What is the art of paralinguistics? Or perhaps a better question would be what is this paralanguage we all speak and why is it so vitally important to our every day communications? Well lets start with the basics and define the word paralanguage to start with according to dictionary dot com. The vocal features that accompany speech and contribute to communication but are not generally considered to be part of the language system.
OK now if you are like me then for a moment after you read the definition for paralanguage you thought what the heck did that mean. Well it means that everything that goes into “how” you say something is what paralanguage is all about. It’s a form of body language really and perhaps the most intricate part of how we all communicate with each other on a daily basis. I wanted to talk a bit about paralanguage for one simple reason, as you read these sentences the paralanguage that you hear right now is completely coming from your head and your perspective.
How you just read that last paragraph could have a totally different meaning to you that then one that I intended because you can hear non of the paralanguage that was intended when I wrote. This is a major stumbling block as I see it for one of the more common forms of communications that people use today. Email and text messaging are executed millions of times a day.
As long as we have had the ability to text messages and email communications to people how many times have you sent one of those little electronic communications with one intention only for it to be received or shall I say perceived to mean something totally different? That is the absence of paralanguage! So what exactly is this para-language stuff that is missing from all your electronic communications?
I am sure that most of you know that the first and most obvious thing that must be included in paralanguage is tone. The intonation of a face to face or over the phone conversation is a vital piece of the communication puzzle that is missing terribly when you communicate through either email or texting. Let’s face there is only so much intonation that you can get from one of these 
or maybe one of these 
. You get the point I am sure.
Paralanguage involves so much more than just intonation of the statement that someone is speaking to you. You also naturally take into consideration the speed in which they are making their statement. You interpret conversations based on the extra stress that is placed on certain syllables if the statement is posed to you as question or a matter of fact. Also when people speak they have a tendency to make little “noise adjustments” in the middle of their sentences that depending on what they are can change your perception of what they are saying. For example when people are lost in thought and searching for their next words they may fill that time with a uh or hmmmm or ahhhh, you get the idea. You don’t see many people writing those little but very important paralanguage noise adjustments.
Understanding the ins and outs of paralanguage and the fact that how we say something is much more important than what we say. I am sure that if you look back on a lot of the conflicts that you have had in that past and honestly looked at the paralanguage of the communications or lack there of and that understanding what this paralanguage is we all speak may very well be the solution to the problems.
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What Is This Paralanguage That We All Speak
What is the art of paralinguistics? Or perhaps a better question would be what is this paralanguage we all speak and why is it so vitally important to our every day communications? Well lets start with the basics and define the word paralanguage to start with according to dictionary dot com. The vocal features that accompany speech and contribute to communication but are not generally considered to be part of the language system.
OK now if you are like me then for a moment after you read the definition for paralanguage you thought what the heck did that mean. Well it means that everything that goes into “how” you say something is what paralanguage is all about. It’s a form of body language really and perhaps the most intricate part of how we all communicate with each other on a daily basis. I wanted to talk a bit about paralanguage for one simple reason, as you read these sentences the paralanguage that you hear right now is completely coming from your head and your perspective.
How you just read that last paragraph could have a totally different meaning to you that then one that I intended because you can hear non of the paralanguage that was intended when I wrote. This is a major stumbling block as I see it for one of the more common forms of communications that people use today. Email and text messaging are executed millions of times a day.
As long as we have had the ability to text messages and email communications to people how many times have you sent one of those little electronic communications with one intention only for it to be received or shall I say perceived to mean something totally different? That is the absence of paralanguage! So what exactly is this para-language stuff that is missing from all your electronic communications?
I am sure that most of you know that the first and most obvious thing that must be included in paralanguage is tone. The intonation of a face to face or over the phone conversation is a vital piece of the communication puzzle that is missing terribly when you communicate through either email or texting. Let’s face there is only so much intonation that you can get from one of these
or maybe one of these 
. You get the point I am sure.
Paralanguage involves so much more than just intonation of the statement that someone is speaking to you. You also naturally take into consideration the speed in which they are making their statement. You interpret conversations based on the extra stress that is placed on certain syllables if the statement is posed to you as question or a matter of fact. Also when people speak they have a tendency to make little “noise adjustments” in the middle of their sentences that depending on what they are can change your perception of what they are saying. For example when people are lost in thought and searching for their next words they may fill that time with a uh or hmmmm or ahhhh, you get the idea. You don’t see many people writing those little but very important paralanguage noise adjustments.
Understanding the ins and outs of paralanguage and the fact that how we say something is much more important than what we say. I am sure that if you look back on a lot of the conflicts that you have had in that past and honestly looked at the paralanguage of the communications or lack there of and that understanding what this paralanguage is we all speak may very well be the solution to the problems.