Digital Commons Network^™

University Reporter - Vol. 07, No. 09 - May 2003, University Of Massachusetts Boston

1996-2009, University Reporter

No abstract provided.

Tendencies In The Portrayal Of The National Civilian Police Of El Salvador By The Salvadoran Press, Carlos Ponce

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

El Salvador, located in Central America, is a country that experienced a civil war during which its government fought for the prevalence of democracy and the rebel groups for a communist regime. The armed conflict ended in 1992 with a peace treaty signed by the two sides. After the end of the civil war, El Salvador was no longer a focus of international attention. As a result of the agreements reached in 1992, national security forces were abolished and a new national law enforcement agency was created: the National Civilian Police. Since the end of the civil war, El Salvador's …

Chairmen Of The Joint Chiefs Of Staff: Monitoring The Evolution Of An Agency Through Rhetorical Snapshots Of Speeches By Generals Omar N. Bradley, Earle G. Wheeler, George S. Brown And Colin L. Powell, John Robert Foster

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

There is a need to examine the long term rhetorical strategies of military spokesmen within a democratic state characterized by civilian hegemony. This study uses Kenneth Burke's discussion of cluster analysis to discover the various recurring themes from Chairman to Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. This form of analysis enabled the researcher to document periodic variances or shifts in emphasis among the four Chairmen whose speeches will be examined. The investigation involved two speeches representative of each of these four distinct periods of the discourse of Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, one given to a civilian …

University Reporter - Vol. 07, No. 05 - January 2003, University Of Massachusetts Boston

1996-2009, University Reporter

No abstract provided.

University Reporter - Vol. 07, No. 03.2 (Special Edition) - December 2002, University Of Massachusetts Boston

1996-2009, University Reporter

No abstract provided.

University Reporter - Vol. 06, No. 10 - June 2002, University Of Massachusetts Boston

1996-2009, University Reporter

No abstract provided.

Communication Tactics For Empowering Employees: A Guidebook For Organizations And Managers, Todd Michael Pasley

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to establish communication tactics that apply to various communication situations in an empowerment context. The creation of such a reference source will offer a valuable resource for organizations and managers that wish to implement or change empowerment initiatives.

The completion of the study has yielded a guidebook consisting of case studies that offer solutions to communication problems based on literary research. The case studies will act as a guide for effective communication tactics when implementing or altering an empowerment initiative.

A non-scientific content analysis of relevant literature was completed to ascertain communication tactics and …

Spartan Daily, February 26, 2002, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily (School of Journalism and Mass Communications)

Volume 118, Issue 23

Modeling And Analysis Of Social Networks, Robert S. Renfro Ii

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation develops new methods for the modeling and analysis of social networks. Social networks describe the complex relationships of individuals and groups in multiple overlapping contexts. Influence in a social network impacts behavior and decision making in every setting in which individuals participate. This study defines a methodology for modeling and analyzing this complex behavior using a Flow-Model representation. Multiple objectives in an influencing effort targeted at a social network are modeled using Goal Programming. Value Focused Thinking is applied to model influence and predict decisions based on the reaction of the psychological state of individuals to environmental stimuli. …

Do Teacher Opinion Leaders Impact Other Teachers, Annette Eyman

Student Work

The purpose of this study was to determine if there were identified opinion leaders among teachers and how those opinion leaders may have influenced teachers’ acceptance levels of the standards and assessment implementation for the language arts curriculum. Three phases of research were conducted. Twenty-four secondary language arts teachers and 109 elementary classroom teachers in the Papillion-LaVista School District were first surveyed to determine their level of acceptance of the standards and assessments for language arts. Each of the respondents was then asked to identify the opinion leaders, or those they turn to and trust regarding the standards and assessment …

The Boundary-Spanning Role Of A Cooperative Support Organization: Managing The Paradox Of Stability And Change In Non-Traditional Organizations, Lynn M. Harter, Kathleen J. Krone

Department of Communication Studies: Faculty Publications

This project provides an interpretation of how one cooperative support organization, the Nebraska Cooperative Council, discursively functions to help its constituent cooperatives consolidate resources in order to better intersect with organizations in a larger bureaucratic system. In analyzing qualitative data collected through in-depth interviews, surveys, and organizational documents, we found the paradox of stability and change a revealing prism through which to make sense of participants’ experiences. We work toward locating and describing how the Council, through its boundary-spanning activities, helps cooperatives manage the paradox of stability and change while protecting their core participatory ideologies. By providing networks of learning, …

Intercultural Interaction Of Russian-American Space Crews, Suzan Kiesel

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

NASA has recently directed the United States into the largest global partnership in U.S. history — the development of an International Space Station. In order to collaborate successfully in this unique setting, participants must develop a strong sense of teamwork, camaraderie, and partnership. Previous research indicates a variety of factors, such as differences in cultural background and environmental factors, that may affect the ability to develop these successful relationships. This study analyzes cultural variance and disclosure dynamics between Russian cosmonauts and American astronauts.

Factors Affecting Exchange Relationships Among Subordinates And Supervisors: A Study Of Military Officers, Laurie K. Richter

Theses and Dissertations

This research examined the effect of organizational structure on the relationships between subordinates and their supervisors using measures of leader-member exchange (LMX), mentoring effectiveness, perceived organizational support (POS), perceived opportunities for promotion, job satisfaction, affective commitment, and intent to remain. The sample obtained included 147 subordinate Air Force traditional Civil Engineer officers, Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) officers, Bioenvironmental Engineer officers, and 27 squadron commanders at 19 Air Force bases. The methods of multiple analysis of variance and structural equation modeling were used to evaluate five research questions and nineteen hypotheses. Overall, no differences were found between the types of subordinate …

Why Managers Must Listen, Roger Gans

Communication Faculty Publications - Archive

Managers play perhaps the most essential role in any organizational change strategy. Among managerial communication skills, listening is underappreciated but vital not just for clear communication but for fostering workplace engagement and an inclusive work culture. This article outlines the need for two-way communication and provides keys for effective listening.

Communication And Professional Civility As A Basic Service Course: Dialogic Praxis Between Department And Situated In An Academic House, Ronald C. Arnett, Janie M. Harden Fritz

Basic Communication Course Annual

Communication departments frequently offer basic service courses to other campus departments or schools. A communication course sensitive to the mission of the university or college of which it is a part, as well as to its own mission, allows programs that include such a course in their curriculum to distinguish themselves from competing programs. Additionally, such a mission-sensitive course further defines departmental and university identity, assisting in institutionalizing a mission. Offering such a course provides an opportunity for dialogic praxis to occur between departments situated within the context of a local institution. Dialogic praxis involves knowledge of one's own position, …

Spartan Daily, December 6, 2000, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily (School of Journalism and Mass Communications)

Volume 115, Issue 65

Spartan Daily, December 4, 2000, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily (School of Journalism and Mass Communications)

Volume 115, Issue 63

More Word Games In The United States Presidential Campaign: Intervention And Isolation, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This article highlights a corruption of language in public discourse related to the United States (US) presidential campaign.

Central Florida Future, July 19, 2000

Central Florida Future

No abstract provided.

Organizational And Individual Effects On The Reporting Of Wrongdoing In The Workplace, Brian M. Stumpe

Theses and Dissertations

The study focuses on the organizational context in which the act of whistle-blowing occurs within organizations. The study suggests that many aspects of the context in which whistle-blowing actually occurs may be within the span of control of managers. Thus, management can possibly take steps to after certain aspects of the organizational context and ensure that organizational members are willing to report wrongdoing observed within their organization. To fulfill this objective, the study analyzes survey responses taken from military members' and civilian employees' responses to a 1997 survey distributed throughout the Aeronautical Systems Center (ASC), Wright Patterson Air Force Base …

Overcoming The Dichotomy: Cultivating Standpoints In Organizations Through Research, Debbie S. Dougherty, Kathleen J. Krone

Department of Communication Studies: Faculty Publications

Feminist standpoint theories are seldom used by researchers. One possible reason is the ongoing debate between postmodern theorists and feminine standpoint theorists. The debate has been constructed in bipolar terms such that the issues are perceived as mutually exclusive. However, bipolar assumptions are damaging to women, both in general and in organizations. We contend that feminist standpoint theories should theorize similarities, material reality, and communal agency while being sensitive to differences, multiple realities, and individual agency. A study of academic women is used to illustrate how standpoints can develop around similarities while respecting differences. Using a creative narrative, participants’ organizational …

Women Managers And Gendered Values, Diane Kay Sloan, Kathleen J. Krone

Department of Communication Studies: Faculty Publications

In this study we interviewed 30 women managers to better understand ways in which they experience gendered values and behavior in organizational leadership and their responses to those experiences. The results, based on a constant comparison, thematic analysis, indicate the emergence of surprisingly strong and similar perceptions among the 30 women that there are distinct feminine and masculine power orientations in leadership communication with corresponding sets of gendered values: (a) open/closed and (b) supportive/intimidating. Their most common responses were: (a) rejection of masculine power, (b) self-doubt and blame, (c) competence, (d) confrontation, (e) isolation, and (f) resignation. These women judge …

A Model Of Organizational Responsiveness To Stakeholders, Caron Chess

RISK: Health, Safety & Environment (1990-2002)

Dr. Chess explores the relationship between risk management and risk communication and its affect on an organization/stakeholder relationship.

Strategic Planning For A Communication Department: Process And Promise, Catherine Konsky

Journal of the Association for Communication Administration

This article discusses the advantages and disadvantages of planning, most notably strategic planning, and describes a process for developing a department strategic plan by involving the entire faculty in its creation. Principles of business planning and small group communication are joined to address academic department planning needs. Moreover, planning needs to capitalize on the essential soft information lacking in separate groups of planners such as planning departments frequently used in business settings. Soft information refers to experiential knowledge that comes, in this case, from faculty, doing the job as opposed to relying on the numerical data that drive many business …

New Communication Technologies, Organizational Culture, And The Creation Of Innovative Learning Environments, Denise Scott

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Today's organizations face an economic climate that is globalizing, increasing customer demands for products and services that meet their unique needs and the fast pace of technological developments. Organizations require the effective use of new communication technologies as a means of sharing information and expanding capacity for innovation. The main question for this research is: When new communication technologies are introduced into organizations, how do they work together with existing cultural assumptions to produce an innovative, learning environment within the organization? The research design involves conducting moderately structured interviews with organizational leaders in four diverse organizations: Ingram Book Company, Service …

Making Managers Account For Diversity, Judith H. Katz, Roger Gans

Communication Faculty Publications - Archive

Overwhelmingly, people who work in organizations cite their managers as having the greatest influence both on the quality of their work and the quality of their work-life. Managers also exert tremendous influence over the success or failure of organizational change initiatives. This article suggests that organizational change efforts have greater chances for success when managers are held accountable for practicing and modeling the behaviors required of the change initiative. The article describes a model system of accountability enacted in a composite organization and the effects on employee retention, job satisfaction and customer-service quality.

Spartan Daily, October 27, 1998, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily (School of Journalism and Mass Communications)

Volume 111, Issue 41

Intercultural Training For Global Organisations, Irene Matin Rubio

IIMB Management Review

Liberalisation has seen many economies, especially in Asia, opening their hitherto sheltered domestic markets to global competition and providing greater opportunities to trade and foreign investment. The spinoffs of liberalisation bring in new implications, opportunities and challenges for the governments as well as the organisations involved. Round Table features some of the issues discussed in the conference on 'Managing Economic Liberalisation in South Asia : Directions for the 21st Century' held in Chennai, India, from August 10 -13. Selvarajah examines the realignment of economies towards globalisation as a development of regionalism. The shift in economic forces away from multilateral arrangements …

Meta-Ethnographic Development Of A Dialogue Methodology Applied To Organization Discourse, Shelley P. Gallup

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Theses & Dissertations

A gap exists between theoretical stances that acknowledge the importance of dialogue as a dynamic within socially constructed structures, and "steersmanship" of those constructs--e.g., directing, intervening or transforming organizations. A "mechanism" which links theory with practice is missing, leaving practitioners with an acknowledgment of dialogue's central position, but without tools to enact this centrality in practice or research. This research constructs a conceptual model of dialogue, derived from the literature. Using this model as a base, the research seeks to generate a dialogue methodology bridging theory and practice with respect to organizational dialogue. The model, methodology, and research results are …

What Employees Want To Know During Times Of Organizational Change, Stacy Smith Napolitano

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine what issues or topics are most important to employees during times of organizational change. It is important for managers to effectively communicate these issues, especially in today's changing business world.

The author conducted this research by surveying employees at organizations going through major change. The respondents were selected randomly from employee lists at each organization. The sample size was 315. The data was collected through inter-office mail at each location and sent to the author, who tabulated it using the Microsoft Access computer program. The results were tabulated by overall results, gender, …