#MeToo,sexual harassment: an article,a forum,and a dream for the future

#MeToo has breathed new life into the women’s movement and especially into understanding and rectifying sexual harassment, abuse and assault. It has galvanized activists around the globe. And it has placed thousands of stories of the harassed in full view of the public. Sexual harassment, abuse and assault may occur within the organizational context or beyond; but sexual harassment, in particular has been legally labeled an organizational phenomenon. With this in mind, Robin Clair frames the early part of this article around the most recent organizational communication theories (see the appendix for an overview of these theories). Following the essay is a forum, in which invited scholars address questions related to the #MeToo movement.     

Being First Means Being Credible? Examining the Impact of Message Source on Organizational Reputation

Research in organizational communication and public relations suggest that in times of crises, messages generated by the organization are most likely to positively influence stakeholder perceptions, whereas those generated by the press may have negative ramifications. Although this advice seems logical, to date there is little research that investigates this claim empirically and directly. Two experiments were conducted to explore the separate and combined impact of print and televised messages concerning an organization in the midst of a crisis. The findings offer empirical evidence that statements from organizations experiencing crises may offset negative stakeholder responses. Theoretical and pragmatic implications are discussed regarding these findings.     

Others Share this Message,So We Can Trust It? An Examination of Bandwagon Cues on Organizational Trust in Risk

Consideration of social media use for issues of risk communication has received rapid attention in the scholarly literature. However, specific features of social media and their relevance for risk communication warrant continued investigation. The current study examines how system-generated cues available in social media impact perceptions of trust at the organizational level. After viewing one of three mock Twitter pages from an organization that varied the number of retweets concerning the risk of contaminated food in grocery stores, participants were asked to report their perceived trust in the organization. Data indicate a reverse bandwagon or snob effect, such that having too many retweets results in lower judgments of organizational trust. Results are discussed in addition to limitations and future directions for research.     

Identity on Social Networks as a Cue: Identity,Retweets, and Credibility

The current study investigates how social media affordances influence individuals’ source credibility perceptions in the presence of risk information, specifically examining how bandwagon heuristics interact with different identity heuristics at the individual level. The MAIN model and warranting theory serve as the theoretical framework to examine the effects of bandwagon cues and identity cues embedded in retweets and users’ profile pages for health and risk online information processing. A posttest-only experiment with a self-report questionnaire was administered to participants. Results indicate that different online heuristic cues impact the judgments of competence, goodwill, and trustworthiness. Authority cues strongly influenced source credibility perceptions. A reverse-bandwagon effect was observed in influencing source credibility judgments.     

Entry points when undergraduate research mentors reflect on their role: a qualitative case study

Abstract

Graduate students and postdoctoral researchers are increasingly taking on mentoring roles in undergraduate research (UR). There is, however, a paucity of research focusing on how they conceptualize their mentoring role. In this qualitative interview study, we identified three entry points that mentors reflect on to define their role: (1) What are the goals of UR? (2) What do the students expect from me? and (3) How should I use my expert knowledge? We discuss how academic developers can use these entry points together with a set of reflective lenses to stimulate critical reflection on the mentoring role and help the mentors to define their role and help the mentors to define their role.     

Improving the output of agricultural extension and research through participatory innovation development and extension; experiences from Zimbabwe

Abstract

This paper describes the rationale for a change from conventional extension towards participatory innovation development and extension. The “Conservation Tillage Project” and the “Food Security Project” developed such an approach and have embarked on institutionalisation of this approach into the agricultural extension service in Masvingo Province in Zimbabwe. Dialogue with farmers, farmer experimentation and the strengthening of self-organisational capacities of rural communities are the major elements to improve development and spreading of innovations, thus the efficiency of extension. The new approach requires a role change of agricultural extension workers from teacher to facilitator as well as appropriate methods and tools. Elements of “Training for Transformation” and Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) were tested and developed and were found to be effective tools. The strategy to institutionalise participatory extension is based on joining efforts and networking with other organisations, a campaign to familiarise institutional staff and a training and follow-up programme for staff in the framework of organisational development.

The experiences show that the attitudinal change required to implement participatory approaches is highly depended on personalities. To have an impact on the change of attitudes a continuous mediumterm training process with a close follow-up is required. The paper concludes that institutionalisation of participatory approaches into hierarchically structured organisations is a highly complex intervention. In order to be successful, major changes in planning, implementation and monitoring and evaluation procedures are required. Changes of that nature require a process of at least 5 to 10 years and high commitment on the side of institutional staff on all levels and donors as well.     

Telepresence and the Exemplification Effects of Disaster News

Exemplification theory (Zillmann, 1999 Zillmann , D. (1999). Exemplification theory: Judging the whole by the sum of its parts. Media Psychology , 1, 69–94.[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar], 2002 Zillmann , D. ( 2002 ). Exemplification theory of media influence . In J. Bryant &; D. Zillmann (Eds.), Media effects: Advances in theory and research ( , 2nd ed. , pp. 213 – 245 ). Mahwah , NJ : LEA . [Google Scholar]; Zillmann &; Brosius, 2000 Zillmann , D. , &; Brosius , H.-B. ( 2000 ). Exemplification in communication: The influence of case reports on the perception of issues . Mahwah , NJ : LEA . [Google Scholar]) suggests exemplar representations in media content may cause people to make overestimated judgments about phenomena included in this content. The current study sought to examine the role telepresence plays in increasing this exemplification effect. Two-hundred and seventeen participants viewed a news story about Hurricane Katrina using one of three channels: HDTV, NTSC, or on an iPod. Data were consistent with predictions as participants who experienced greater spatial presence and perceptual realism while watching this news story reported increased judgments of the severity of hurricanes and also reported a greater likelihood to engage in behaviors associated with hurricanes. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.     

Social media and corporate reputation during crises: the viability of video-sharing websites for providing counter-messages to traditional broadcast news

Exemplification, or the use of highly emotional and arousing messages to elicit responses based on impression formation, has been shown to influence perceptions of events, individuals, and organizations. News coverage concerning the use of lean finely textured beef (LFTB) is one such example, and anecdotal evidence suggests that this coverage may have had a negative impact on public perception of the manufacturers producing LFTB. The current study examined the use of social media (specifically video-sharing sites) as a means of combating the negative effects of exemplars concerning LFTB. Respondents reported their perceptions of threat severity, susceptibility, behavioral intentions to avoid LFTB, and perceptions of organizational trust and reputation associated with the manufacturer. The findings are consistent with exemplification theory and indicate that message ordering can influence exemplification effects. Results are discussed in terms of implications for public relations and risk communication.