An introduction to the NLP Communication Model

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Two people can be in the same situation and experience it differently. They may notice different details and interpret them in different ways, influenced by their experiences, expectations and circumstances.

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One way to think about filtering

The NLP Communication Model is a teaching model that offers one way to explore how people may make sense of experience. It describes some information as going unnoticed, some as being interpreted, and past experience as shaping broader expectations. In NLP, these are called deletion, distortion and generalisation.

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Our inner experience may include thoughts, images, feelings and personal meaning. These may shape how we feel and respond.

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Research and the model

Research supports the broad point that conscious attention is limited. The model’s terms and stages are an explanatory framework, not a literal or complete scientific map of how the mind works.

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How it may inform our work

I use NLP in talking therapy and also draw on it in professional and performance coaching. This model may support a conversation about how someone is making sense of a personal experience or a work or performance situation. It is one teaching model within NLP, not a therapy in itself.