The investigation of the contribution of public relations to an agricultural institution in Botswana

Abstract

Communication plays a vital role in the everyday lives of individuals, societies, organisations and the world at large. Without communication it would be very difficult to understand each other and to carry out daily activities that make up human life. Communication can come in many forms and shapes. Signs and symbols were used by our ancestors to communicate long before sound and speech technology was discovered (Mersham and Skinner, 1999). Notwithstanding the importance of communication for any form of human interaction, it is taken so much for granted. As pointed out by Mersham and Skinner (1999: 2), "until someone misunderstands us and the misunderstanding causes a problem, only then do we pause to think about what went wrong." Macnamara (2006: 3) points out that communication is complex even at family level, because often what we try to communicate to those closest to us is not received the way we intended or meant. This shows that communication is beyond talking and far more complex than it seems. In an organisational setting it is even more complex because the organisation is made up of different units or departments with different responsibilities, all working towards the attainment of the same organisational goals and objectives.