Although listening is an essential element in nearly every form of interpersonal human interaction, we can all improve our listening skills. Often when people appear to be listening, their effort may be superficial or distracted. However, a study published in the September 2007 edition of the journal Business Communication Quarterly indicates that the process of listening can be successfully taught and this skill can lead to improved memory retention over the long term.

“Many people have superficial listening. They believe that the important part of any conversation is what they, not the other party says,” said in an exclusive interview with rhetology.com. “They attempt to create an impression of their knowledge, reasoning ability, and personality. Rather than seeking to learn from the other person, they want to pass on their own views. Often, they lack empathy and curiosity.”
In the study, lead author Robin T. Peterson sought to investigate whether testing followed by experiential learning techniques in listening is more or less effective than a traditional lecture. The cohort consisted of 152 students enrolled in a junior-level Introduction to Management class at a midsized public university. All participants were randomized to one of four groups.

1. Group 1 Lecture and memory test only. Members of this group received an initial lecture and memory test and listening instruction and did not receive listening practice.
2. Group 2: Listening practice only. Members of this group were
   exposed to listening practice and did not receive a memory test.
3. Group 3: Lecture and memory test and listening practice. Members of this group received an initial lecture and memory test, listening instruction, and listening practice.
4. Group 4: Listening instruction only. Members of this group did
   not experience either an initial lecture and memory test on material about Procter & Gamble or listening practice.

Students in Groups 1 and 3 received an initial 10-minute lecture on the early history of the Procter & Gamble sales force. They were warned that they wouldn’t be tested on the material for their class, so “the students were not motivated to take notes or memorize the material.” These two groups also underwent a multiple-choice memory exam immediately following the initial lecture.
Next, Groups 1 and 3 received a lecture on listening improvement based on a set of listening enhancement principles.

1. Make a commitment to improved listening.
2. Concentrate on listening when conversing with others.
3. Be alert, but not rigid, in listening.
4. Practice memory associations to improve recall.
5. Read between the lines. Try to discern what the speaker really
   is saying.
6. Try to anticipate what the speaker is about to say.
7. Pay attention to how words are said, not just to the words.
8. Observe body language. Try to deduce what gestures, posture,
   eye contact, and facial expressions convey.
9. Ask questions if you do not understand a point.
10. Put yourself in the speaker’s shoes—practice empathy.
11. Be patient about speaker peculiarities.
12. Do not be judgmental if you disagree with the speaker’s points.
13. Practice listening with friends, relatives, coworkers, store
    clerks, and so forth.

The members of Group 3 were next involved in an experimental exercise on listening practice to improve their listening ability, but Group 1 did not undergo this exercise.

A second lecture on the early history of the George Hormel Company sales force was administered to both Groups 1 and 3 at the next class period, and both groups were given a second memory test.
The subjects in Group 2 had the same series of treatments and measurements as Group 3, except Group 2 was not given an initial lecture and memory test. Group 4 served as the control group, which was given the lecture on listening practice, the lecture on George Hormel, and subsequent memory test.

The outcomes revealed that administering a listening skill memory test produced a statistically significantly better listening skills as compared with the control situation. The average score on the memory test of Group 1 was significantly higher than the control group (81 vs 73).

Mean Test Scores on the George Hormel Lecture

• Group Mean Test Score
• Experimental Group 1 81*
• Experimental Group 2 87*
• Experimental Group 3 94*
• Control group              73

* Signifies a significant difference between the mean test score and the next smallest mean test score, according to a Tukey Ktest at the .05 level.
In addition, listening practice generated a significantly greater average score for Group 2 than for the control group (87 vs 73). However, Group 3, which combined the memory test with the listening practice, demonstrated the greatest statistically significant difference in the mean memory test score from the control group (94 vs 73) and also significantly exceeded the two other test groups. Further analysis showed that Groups 1 and 3 significantly increased their test scores from the first to the second memory test.

Two months after this study, the students were administered another test on the George Hormel Company lecture to evaluate how well they retained the information over time. A different set of multiple-choice questions were used to avoid confounding effects of repeating the same questions from the first test.
According to the findings, the groups’ average scores continued to show statistically significant differences. One important difference, however, was noted. At the first memory test, the mean test score for Group 2 exceeded the mean score of Group 1. At the memory exam, two months after the George Hormel lecture, the average test scores of Group 1 were higher than the scores of Group 2. This indicates that the initial lecture and memory test “may be more powerful in engendering lasting listening skills than is listening practice.”

“Business students and professionals will be much more effective in their careers if they engage in intensive listening,” told rhetology.com. “They will learn more and build stronger relationships with others. Further, their personal lives will be enriched, as they uncover a new dimension of living that they previously were not aware of.”