What is decoding in communication?
Decoding is step two of a process first described by
communication scholar Stuart Hall. He first discussed step one--
encoding. Encoding refers to creating or producing a message;
decoding refers to the listener or audience interpreting and
understanding that message. For example, a company that sells candy
bars wants you to buy one of theirs, rather than their
competitor's. So they create a fun television commercial
(encoding). You see it on TV and you interpret and understand what
was being told to you (decoding).