- 2081 Chaitra (new course) · 5 marks
Barriers of active listening
Short answer
Barriers to active listening include noise, lack of interest, prejudging, information overload, and speaker distractions. Overcome them by choosing a quiet place, keeping an open mind, maintaining eye contact, taking notes, asking clarifying questions, and staying rested.
Write a short note on barriers of active listening and how to overcome them.
Active listening means listening with full attention to understand the speaker's complete message, including feelings, and responding to show that it was understood. Several barriers prevent it.
Barriers
- Physical barriers: noise, poor acoustics, uncomfortable seating or interruptions such as phone calls.
- Psychological barriers: stress, worry, anger, prejudice or fixed attitudes toward the speaker or the topic.
- Lack of interest: the listener finds the topic dull and the mind wanders.
- Speed of thought: we think much faster than a person speaks, so the mind drifts to other things.
- Pre-judging and assumptions: forming an opinion or planning a reply before the speaker finishes.
- Language and accent problems: unfamiliar technical terms, accents or poor language skills.
- Information overload: too much information in a short time makes it difficult to follow.
- Distraction by the speaker's style: dress, mannerisms or delivery may draw attention away from the message.
How to overcome them
- Choose a quiet place and switch off mobile phones.
- Keep an open mind and listen to the full message before judging.
- Focus on the speaker and maintain eye contact; nod to show attention.
- Use the extra thinking time to summarise and link ideas.
- Take brief notes of the key points.
- Ask questions and paraphrase ("So you mean...") to check understanding.
- Build vocabulary and listening skill through regular practice.
- Be physically and mentally rested before important meetings.
✓ Answer checked by Claude Opus 5.5 (high effort)