Characterizing organizational spirituality: An organizational communication culture approach

This study focuses and extends the academic literature on spirituality in organizations. Although spirituality has gained attention in organizational scholarship during the past decade, there has been little systematic development. Current literature on spirituality in organizations is characterized by divergent approaches to spirituality and a number of organizational foci. The present study, based on qualitative field research in a nursing home, advances understanding of spirituality in organizations by identifying three central characteristics of organizational spirituality: value alignment, personal spirituality, and relationship‐based organizing. These central characteristics, supported by the field research and current literature on spirituality in organizations, lead to issues for further research. The study concludes with an invitation for dialogue on the emergent topic of organizational spirituality.     

The relevance of modern organization theory to organizational communication

The developing field of organization theory is examined from the perspective of speech‐communication scholarship and the extent to which certain implications of overlooked theories in organizational communication have impact for our discipline.     

The effects of skills training on communication satisfaction and communication anxiety in the basic speech course

This study was designed to test the effects of skills training and experience on communication satisfaction and communication anxiety in the basic speech course. Skills training was operationalized as completion of COMM 15000, Theory and Practice of Oral Discourse, and experience was operationalized as multiple rhetorical performances. The results showed that students of the basic speech course experienced an increase in communication satisfaction and a decrease in communication anxiety following skills training for this sample. Moreover, highly apprehensive students reported being more satisfied with their communication interchanges following completion of the basic speech course.     

The status of evaluation research in communication training programs

The purpose of this study was to determine the frequency and types of evaluation research methods used in communication training programs. A random sample of internal or in‐house human resource (HR) trainers were surveyed and asked to respond to a series of questions concerning evaluation practices used in planning, implementing, and assessing communication training programs. The findings suggest that: (1) HR trainers, for the most part, do not conduct needs analyses while planning communication training programs; (2) the majority of HR trainers collect data on trainees’ attitudes toward communication training programs; (3) the majority of HR trainers do not measure changes in cognitive, affective and psychomotor behaviors or job performance that may occur as a result of participation in communication training programs; (4) experimental and quasi‐experimental designs are used by only a very small percentage of HR trainers; and (5) cost benefit analyses are seldom used to assess the economic effects of communication training programs. The findings of this study suggest that although communication training programs have significantly increased in the past decade, the use of systematic and controlled evaluation research is presently not being undertaken to plan, implement, and assess communication training programs.     

Using the outdoor scavenger hunt to teach theories of organizational communication

Courses: Communication Theory, Organizational Communication, Strategic Communication.

Objectives: Students will identify and categorize organizational discourses on their campuses; students will become aware of the ethical considerations of communication; students will recognize the different perceptions of organizational culture on campus.     

Distortion of subordinate to superior communication in organizational settings

In a field setting it was found that messages concerning unfavorable situations were more distorted than messages concerning favorable situations, but mostly when the stimulus situation was task related. For non‐task related stimulus situations messages concerning unfavorable situations were distorted less than were messages concerning favorable situations. This latter finding was attributed to a “real‐life” pratfall effect.     

The impact of supervisor and subordinate immediacy on relational and organizational outcomes

Hypotheses were advanced based on the immediacy principle, accommodation theory, reciprocity theory, and previous research in another applied context which argue that increased nonverbal immediacy behaviors of supervisors have the potential to enhance subordinates’ perceptions of that supervisor, increase subordinate satisfaction with the supervisor and communication with the supervisor, and increase motivation and job satisfaction on the part of the subordinate. All of the hypotheses were supported by the results. The “principle of immediate communication” received strong support. It is concluded that increased immediacy on the part of either the supervisor or the subordinate is likely to generate reciprocity and accommodation leading to a more positive work environment and more desirable outcomes.     

The impact of organizational factors on management information system success: An investigation in the Iran's agricultural extension providers

Information system success has been widely discussed in the past two decades. As systems and technologies are being improved and developed, discussions on their effectiveness and evaluation on their success have been continuously debated by researchers, scholars and practitioners throughout the years. Besides the major concern of IS effectiveness, factors influencing IS effectiveness are also important. One of these factors is the organizational factor. Using perceptual measures, this study aims to investigate the influence of organizational factors on MIS success. Survey questionnaires were gathered from 132 Extension Managers from Iran's Agricultural Extension Providers. Seven items were identified to influence MIS success. They are IS department structure, top management support, management style, managerial IT knowledge, goal alignment, resources allocation and IS infrastructure. The study also identified five MIS success dimensions; systems quality, information quality, perceived Ease of use, organizational impact and individual impact. The study found that the MIS success variables are significantly and highly correlated. The study also found all the organizational factors are significantly correlated to the five IS success factors investigated; the system quality, information quality, perceived ease of use, organizational impact and individual impact. Multiple regression analyses also found goal alignment as the highest predictor of IS success, followed by IS department structure, IS infrastructure and management style.     

The impact of electronic publishing systems: An organizational model for a new way of doing business

This article discusses the impact of electronic publishing systems deployment on the internal or organizationa! aspects of document-processing groups. It examines how the combination of workflow trends and technical changes implies a new organizational model and a new way of doing business. Thomas K. James is an associate manager and technical analyst at Bellcore. He has been employed in the Bell telecommunications environment for over sixteen years. He is completing a degree in business administration at Rutgers University.     

Technology in government: How organizational culture mediates information and communication technology outcomes

The adoption of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in public organizations promises to better connect managers with citizens, increase public participation in government decision making, improve the efficiency of service delivery, decrease uncertainty, and improve information dissemination. While each of these outcomes is important for both public managers and citizens, we know little about how organizational culture mediates the effectiveness of ICTs on producing these outcomes. This research, using data from two points in time, investigates the relationships between ICTs and managerial outcomes (e.g. improved decision making and public participation) and how they are mediated by organizational culture such as centralization and routineness. Technology variables include technology use and capacity. Models will control for other organizational and technological factors such as size, structure, task and department to investigate the mediating effects of organizational culture on ICT outcomes for local governments. The data come from two national surveys of 2500 local government managers in the United States in 2010 and 2012. The results are important for understanding how organizational mechanisms, in particular organization culture, mobilize ICTs in ways that affect managerial outcomes.     

Perceived organizational effectiveness,job satisfaction,culture, and communication: Challenging the traditional view

This study challenges the traditional view that organizational culture, relationships, and communication activities precede or produce the outcomes of job satisfaction and perceived organizational effectiveness. Specifically, the study (a) empirically examines job satisfaction and perceived effectiveness for their potential as important explanatory processes for the outcomes of organizational culture, relationships, and information receiving and sending, and (b) empirically compares the traditional model with the competing conceptualization. Results of a canonical correlation analysis utilizing 2245 individuals in 21 organizations in various parts of the world indicate that 54.8% of the variance in perceptions of culture, relationships, information receiving, and information sending can be explained by job satisfaction and perceived organizational effectiveness. Results of a nested model comparison of the two models using latent variable path analysis demonstrated that the competing conceptualization is a significantly better fit to the data than the traditional view.     

新闻传播人才培养模式观察与思考

我国新闻传播教育经过近 80年的发展 ,取得了显著的成绩 ,目前已出现多种不同的教育模式 ,也面临不少现实问题。本文对新闻传播教育的历史、现状、经验与问题进行了归纳分析 ,提出借鉴国外新闻传播教育的成功经验 ,进一步加快新闻教育改革的建议     

Career education and the communication profession: A central states impact survey

Abraham Lincoln's second inaugural address is a recognized rhetorical masterpiece. This essay accounts for this recognition by examining the text microscopically. Through the method of close textual analysis that explores the inner workings of the text, we discover the complexity of Lincoln's masterwork.     

自动化发展对高校图书馆建设的影响

本文着重阐述自动化的发展，尤其是今天网络技术普及后的自动化发展对我国高等学校图书馆建设的影响。这种影响是深远的，它渗透了图书馆建设的方方面面，促进了图书馆建设的快速发展。     

Socialization,resocialization, and communication relationships in the context of an organizational change

This investigation explores the influence of perceptions of socialization tactics' use and communication relationships on employees at the initiation of and 4 months into an organizational restructuring. Results of this longitudinal investigation reveal that employees (N = 72) report considerable changes in perceptions of organizational socialization/resocialization efforts. Results also indicate that both perceptions of socialization tactics' use and communication relationships contribute to decreased role ambiguity and role conflict and increased commitment at the initiation of the restructuring and four months later. However, the influence of these factors on the dependent variables changes over time. These findings are discussed in relation to recent research on organizational entry and change, and suggestions are made for future research.     

Collections and systems: a new organizational paradigm for collection development

Collection development and the management of access to electronic resources in large academic libraries increasingly requires close cooperation between collection development librarians, public service librarians, and systems librarians and staff. Many libraries, both public and academic, have created new positions or converted existing ones with titles such as ‘electronic resources librarian’ or ‘electronic information coordinator.’ Two years ago, the Washington State University (WSU) Libraries decided to take a different approach to managing these two vital library functions by creating the new position of Assistant Director for Collections and Systems. This paper explores the convergence of collection development and systems in a research library. It sets forth the philosophical underpinnings of that convergence, and it discusses issues encountered in the integration of the two services in the WSU Libraries. Finally, it explores strategic issues for future collection development and management from the perspective of this new organizational paradigm. [1]     

Time pressure: An unexamined issue in organizational newcomers' role development

Although the impact of time pressure on integrative problem solving has been widely explored in traditional negotiation research, little attention has been paid to its effect as organizational newcomers negotiate and coordinate work role expectations with supervisors. This study examines the effect of time pressure on three integrative communication dimensions of supervisory role negotiations: directness, elaboration, and mutual concessions. One hundred seventy employed college undergraduates completed survey items pertaining to recalled supervisory discussions of role expectations. Consistent with the hypotheses, time pressure had a significant positive effect on each of the communicative dimensions of the recalled negotiation.