- Have you ever stressed out about sending an email?
Rereading it to see if it sounds okay or wondering if you added too many exclamation points?
Or maybe you feel confident when expressing yourself via text message, but you just can't seem to find the words when it's time to make a phone call.
But it isn't just about who you're communicating with or whether there's a screen separating you.
The TIME that passes between each chunk of language makes a huge impact.
(pensive music) (clock ticking) See, I'm Dr. Erica Brozovsky and this is "Other Words." (upbeat music) - [Announcer] "Other Words." - Think about speaking or signing face-to-face or talking on the phone.
These are forms of synchronous communication, conversations where all the speakers are participating at the same time.
Asynchronous communication, on the other hand involves time passing between conversational turns.
That could be a few minutes when you shoot a quick reply back to an email or even weeks between sending and receiving a letter.
Synchronous communication tends to use signed or spoken language while most asynchronous conversation happens in written form.
