Understanding the Difference Between Hearing and Listening: Can You Help Clarify?

Hi all,

I would like to know the differences between hearing and listening. Please explain. I am a bit confused.

Regards,
Shweta

Hi Shweta,

It is generally said that "hearing is through ears, and listening is through the mind." 😊 When you understand something while hearing, it becomes listening. I hope you can see the difference now.

Warm regards,
Ritu

Both are done through ears, yet the difference lies in perspective. Hearing is a defense mechanism in our body wherein we filter and discard unnecessary stuff. Take the example of visual stimulus; if you remembered everything, then one would go mad in a month, overloaded with all that info.

Listening is when one does so with the purpose of gaining insight into the other person's perspective. It should be non-judgmental. Also, one should not think of arguing back with more solid reasons; then it ceases to be learning. Actually, unlearning is tougher than learning.

Surya

Dear Swetha,

Attached, please find a presentation on Listening. You will gain insight into what you are looking for.

Dear Shweta,

Consider this,

You are in a hall full of people, listening to all the babble of voices, amidst a lot of noise. It's challenging to distinguish who is talking to whom due to the cacophony. Amidst all this, you suddenly hear something of interest a few feet away. As you start focusing, the more you concentrate, the more intriguing it becomes. The background voices fade into irrelevance as you immerse yourself in that conversation, even though you are not actively participating. Your mind, driven by your interest and convenience, filters out distractions, allowing you to concentrate solely on that particular subject.

This distinction between hearing and listening can be further elaborated, but I hope you now understand the difference. It all boils down to your interest, preferences, and desire for a particular topic or conversation.

You hear when nothing piques your interest, but you listen when something resonates with you and captures your attention.

The applications of this concept are vast.

Regards,

Dharmandar Attal

OD Consultant

+91 9810643099

dharmandar@gmail.com

dharmandar@aol.in

Just to add to the above comments...

You listen to what you hear...!! In our everyday routine, we hear all sorts of things; however, we choose to listen to only those which interest us. Listening gives the heard noise/voice a proper meaning.

For example, in a classroom, you can hear the teacher lecturing; however, are you listening to it and paying attention? Only if you do so can the voice heard become meaningful...!!

Hope you are clear to some extent?

Dear Ritu, Sneha, Dharmandar, Vksathyajit, and Surya,

Thanks a ton. I have learned a lot. Now I am very clear with the differences. Thanks again for explaining it so nicely.

Regards,
Shweta

Listening is the better part of conversation and is an art that requires patience and is, of course, rewarding. You already have a lot of insights on the difference between listening and hearing.

Pradeep Bajaj

Hearing is a physiological process wherein sound waves reach the hearing center in the brain through our ears. So technically, if you have normal hearing, you will definitely hear. Listening, on the other hand, is when you also involve your mind, heart, and soul - when you can understand the subtext (emotions and thoughts) behind the words, the silence between words, and the person's body language as well. Listening requires empathy, understanding, and a genuine interest in what the person is saying.

Dr. Sadhana Nayak
Voice Medicine and Phonetics Specialist and Voice Performance Consultant