Defensiveness in Communication: Its Causes, Effects, and Cures

One of the basic tasks of the human brain is to maintain order and consistency among all the knowledge, beliefs, and attitudes it retains. A defensive attitude occurs within people when they encounter communicationsituations with which they feel uncomfortable or will not tolerate. Defensiveness causes a listener to resist both speaker and message. In addition,defensiveness seems to be highly contagious and causes a deterioratingcycle between those communicating. Defensiveness can best be reduced byempathy, treatment of fellow communicators as equals, and genuineness.