For example, some body language signs for when someone is upset, angry, or stressed would be a use of excessive hand/arm movements, red in the face, crying, and even sometimes silence. Decoding has both verbal and non-verbal forms of communication: Decoding behavior without using words means observing body language and its associated emotions. When you decode a message, you extract the meaning of that message in ways that make sense to you. In simpler terms, encoding/decoding is the translation of a message that is easily understood. Hall proposed that audience members can play an active role in decoding messages as they rely on their own social contexts, and might be capable of changing messages themselves through collective action. Titled 'Encoding and Decoding in the Television Discourse', Hall's essay offers a theoretical approach of how media messages are produced, disseminated, and interpreted.

The Encoding/decoding model of communication was first developed by cultural studies scholar Stuart Hall in 1973.

Encoding in communication