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Difficulty: MediumBarriers to Effective Communication

During a routine performance evaluation, a district welfare officer offers constructive feedback to a field supervisor regarding project reporting timelines. However, because the supervisor experiences intense internal anxiety and pre-existing fear regarding job security, they misinterpret the supportive advice as an implicit threat of punitive action and become defensive, failing to absorb the operational instructions. Which type of communication barrier is primarily hindering effective communication in this scenario?

  1. Psychological barrierAnswer
  2. B
    Physical barrier
  3. C
    Paralinguistic barrier
  4. D
    Aggressive communication barrier

Answer

Psychological barrier
The correct answer is the option designating a psychological barrier. Psychological barriers arise from the psychological frame of mind of the sender or receiver—such as emotional agitation, fear of authority, defensiveness, or pre-existing anxiety—which prevents objective processing of incoming information.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the communication context and source of breakdown
The breakdown occurs because the listener's internal fear and anxiety cause defensive misinterpretation of constructive feedback.
Identifying whether the obstacle is environmental, linguistic, structural, or emotional determines the barrier classification.
2
Classify the barrier type based on standard communication taxonomy
Internal mental states such as fear, mistrust, anxiety, and defensiveness fall directly under psychological barriers.
Psychological barriers distort the cognitive filtering of messages without any external physical or semantic interference.

Key Concept

Psychological Barriers to Communication
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Topics

Barriers to Effective Communication

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