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CMA Foundation · Fundamentals of Business Laws and Business Communication · Types of Business Communication

A customer care executive reads out the same sentence, 'We will look into your complaint', first in a warm, steady tone and then in a sharp, sarcastic tone. The words are unchanged, yet the meaning received differs. Which statement best explains this and classifies the element that changed?

Paralanguage changed. Tone, pitch and pace are non-verbal vocal elements that accompany spoken words, so identical words can carry different meanings. The vocabulary stayed the same, the message was spoken rather than written, and no gestures were described, so kinesics does not apply.

  1. AWritten communication changed; the layout of the sentence altered the meaning
  2. BVerbal content changed, because the vocabulary was different
  3. CParalanguage changed; tone is a vocal non-verbal element that accompanies spoken wordsCorrect
  4. DKinesics changed; the executive's gestures altered the meaning

Explanation

The words were identical, so verbal content did not change. Tone, pitch and pace are paralanguage, a non-verbal vocal aspect that alters meaning. The communication was spoken, not written, and no gestures are mentioned, so kinesics is not involved.

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