Organizational Communication Commons^™

Making Engineers: An Ethnography Of Undergraduate Engineering Students In A Project-Based Program, Bethany Popelish

Masters Theses, 2020-current

In a project-focused engineering program, undergraduate students are taught engineering skills through the ‘bike project’ in which students work as teams to design and fabricate a human-powered vehicle for a member of the community whose disabilities make riding a traditional bicycle prohibitive. To understand the learning that happens in the course of this project, the researcher conducted a 20-month ethnography of the engineering program, focusing on the sophomore students’ organizational experiences. As a participant observer, the researcher went to classes with the students, participated in trainings, and observed them through each stage of their project. Ethnographic observations were collected as …

Ngo Collaboration In Natural Disaster Response Efforts- A Comparative Case Study Of Earthquakes In Asia, Richelle S. Grogg

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

This paper examines the response of NGOs to natural disasters, specifically in regards to collaboration efforts. The study utilizes a comparative case study methodology of most-similar design to look at three specific disasters- The Kashmir Earthquake, The Sichuan Earthquake, and The Japan Earthquake. Within each of these earthquakes the organizations Doctors Without Borders, the International Red Cross, and Oxfam International’s specific responses will be highlighted. The collaboration efforts will be examined utilizing general questions focusing on willingness to collaborate, commitment, and compatibility of objectives. Ultimately, this study found that all three components seem to be hypotheses worthy of further study.

Exploring The Role Of Networks And Proximity For Communication Satisfaction In An Academic Library, Jennifer A. Keach

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Researchers tie communication satisfaction within organizations to job satisfaction, productivity, and commitment, and yet supporting communication satisfaction remains a challenge for workplaces. This study proposes that network centrality and proximity both are related to communication satisfaction. Further, this study proposes that proximity actions—voluntary actions which increase proximity with co-workers—relate to network centrality. As employees increasingly work at a geographic distance from their co-workers, they increasingly experience proximity barriers to the already difficult task of staying informed through informal communication channels. This study is a mixed methods case study within an academic library.

Findings include the value of mixed methods studies …

Making Sense Of Mediation: The Intersection Of Critical Event Narratives At A Community Conflict Resolution Center, Eric Dirth

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

This research investigated the unique narratives of one community mediation center’s stakeholders to illuminate the interconnectedness of the center’s stakeholders and the role critical events play in their retrospective sensemaking. A qualitative study, employing an autoethnographic and narrative analysis, was conducted at a local mediation center over a period of six months to explore the communicative interactions involved in the stakeholders’ tellings and retellings of stories of significant change. Results offered a rich understanding of the significant moments taking place at the community mediation center and the communicative triggers of these critical event experiences. Critical event triggers included: accelerated learning, …

Organizational Use Of Social Media: The Shift In Communication, Collaboration And Decision-Making, Dhruvi A. Naik

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Organizational use of social media: The shift in communication, collaboration and decision-making

Social media has driven organizational communication, collaboration and decision-making in recent times. This thesis focuses first on the popularity and widespread usage of social media like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn and how it has provided businesses with platforms to collaborate and communicate virtually. It then explores how organizations can implement social media for the purpose of external marketing and advertising, to connect to consumers and for the purpose of internal communications. For example, how can organizations tap the potential of social media and connect with consumers? Social media …