Importance of VaccinesJune 29, 2017What are common symptoms of hearing loss?September 28, 2017
| Hearing is the act of perceiving sound and receiving sound waves or vibrations through your ear. | Listening is the act of hearing a sound and understanding what you hear. |
| Hearing is one of the five senses and it just happens all the time – whether you like it or not – unless you have a hearing problem | Listening Requires concentration so that your brain processes meaning from words and sentences. |
| Hearing simply happens. | Listening leads to learning. |
| Hearing is a skill where you use your ears only. It one of the five senses. | Listening uses different senses, like the sense of hearing, seeing, or sense of touch. |
| Hearing is an involuntary act where you simply receive vibrations through your ears. | Listening is a skill that lets the sound you hear go through your brain to process the meaning of it. |
| Physiological | Psychological |
| Subconscious level | Conscious level |
| Concentration is not required | Concentration is required |
Summary:
- Hearing and Listening uses both your ears.
- Hearing is receiving sound waves through your ears, while listening means hearing and understanding what you’ve heard.
- Hearing is part of the five senses, while listening is a choice to hear and analyse what you hear.
- Hearing is using your ears only, while listening is using your body’s other senses.
- Listening is observing other’s behavior that can add meaning to the message, while hearing is simply receiving sound vibrations.
- Listening can build better relationships with others, while hearing cannot.
- Take good care of your ears; you cannot listen when you cannot hear.
References: Online
- //www.differencebetween.net/science/nature/difference-between-listening-and-hearing/
- //www.differencebetween.info/difference-between-listening-and-hearing
Listening is hard work! Many people with hearing loss, even mild loss, tell us that they feel “mentally tired” after spending time in conversation with family and friends. In some cases, they even feel physically tired – sometimes exhausted – after a more intensive listening situation.
Researchers have determined that listening is the form of communication that we use most frequently. Considering all the ways that we communicate, studies have shown that the breakdown is about:
- 10 percent of our time writing
- 15 percent reading
- 30 percent speaking
- and 45 percent listening!
Even though listening is the tool that we use most often, there are several challenges we all experience. Distractions can significantly affect our ability to comprehend and retain what we’ve heard. The human mind can think much faster than anyone can speak: most people speak at a rate of about 120 words per minute, but we have the mental capacity to comprehend over 400 words per minute. So our mind tends to wander, and focus its “excess capacity” on other things. Studies show that immediately following a listening situation, most people will only remember about 50% of what they heard – and 24 hours later, this declines to about 25%. And, our listening skill tends to decline with age.
All this means that hearing – the physical act of processing sound — is extremely important. A person who suffers from hearing loss is already missing much of the conversation. Coupled with the challenges in listening [processing information], the decline of communication becomes even more severe.
If you sense that you are fatigued after spending time in social situations, or at the end of the day, it may be due to some level of hearing loss. Feel free to call our office and schedule an appointment for an evaluation. We are here to help, and can offer suggestions for coping with your individual hearing environment. A simple hearing test can determine whether you have normal hearing, or a deficit that is contributing to your difficulty in listening.
I know what you're thinking. It all seems to happen so fast. The speaker is on stage rambling on about this or that. Well, you are correct. In fact, sound travels at 770 MPH. That's about 33% quicker than a Boeing 747. Now, that's fast!
How does this really happen? Here's the process:
- Hearing - sound enters the eardrums and travels to the brain
- Attending - our brain receives the sound and decides what to pay attention to
- Understanding - take what is meaningful and apply it to the social context
- Remembering - storing the information for use at a later time
For the most part, we have the process down pat! Well, except for the remembering part. When viewers were asked how much of the evening news they recalled hearing, it was only 17.2% and when given a few clues, it only rose to about 25%.
Now that we know how listening occurs, just how important is it for a public speaker to listen? After all, isn't he the one doing all the talking? Well, think again, it is very important and here is why.
Public Speakers Need to Be Good Listeners, Too
When a public speaker sets out to create the speech of a lifetime, he first must do some snooping. The best way a public speaker can glean information about his potential audience is by asking open-ended questions. These questions require an extended answer rather than a simple yes or no.
So, when the public speaker is sitting down with his client, he should ask questions about the audience, their education level, interests and other important details. It will help him to create a more relevant presentation.
Next, the speaker should get to the gig early. It will give him time to socialize with the audience. As he peruses the crowd, he may stumble upon something interesting.
Perhaps he overhears that the audience members just patented a translator that converts a cat's meows into several languages. Well, this may be something he would want to incorporate into his speech.
Listen to what's going on right before you begin your speech. During the introductions, you may learn that one of the members adopted a cat or was elected to a new position. This may be a perfect opportunity for the speaker to congratulate the party. It sends a caring message.
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Overview
Have you ever heard someone say: “You might be hearing me, but you’re not listening to me”?
If you’re familiar with that expression, there’s a good chance you know a thing or two about the difference between hearing and listening.
While hearing and listening may seem like they serve the same purpose, the difference between the two is fairly significant. We’ll go over some of the key differences, and we’ll share tips on how to improve your active listening skills.
The definition of hearing has more to do with the physiological act of hearing sounds than it does with making sense and connecting with the person who’s talking to you.
Merriam-Webster defines hearing as the “process, function, or power of perceiving sound; specifically: the special sense by which noises and tones are received as stimuli.”
Listening, on the other hand, means “to pay attention to sound; to hear something with thoughtful attention; and to give consideration.”
Clinical psychologist Kevin Gilliland, PsyD, says the difference between the two is night and day.
“Hearing is like collecting data,” he explains.
The act of hearing is rather simple and basic. Listening, on the other hand, is three-dimensional. “People that excel at work, or in marriage or friendships, are ones that have honed their ability to listen,” says Gilliland.
When it comes to the definition of listening, we can break it down one step further. In the communication world, there are two terms experts often use: active and passive listening.
Active listening can be summed up in one word: curious. The United States Institute of Peace defines active listening as “a way of listening and responding to another person that improves mutual understanding.”
In other words, this is the way you want to listen if you’re seeking to understand another person or you’re looking for a solution.
On the opposite end of the listening spectrum is passive listening.
A passive listener, according to Gilliland, is a listener who isn’t trying to contribute to the conversation — especially at work or in school. It’s not a great way to communicate with people. That’s why Gilliland says not to use it with your spouse or kids since they’ll notice it pretty quickly.
Now that you know the difference between passive and active listening, you might be interested in learning how to improve your active listening skills.
Gilliland shares six actionable tips you can use to enhance your active listening skills.
1. Be curious
An active listener has a genuine interest in and desire to understand what is being said. When you’re practicing active listening, you’re more interested in listening to what the other person is saying, rather than formulating your response.
2. Ask good questions
This can be a tricky tip, especially if you don’t know what the definition of a good question is. For the purposes of active listening, you want to avoid asking yes/no type questions, which are closed-ended.
Instead, focus on questions that invite people to elaborate. Ask for more information and clarification. “When we listen, emotions are involved, and we desperately need as much information as possible if we want to move things forward” explains Gilliland.
3. Don’t jump into a conversation too quickly
Communication doesn’t have to be at record speed. When you’re talking with someone, consider easing into the conversation. “We tend to end up arguing when we try to rush, and there’s no rushing when we need to listen,” says Gilliland.
4. Anchor yourself to the subject and don’t get distracted
“When you’re trying to have the kind of conversation where listening is key, don’t go down rabbit trails,” says Gilliland. In other words, avoid throwing out unrelated topics or insults to distract from the subject at hand, especially if it’s a difficult one.
To avoid doing this, Gilliland recommends that you ignore the noise and anchor yourself to the reason you started the conversation until it’s over.
5. Stop making up stories
Have you ever been in a conversation with another person where you feel a lot of information is missing?
Unfortunately, when we don’t have all the information, Gilliland says, we tend to fill in the blanks. And when we do that, we always do it in a negative way. That’s why he says to stop doing it and go back to asking good questions.
6. Don’t make a big deal out of being wrong
If you’re good at admitting fault, this should be a fairly easy tip for you. However, if telling someone that you’re wrong is an area you struggle with, active listening may be difficult for you.
Rather than being so invested in being right, try admitting when you’re wrong. Gilliland says it’s as easy as “My bad, I was wrong about that. I’m sorry.”
Your close friends and family know you best. So, if you’re curious about the type of listener you are, ask someone who is close to you. Gilliland recommends asking them what types of mistakes you make when you listen to them.
He also says to ask them questions about the areas you can get better. If this is a person you spend a lot of time with, you can ask them if there are particular subjects or topics you seem to struggle the most with.
In other words, ask them if there are certain conversations or topics where you typically fail to practice your active listening skills.
Active listening is a lifelong skill that will serve you well in your relationships with friends, family, and co-workers. All it takes is a bit of effort, a lot of patience, and a willingness to be present with another person, and genuinely interested in what they have to say.