Week 9 – Context

Sorry, for being a bit late, i have been flat out and forgot.So here is my week 9 blog - Context.

How often do we hear on the news or radio and/or read in the newspaper that when someone has said something and it was reported incorrectly, and a day or two later they stated “they were taken out of context!”, then its definition is definitely not taken out of context. The Australian Oxford Dictionary explains that context is 1. parts that surround a word or passage and its meaning. 2. Circumstances relevant to something under consideration (must be seen in context) 1.

How is this related to collaboration within an architectural firm? As collaboration is all about communication amongst members of a team or within a company, any communication will need to be explained carefully and without conflicting messages. This is seen as important as miscommunication will lead to the message being taken out of context and will do a task completely wrong or have a “Chinese Whisper” affect, whereby messages will be conflicting. If a message is taken out of context and misunderstood, it will cost money, time and possibly jobs, so therefore it is vital, messages are explained clearly. This form of context is described as being a verbal context 2.

While not verbal, another form of context could be in the form of body language and expression. This is probably just as important as the spoken word as how we present ourselves in the form of expression through body movement, may be different to what we are saying through our mouths. In other words, the body is saying one thing and or mouth is saying another. If someone is reading one body language and listening to what that person is saying, they may misinterpret one of these forms of communication and get a task wrong. So it is important that what is said is expressed in the body language, because if it isn’t, then problems in miscommunication will occur.

Apart from verbal context, there is also social context, whereby it is related to class, gender etc 3. This may not seem as important collaboration, but I think it should be. The reason for this will be that if everyone is from the same background, then communication and collaboration will be easier. For example, a team of scientists will have better communication when in a team, then say if a team comprised of many different deplanes, but this doesn’t mean it won’t work, it just means it may take some time.

In conclusion the use of context is very important because if something is “taken out of context”, it leads to miscommunication and finally will lead to many problems not only for a company but the people involved.

References

1. Edited by Bruce Moore, The Australian Pocket Oxford Dictionary – Fourth Edition, 1996, Oxford University Press.
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Context_(language_use)
3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Context_(language_use)

Image - http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/o/out_of_context.asp