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Evaluative Listening
Critical assessment, during the process of hearing, of the statements made by another person.
As defined by the psychologist Carl Rogers in the 1950s, evaluative listening is an immediate reaction, highly influenced by emotion and preconceived notions, underscoring the human tendency to judge, approve, or disapprove. In Rogerian psychology, evaluative listening has a negative connotation in that it implies that the listener is not receiving the statements made by the speaker in an open-minded manner. Rogers argued that evaluative listening is a barrier to interpersonal communication and most likely to cause the two or more parties engaged in discourse to miss the viewpoint of the other(s). He suggested empathetic, active listening as the preferred gateway to effective communication.
In a keynote address given at the inaugural convention ...