UNIT ONE
Theoretical Foundations
CHAPTER ONE
Introduction to
Organizational Constructs
Preface
 According to Modaff & DeWine, organizational
life is characterized by what?
– misunderstandings
 What are the Textbook Assumptions?
– Previous course in communication
– Purpose of course is to familiarize students with the
basic elements of the field of organizational
communication.
– Students will cover methodological and philosophical
orientations in more depth in an advanced course
(COM 525)
Preface
 What the textbook is NOT about . . .
– External organizational communication (“public relations”)
– Macro-organizational communication (organizational memory,
lifespan)
 What the textbook IS about . . .
– Internal communication
– Organizing issues (organizational behavior level)
– Introduce basic concepts
• Foundations of the discipline
• Current state of theory and practice
– Deal with misunderstandings
– Central organizing feature of textbook:
MISUNDERSTANDINGS
Textbook Layout
Part One: Foundations




Chapter 1:
Chapter 2:
Chapter 3:
Chapter 4:
Introduction (ethics & diversity)
Classical Management Theories (prescriptive)
Human Relations & Human Resource Theories
Systems Theory - Learning Organizations
(analytical framework)
 Chapter 5: Organizational Culture & Critical Theories
 Chapter 6: The Communicative Organization
– Misunderstanding will occur - organizations should be prepared.
– Can misunderstandings be resolved?
– Does organization need to learn to “live with the issues?”
Part Two: Challenges &
Misunderstandings
ORGANIZATIONAL CHALLENGES
 Chapter 7: Realistic Recruitment
 Chapter 8: Socialization of Organizational Members
 Chapter 9: Conflict in the Organization
RELATIONAL CHALLENGES
 Chapter 10: Supervisor/Subordinate Communication
 Chapter 11: Peer and Co-worker Communication
 Chapter 12: Team Communication
 Chapter 13: Impact of Technology on Communication
Chapter One: Introduction
PREVIEW
 Define the Study and Practice of Organizational
Communication
 Establish the Prevalence of Misunderstandings
 Discuss the Changing Nature of Organizations
 Present the Realities of a Diverse Workforce
 Identify Ethical Organizational Frameworks
 Introduction of Three Important Constructs
– Organizational Identification
– Job Satisfaction
– Communication Satisfaction
Organizational Communication
DEFINED
 Organizational Communication Definitions - Handout
 “Communication is the basis for the way in which an organization
functions”
 Communication plays a critical role in most every aspect of
organizational life
 A business is a group of people organized around a common goal
 Organization - Greek origins
– Organon - “tool” or “instrument”
– Communication is both the means by which the tool or instrument (the
organization) is created and sustained and the prime coordinating
mechanism for activity designed to attain personal and organizational
goals.
Organizational Communication
DEFINED
 “…the process of creating, exchanging,
interpreting (correctly or incorrectly), and storing
messages within a system of human
interrelationships.”
 “…the exchange of oral, nonverbal, and written
messages within (and across the boundaries of) a
system of interrelated and interdependent people
working to accomplish common tasks and goals
within an organization.”
 MESSAGE-CENTERED DEFINITION
Messages
 “…nonrandom verbal symbolizations.”
 “…a use of language (written or spoken)
that the recipient interprets as having been
created intentionally.”
Assumptions and Features of
Organizational Communication
 Communication is central to the existence of the
organization
 Organizational communication is a complex
process (creating, exchanging, interpreting, and
storing messages)
 Misunderstandings occur
Sample Research Topics in
Organizational Communication











Information Dissemination / Message Flow
Relationship Creation, Maintenance, and Termination
Process of Organizing
Message Privilege and Power
Optimal Information (overload, underload)
Effective Channels
Impact of Technology
Workplace Democracy
Influence of Organizational Structure
Team Interaction
Organizational Culture
Common Themes in
Organizational Communication
 “The use of language as a symbolic means of
inducing cooperation in beings that by nature
respond to symbols, constitutes our disciplinary
foundation . . . A concern with collective action,
agency, messages, symbols, and discourse.”
Mumby & Stohl
 How messages are sent and understood through
the use of language, forms the basis of
communication in general and organizational
communication specifically.
Organizational Communication:
What’s in it for You?
 Better equipped to address contemporary
workplace issues.
–
–
–
–
Development of a temporary workforce
Implementation of teams
Adoption of new technologies
Multiculturalism
 Trained to focus on the complex and
collaborative nature of communicating,
organizing and knowing.
Organizational Communication:
What’s in it for You?
 More articulate about ideas.
 Understand the task of organizing
individuals, groups, projects, and thoughts.
 Knowing/Learning how to learn.
Prevalence of
Misunderstandings








Paradigms
More levels of hierarchy
More work teams with more members
Cultural, age, sex, gender, religious, and value
differences
Power struggles
Sub- and counter organizational cultures
Competition for scarce resources
Impersonal communication media
Impersonal Communication Media
Misunderstandings
“Instances in which people who are communicating
don’t share meanings as well as situations in
which features of organizational life serve to
impinge upon the efficient and effective
functioning of organizational members.”
Highlights the central nature of communication.
Case study example: page 7.
Changing Nature of Organizations
Shift from . . .
 hierarchical (tall) to decentralized (flat)
structures
 climate of authority (control) to climate of
coaching (support through performance feedback)
 analog to digital (computerized information
technology)
 regional or national competition to global
competition
Realities of Diverse Workforce
 “Diversity in the workplace encompasses
a variety of personal and social bases of
identity, including race-ethnicity, gender,
age, socio-economic status, and country
of origin.”
Brenda Allen
 Diversity must be seen as a positive
characteristic of the work environment
Ethical Frameworks and
Organizational Communication
 Must be defined within the unique culture
of a particular organizational
environment. (???)
 “There is something inherently present in
any modern organization that facilitates
unethical or immoral conduct”
W. Charles Redding
Kreps’ Ethical Guidelines
 Organization members should not intentionally
deceive one another. (Trust)
 Organization members’ communication should
not purposely harm any other organization
member or members of the organization’s
relevant environment. (Do No Harm)
 Organization members should be treated justly
(Justice)
Cheney & Tompkins
Four Guidelines for Ethical Behavior
 Guardedness - critically assess messages
 Accessibility - be open to new ideas
 Nonviolence - consider multiple options
 Empathy - genuinely listen and respect
Three Important Constructs
 Organizational Identification (process & product)
– An active process by which individuals link themselves to
elements (people, policies, products, services, customers,
values) in the social scene.
– Involves an individual’s sense of membership in and connection
with an organization.
 Job Satisfaction
– The degree to which employees feel fulfilled by their job and
related experiences.
– A pleasurable or positive emotional state from the appraisal of
one’s job or experiences
– Linked to absenteeism and turnover
 Communication Satisfaction
– The degree to which employees feel that communication is
appropriate and satisfies their need for information and work
relationships
Communication Satisfaction (CSQ)
 “Overall degree of satisfaction an employee perceived in his [sic]
total communication environment.”
 Eight Factors concerned with communication information,
relationships, channels, and climate
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Communication Climate
Relationship to Superiors
Organizational Integration
Media Quality
Horizontal and Informal Communication
Organizational Perspective
Relationship with Subordinates
Personal Feedback
 Communication satisfaction is often considered the “sum” of an
individual’s satsifaction with the above dimensions.
Summary
 Define the Study and Practice of Organizational
Communication
 Establish the Prevalence of Misunderstandings
 Discuss the Changing Nature of Organizations
 Present the Realities of a Diverse Workforce
 Identify Ethical Organizational Frameworks
 Introduction of Three Important Constructs
– Organizational Identification
– Job Satisfaction
– Communication Satisfaction
Summary
 Organizational communication is the process of creating, exchanging,
interpreting (correctly or incorrectly), and storing messages within a
system of human interrelationships.
 The study of organizational communication helps people understand
and appreciate communication as the central process in the
organization.
 Goal is to reduce misunderstandings through communication.
 For Thursday, Read Chapter 2 (Classical Theories of Organizations)
– Taylor’s Theory of Scientific Management
– Fayol’s Administrative Theory
– Weber’s Theory of Bureaucracy