision.

Less chance of distortion and interpretation

In messages transmitted by means of written communication, there is less possibility of distortion. In this communication system, the information is permanently recorded and can be verified at any time. Thus, there is less chance of information distortion or alteration.

On the other hand, there is less chance of misinterpreting the messages. In case of any doubt, the message can be reread as many times as necessary until it is fully understood.

Likewise, the speed of reading or rereading can be adjusted to the level of understanding of the receiver of the message. In this way, it can be guaranteed that if both the sender and the receiver handle the same codes, the message will arrive as desired.

Disadvantages

Costs

Written communication is not economical. There are costs related to the material (paper and ink, among other things) and the labor used to write and deliver the writings. These costs can increase depending on the physical distance between the sender and the receiver.

Ability for effective understanding

The use of written communication requires great skills and competencies in the use of language and vocabulary. The lack of writing skills and the poor quality of the texts have a negative impact on the message and put its effective understanding at risk.

Feedback

Feedback on the message in written communication is not immediate. In this type of communication, the encoding and decoding process is slow.

Depending on the code used, understanding may take longer than desired. In any case, the feedback is at the convenience of the receiver of the message, not the sender.

Difficulty expressing emotionality

Being a reflective medium, it is more difficult to express emotionality in written communication. In fact, the poets and artists who use this medium to express beauty and emotions, use techniques that are difficult to handle. On some occasions they are successful, but on others they do not fulfill the objective of transmitting the artist's emotionality.

This type of communication is known as cold, impersonal and contrasts with other forms of communication that can include verbal and gestural features. For this reason it is used more frequently in the transmission of information in which the accuracy of the facts is important.

Delayed or uncertain acknowledgment

The written communication method makes it difficult to immediately confirm the receipt of the message. In some cases, it is not even possible to determine whether the message reached the intended recipient.

Lack of flexibility

Lack of flexibility is another disadvantage of written communication. Once an original message has been issued, there is no possibility of a quick content correction.

Any changes that are needed must be endorsed by the recipient of the message. Likewise, each correction made, even partial, affects the entire message.

References

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