Pub Date : 2024-03-10DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2024.3387179
Keshab Raj Acharya
Introduction: Recently, the exponential rise of mobile health applications (mHealth apps) has drawn the attention of healthcare practitioners worldwide. This case study investigates Nepalese healthcare practitioners’ perceptions and use of mHealth tools designed in the Global North (GN). The study also explores strategies for fostering inclusivity and accessibility of these tools within Global South (GS) healthcare settings. About the case: Healthcare practitioners in Nepal widely use GN mHealth apps, such as Medscape, for diverse purposes, including aiding health-related decisions and accessing pharmaceutical and disease information. Apps like Medscape offer valuable information on diseases, conditions, and medical procedures, proving highly beneficial for treating patients in critical care situations in GS countries like Nepal. Situating the case: mHealth apps have significantly transformed healthcare delivery in resource-limited, low-income GS countries such as Nepal, enhancing accessibility and efficiency in medical services. However, research in the technical and professional communication (TPC) field regarding how GS healthcare practitioners perceive and interact with emerging digital health technologies within resource-constrained healthcare contexts is scarce. Methods: To gather data, 12 Nepalese healthcare practitioners were interviewed about their perception and use of GN mHealth apps, with a particular focus on Medscape. Results: In addition to the potential benefits of using the case app, participants indicated the need for designing culturally sensitive and context-appropriate mHealth technology. Moreover, results suggest that GN mHealth tools should be tailored to the diverse needs of underserved and underrepresented GS users to promote inclusivity and self-efficacy. Conclusion: Adopting justice-oriented localized user-experience design approaches that value diversity, equity, and social justice can help build a more inclusive form of health communication.
{"title":"Designing Equitable and Inclusive mHealth Technology: Insights from Global South Healthcare Practitioners","authors":"Keshab Raj Acharya","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2024.3387179","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2024.3387179","url":null,"abstract":"<bold>Introduction:</b>\u0000 Recently, the exponential rise of mobile health applications (mHealth apps) has drawn the attention of healthcare practitioners worldwide. This case study investigates Nepalese healthcare practitioners’ perceptions and use of mHealth tools designed in the Global North (GN). The study also explores strategies for fostering inclusivity and accessibility of these tools within Global South (GS) healthcare settings. \u0000<bold>About the case:</b>\u0000 Healthcare practitioners in Nepal widely use GN mHealth apps, such as Medscape, for diverse purposes, including aiding health-related decisions and accessing pharmaceutical and disease information. Apps like Medscape offer valuable information on diseases, conditions, and medical procedures, proving highly beneficial for treating patients in critical care situations in GS countries like Nepal. \u0000<bold>Situating the case:</b>\u0000 mHealth apps have significantly transformed healthcare delivery in resource-limited, low-income GS countries such as Nepal, enhancing accessibility and efficiency in medical services. However, research in the technical and professional communication (TPC) field regarding how GS healthcare practitioners perceive and interact with emerging digital health technologies within resource-constrained healthcare contexts is scarce. \u0000<bold>Methods:</b>\u0000 To gather data, 12 Nepalese healthcare practitioners were interviewed about their perception and use of GN mHealth apps, with a particular focus on Medscape. \u0000<bold>Results:</b>\u0000 In addition to the potential benefits of using the case app, participants indicated the need for designing culturally sensitive and context-appropriate mHealth technology. Moreover, results suggest that GN mHealth tools should be tailored to the diverse needs of underserved and underrepresented GS users to promote inclusivity and self-efficacy. \u0000<bold>Conclusion:</b>\u0000 Adopting justice-oriented localized user-experience design approaches that value diversity, equity, and social justice can help build a more inclusive form of health communication.","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"67 2","pages":"229-245"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-03-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141091225","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-03-09DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2024.3387582
Julie Dyke Ford;Destiny Crawford
Introduction: We introduce our initiative to integrate professional preparedness electronic portfolios (ePortfolios) within an undergraduate mechanical engineering program. EPortfolios provide students with a visual way to illustrate examples of their skills and can help set them apart in employment applications and interviews. About the case: To better prepare our students to communicate their preparedness to potential employers, we integrated ePortfolios within existing undergraduate design courses. We also designed a new portfolio studio course. Situating the case: This teaching case is situated through previous literature on professional preparedness ePortfolios. We limit our scope to studies within engineering and technical communication disciplines. Methods/approach: We integrated ePortfolio instruction and an accompanying ePortfolio artifact assignment requirement within three design classes in our undergraduate Mechanical Engineering curriculum. We assessed assignments and surveyed participants to understand students’ takeaways and approaches on the ePortfolio classroom instruction and assignment. Results/discussion: Results from 147 assignment submissions across three classes indicated that although most assignment submissions demonstrated effective communication of engineering skills, a considerable number of submissions lacked in clarity, professionalism, or relevance. Extended instructional time on ePortfolios could benefit students. More focused instruction could be integrated into existing courses or in a stand-alone portfolio studio course. Our design of this future course was informed by our assessment of student artifacts as well as what we learned about students’ perceptions of ePortfolios from the 130 survey responses. Conclusions: We share lessons learned for teachers from multiple disciplines interested in integrating professional preparedness ePortfolios within their curricula.
{"title":"Integrating Professional Preparedness ePortfolios Within an Undergraduate Engineering Curriculum","authors":"Julie Dyke Ford;Destiny Crawford","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2024.3387582","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2024.3387582","url":null,"abstract":"<bold>Introduction:</b>\u0000 We introduce our initiative to integrate professional preparedness electronic portfolios (ePortfolios) within an undergraduate mechanical engineering program. EPortfolios provide students with a visual way to illustrate examples of their skills and can help set them apart in employment applications and interviews. \u0000<bold>About the case:</b>\u0000 To better prepare our students to communicate their preparedness to potential employers, we integrated ePortfolios within existing undergraduate design courses. We also designed a new portfolio studio course. \u0000<bold>Situating the case:</b>\u0000 This teaching case is situated through previous literature on professional preparedness ePortfolios. We limit our scope to studies within engineering and technical communication disciplines. \u0000<bold>Methods/approach:</b>\u0000 We integrated ePortfolio instruction and an accompanying ePortfolio artifact assignment requirement within three design classes in our undergraduate Mechanical Engineering curriculum. We assessed assignments and surveyed participants to understand students’ takeaways and approaches on the ePortfolio classroom instruction and assignment. \u0000<bold>Results/discussion:</b>\u0000 Results from 147 assignment submissions across three classes indicated that although most assignment submissions demonstrated effective communication of engineering skills, a considerable number of submissions lacked in clarity, professionalism, or relevance. Extended instructional time on ePortfolios could benefit students. More focused instruction could be integrated into existing courses or in a stand-alone portfolio studio course. Our design of this future course was informed by our assessment of student artifacts as well as what we learned about students’ perceptions of ePortfolios from the 130 survey responses. \u0000<bold>Conclusions:</b>\u0000 We share lessons learned for teachers from multiple disciplines interested in integrating professional preparedness ePortfolios within their curricula.","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"67 2","pages":"246-259"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-03-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141091076","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-03-08DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2024.3360649
Huiyu Zhang;Feiyu Chen
Research problem: Leaders’ messages in corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports provide information about corporate citizenship and play an integral role in realizing communicative goals and influencing stakeholders’ perceptions. However, the linguistic features of such messages are largely underexplored. Research questions: 1. Do Chinese and American CSR reports vary in terms of their linguistic features to the degree that necessitates further exploration? 2. What are the key differing features, and what can we learn about business communication and business culture from those differences? 3. What implications do these differences have for business communication at the multinational level? Literature review: Although some linguists have analyzed CSR reports as a genre, few prior studies have paid attention to various grammatical features of CSR reports at the lexical level, and the special context of emerging economies has also been understudied. In particular, the academic attention to leaders’ messages in such reports is scant. Methodology: In our study, a comparative analytical framework focusing on lexico-grammatical features, namely, Biber's multidimensional analysis, has been adopted to compare the language used in leaders’ messages in the CSR reports issued by Chinese and American businesses on the 2022 Fortune Global 500 list. Results: In comparison to the leaders’ messages created by American companies, those created by Chinese companies are significantly more informationally dense, more narrative, less situationally dependent, less explicit, and display significantly fewer features of strict time-constrained informational elaboration. First-person pronouns, the present tense versus the past tense, nominalizations, adverbs, infinitives, modal verbs, and demonstratives are found to be the major language elements that characterize these register discrepancies. Conclusion: This study adds to the body of knowledge on business communication by utilizing multidimensional analysis to offer a systematic understanding of leaders’ messages through a quantitative lens. It also presents practical implications for various readers after discussing some elements that potentially reflect unconscious culture-specific business communication choices.
{"title":"A Multidimensional Analysis of Leaders’ Messages in Chinese and American Corporate Social Responsibility Reports","authors":"Huiyu Zhang;Feiyu Chen","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2024.3360649","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2024.3360649","url":null,"abstract":"<bold>Research problem:</b>\u0000 Leaders’ messages in corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports provide information about corporate citizenship and play an integral role in realizing communicative goals and influencing stakeholders’ perceptions. However, the linguistic features of such messages are largely underexplored. \u0000<bold>Research questions:</b>\u0000 1. Do Chinese and American CSR reports vary in terms of their linguistic features to the degree that necessitates further exploration? 2. What are the key differing features, and what can we learn about business communication and business culture from those differences? 3. What implications do these differences have for business communication at the multinational level? \u0000<bold>Literature review:</b>\u0000 Although some linguists have analyzed CSR reports as a genre, few prior studies have paid attention to various grammatical features of CSR reports at the lexical level, and the special context of emerging economies has also been understudied. In particular, the academic attention to leaders’ messages in such reports is scant. \u0000<bold>Methodology:</b>\u0000 In our study, a comparative analytical framework focusing on lexico-grammatical features, namely, Biber's multidimensional analysis, has been adopted to compare the language used in leaders’ messages in the CSR reports issued by Chinese and American businesses on the 2022 Fortune Global 500 list. \u0000<bold>Results:</b>\u0000 In comparison to the leaders’ messages created by American companies, those created by Chinese companies are significantly more informationally dense, more narrative, less situationally dependent, less explicit, and display significantly fewer features of strict time-constrained informational elaboration. First-person pronouns, the present tense versus the past tense, nominalizations, adverbs, infinitives, modal verbs, and demonstratives are found to be the major language elements that characterize these register discrepancies. \u0000<bold>Conclusion:</b>\u0000 This study adds to the body of knowledge on business communication by utilizing multidimensional analysis to offer a systematic understanding of leaders’ messages through a quantitative lens. It also presents practical implications for various readers after discussing some elements that potentially reflect unconscious culture-specific business communication choices.","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"67 1","pages":"63-88"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140135260","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-03-06DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2024.3382788
Papiya De;Medha Bakhshi
Background: With increased reliance on technology-mediated communication (TMC) minus the social cues, uncertainty management has become critical. This study investigates how usage of emojis/emoticons in professional communication contexts helps people navigate this uncertainty. Literature review: Prior works have focused on the benefits of emoji usage in TMC, particularly in enhancing message substance, emotive expressiveness, and perception. Research questions: 1. What is the attitude towards emoji usage among the upcoming generation of professionals, specifically Generation Z, as they prepare to enter the workforce? 2. What, if any, is the impact of emoji usage on how one perceives others and is perceived in formal work settings, especially for Generation Z? 3. How does emoji/emoticon use affect Generation Z's interpersonal communication at work? Methods: Three focus group discussions were conducted with a total of 29 graduate-level, business studies students with work experience ranging from zero to four years. Reflexive Thematic Analysis using Braun and Clarke's six-step process was conducted to analyze the data and generate themes. Results: Three salient themes emerged from the analysis: 1. Communicative Competence, 2. Identity Construction, 3. Socialized Patterns of Usage. Conclusion: Although emojis are helpful in specific linguistic functions, clarifying intent, and reducing uncertainty, they retain a great deal of fuzziness owing to the ambiguity in usage and interpretation. It is therefore prudent to design ways of incorporating them in instructional interventions to sensitize students around the nuances of emoji usage, to capitalize on the benefits they offer.
背景：随着人们越来越依赖于以技术为媒介的交流（TMC），而忽略了社交线索，不确定性管理变得至关重要。本研究探讨了在专业交流语境中使用表情符号如何帮助人们驾驭这种不确定性。文献回顾：之前的研究主要集中在表情符号在 TMC 中使用的益处，尤其是在增强信息实质、情感表达和感知方面。研究问题1.准备进入职场的新一代专业人士，特别是 Z 世代，对使用表情符号持什么态度？2.表情符号的使用对一个人在正式工作环境中如何看待他人和被他人看待有什么影响（如果有的话），尤其是对 Z 世代？3.表情符号/表情符号的使用如何影响 Z 世代在工作中的人际沟通？研究方法与总共 29 名商科研究生进行了三次焦点小组讨论，他们的工作经验从零到四年不等。采用 Braun 和 Clarke 的六步流程进行了反思性主题分析，以分析数据并生成主题。结果：分析产生了三个突出主题：1.沟通能力；2.身份构建；3.社会化使用模式。结论：虽然表情符号在特定语言功能、澄清意图和减少不确定性方面很有帮助，但由于使用和解释上的模糊性，它们仍然存在很大的模糊性。因此，谨慎的做法是设计将其纳入教学干预措施的方法，让学生了解表情符号使用的细微差别，从而充分利用其带来的益处。
{"title":"Managing Uncertainties in Technology-Mediated Communication: A Qualitative Study of Business Students’ Perception of Emoji/Emoticon Usage in a Business Context","authors":"Papiya De;Medha Bakhshi","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2024.3382788","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2024.3382788","url":null,"abstract":"<bold>Background:</b>\u0000 With increased reliance on technology-mediated communication (TMC) minus the social cues, uncertainty management has become critical. This study investigates how usage of emojis/emoticons in professional communication contexts helps people navigate this uncertainty. \u0000<bold>Literature review:</b>\u0000 Prior works have focused on the benefits of emoji usage in TMC, particularly in enhancing message substance, emotive expressiveness, and perception. \u0000<bold>Research questions:</b>\u0000 1. What is the attitude towards emoji usage among the upcoming generation of professionals, specifically Generation Z, as they prepare to enter the workforce? 2. What, if any, is the impact of emoji usage on how one perceives others and is perceived in formal work settings, especially for Generation Z? 3. How does emoji/emoticon use affect Generation Z's interpersonal communication at work? \u0000<bold>Methods:</b>\u0000 Three focus group discussions were conducted with a total of 29 graduate-level, business studies students with work experience ranging from zero to four years. Reflexive Thematic Analysis using Braun and Clarke's six-step process was conducted to analyze the data and generate themes. \u0000<bold>Results:</b>\u0000 Three salient themes emerged from the analysis: 1. Communicative Competence, 2. Identity Construction, 3. Socialized Patterns of Usage. \u0000<bold>Conclusion:</b>\u0000 Although emojis are helpful in specific linguistic functions, clarifying intent, and reducing uncertainty, they retain a great deal of fuzziness owing to the ambiguity in usage and interpretation. It is therefore prudent to design ways of incorporating them in instructional interventions to sensitize students around the nuances of emoji usage, to capitalize on the benefits they offer.","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"67 2","pages":"211-228"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-03-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141091120","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-03-01DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2024.3380408
Anirban Ray;Ian R. Weaver;G. Edzordzi Agbozo;Yeqing Kong
Background: Technologies are increasingly being deployed in facilitating participatory healthcare. Global governments developed a variety of digital platforms, such as mobile contact tracing apps, to help the public navigate risks and uncertainties during the COVID-19 pandemic. Literature review: Contrary to normative approaches to information design (IxD), the global spread of COVID-19 revealed the need for an alternative design framework (i.e., concept-driven design) to help develop mobile health (mHealth) apps that can support a broader portrayal of information value in IxD. Research questions: 1. In response to COVID-19, what affordances are prioritized by the designers of these global mHealth apps? What do these priorities tell us about design intents and information value? 2. What interpretive framework can we use to understand mHealth designers’ intent across different geopolitical contexts? Research methodology: We captured screenshots of the three apps in the US, India, and China, as well as a website in Ghana. Using touchpoints as the unit of analysis, we conducted an inventory and affinity mapping to visualize the architecture of each app and categorize touchpoints based on their affordances. Results: The comparison of apps across countries displays shared and divergent priorities in their touchpoints, affordances, and information depth. We developed an interpretive framework for understanding mHealth design intent across numerous contexts—Common Interpretive Framework for Design Analysis (CIFDA)—incorporating both linear analysis and recursive analysis of touchpoints, affordances, and depth. Conclusions: Touchpoints in mHealth applications can be designed, but they can also be measured and analyzed, and they can in return help us understand the designer's intent and expected user experience.
{"title":"Mapping Interaction Design in Global Health Interventions: A Comparative Analysis of COVID-19 mHealth Technologies","authors":"Anirban Ray;Ian R. Weaver;G. Edzordzi Agbozo;Yeqing Kong","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2024.3380408","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2024.3380408","url":null,"abstract":"<bold><i>Background:</i></b>\u0000 Technologies are increasingly being deployed in facilitating participatory healthcare. Global governments developed a variety of digital platforms, such as mobile contact tracing apps, to help the public navigate risks and uncertainties during the COVID-19 pandemic. \u0000<bold><i>Literature review:</i></b>\u0000 Contrary to normative approaches to information design (IxD), the global spread of COVID-19 revealed the need for an alternative design framework (i.e., concept-driven design) to help develop mobile health (mHealth) apps that can support a broader portrayal of information value in IxD. \u0000<bold><i>Research questions:</i></b>\u0000 1. In response to COVID-19, what affordances are prioritized by the designers of these global mHealth apps? What do these priorities tell us about design intents and information value? 2. What interpretive framework can we use to understand mHealth designers’ intent across different geopolitical contexts? \u0000<bold><i>Research methodology:</i></b>\u0000 We captured screenshots of the three apps in the US, India, and China, as well as a website in Ghana. Using touchpoints as the unit of analysis, we conducted an inventory and affinity mapping to visualize the architecture of each app and categorize touchpoints based on their affordances. \u0000<bold><i>Results:</i></b>\u0000 The comparison of apps across countries displays shared and divergent priorities in their touchpoints, affordances, and information depth. We developed an interpretive framework for understanding mHealth design intent across numerous contexts—Common Interpretive Framework for Design Analysis (CIFDA)—incorporating both linear analysis and recursive analysis of touchpoints, affordances, and depth. \u0000<bold><i>Conclusions:</i></b>\u0000 Touchpoints in mHealth applications can be designed, but they can also be measured and analyzed, and they can in return help us understand the designer's intent and expected user experience.","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"67 2","pages":"173-191"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141091162","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-02-28DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2024.3356759
Lauren Kuryloski;Erin Rowley;Kristen R. Moore
Introduction: This teaching case provides readers with a fully articulated teaching case that prepares students in engineering to communicate with and about standards. About the case: We use the ASTM standards database to train students to read and engage with research in regulatory documents. Situating the case: By situating this standards research within an emergent case study, students are introduced to additional constraints for writing as an engineer, including budgetary constraints, slide decks, and summary documents. Methods: We assess the case study through student self-report data and provide readers with recommendations for applying this case study in their own programs and classrooms. Results/discussion: Students who engaged in the standards project reported that they were able to connect their assigned work to their futures as engineers. They also reported an increase in their understanding of how to read and research using standards. Conclusion: Standards and other forms of regulatory writing are an important part of daily literacy practices for working engineers; introducing them as a part of required engineering communication courses can augment our current practices in STEM communication.
{"title":"Introducing Engineering Students to Standards and Regulatory Research and Writing","authors":"Lauren Kuryloski;Erin Rowley;Kristen R. Moore","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2024.3356759","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2024.3356759","url":null,"abstract":"<bold>Introduction:</b>\u0000 This teaching case provides readers with a fully articulated teaching case that prepares students in engineering to communicate with and about standards. \u0000<bold>About the case:</b>\u0000 We use the ASTM standards database to train students to read and engage with research in regulatory documents. \u0000<bold>Situating the case:</b>\u0000 By situating this standards research within an emergent case study, students are introduced to additional constraints for writing as an engineer, including budgetary constraints, slide decks, and summary documents. \u0000<bold>Methods:</b>\u0000 We assess the case study through student self-report data and provide readers with recommendations for applying this case study in their own programs and classrooms. \u0000<bold>Results/discussion:</b>\u0000 Students who engaged in the standards project reported that they were able to connect their assigned work to their futures as engineers. They also reported an increase in their understanding of how to read and research using standards. \u0000<bold>Conclusion:</b>\u0000 Standards and other forms of regulatory writing are an important part of daily literacy practices for working engineers; introducing them as a part of required engineering communication courses can augment our current practices in STEM communication.","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"67 1","pages":"133-151"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-02-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140135272","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-02-27DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2024.3359935
Wenjuan Xu;Xingsong Shi
Background: Website adaptation is widely regarded as a strategic priority for successful cross-cultural business communication. Literature review: Drawing upon Hofstede's and Schwartz's cultural theories and the standardization/localization paradigm, this study conducts a quantitative analysis on the adaptative strategy performed by Chinese multinational corporations (MNCs) on their US websites and its influencing factors. Research questions: 1. To what extent have Chinese MNCs adapted their US websites to the US culture? 2. Are product, organizational and managerial factors associated with the degree of website adaptation? Research methodology: This study first used content analysis to examine the cultural manifestation on Chinese MNCs’ US websites and then quantitatively measured their degree of website adaptation. The association between the adaptation degree and its influencing factors was tested through a regression analysis. Results and conclusion: The results indicated that Chinese MNCs have adapted their US websites to the US culture to a large extent. Product type, degree of internationalization, and firm size were significantly correlated with the adaptation degree, yet the association between products’ technological intensity, top management's international experiences, and the adaptation degree was not confirmed. This study extends the website adaptation literature by making an initial attempt to calibrate the degree of cultural adaptation reflected on corporate websites. It also provides fresh insights into how website adaptation can be impacted by a series of company-level factors. In addition, this study contributes to the field of technical and professional communication by suggesting effective ways for firms to make proper strategic decisions on cross-cultural web communication.
{"title":"Measuring the Degree of Website Adaptation and Its Influencing Factors: An Empirical Investigation of Chinese MNCs’ Overseas Websites","authors":"Wenjuan Xu;Xingsong Shi","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2024.3359935","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2024.3359935","url":null,"abstract":"<bold>Background:</b>\u0000 Website adaptation is widely regarded as a strategic priority for successful cross-cultural business communication. \u0000<bold>Literature review:</b>\u0000 Drawing upon Hofstede's and Schwartz's cultural theories and the standardization/localization paradigm, this study conducts a quantitative analysis on the adaptative strategy performed by Chinese multinational corporations (MNCs) on their US websites and its influencing factors. \u0000<bold>Research questions:</b>\u0000 1. To what extent have Chinese MNCs adapted their US websites to the US culture? 2. Are product, organizational and managerial factors associated with the degree of website adaptation? \u0000<bold>Research methodology:</b>\u0000 This study first used content analysis to examine the cultural manifestation on Chinese MNCs’ US websites and then quantitatively measured their degree of website adaptation. The association between the adaptation degree and its influencing factors was tested through a regression analysis. \u0000<bold>Results and conclusion:</b>\u0000 The results indicated that Chinese MNCs have adapted their US websites to the US culture to a large extent. Product type, degree of internationalization, and firm size were significantly correlated with the adaptation degree, yet the association between products’ technological intensity, top management's international experiences, and the adaptation degree was not confirmed. This study extends the website adaptation literature by making an initial attempt to calibrate the degree of cultural adaptation reflected on corporate websites. It also provides fresh insights into how website adaptation can be impacted by a series of company-level factors. In addition, this study contributes to the field of technical and professional communication by suggesting effective ways for firms to make proper strategic decisions on cross-cultural web communication.","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"67 1","pages":"89-104"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-02-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140135155","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-02-27DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2024.3358421
Chunyu Hu;Aoran Zhang;Yilin Xu
Background: Corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports are strategic tools for winning stakeholder support and trust through building and maintaining favorable identities and positive images. Literature review: The metaphorical construction of corporate identity in CSR reports has received little scholarly attention. Research questions: 1. What are the main genre-specific conceptual metaphors used in Chinese and American CEO letters within CSR corporate reports? 2. How do the metaphors build companies’ corporate identities? Data and method: We collected 630 Chinese and American CEO letters in CSR reports, identified linguistic metaphors by using the Metaphor Identification Procedure Vrije Universiteit (MIPVU), inferred genre-specific conceptual metaphors, and conducted comparative analysis of metaphor-based stance and identity. Results and conclusions: Although Chinese and American companies share several genre-specific conceptual metaphors, there exists variation in the metaphor scenarios used to produce the stances and evaluations that contribute to favorable corporate identity construction. In the economic dimension, companies from both countries portray themselves as “capable builders,” “competent players,” and “hard-working gardeners,” but only Chinese companies identify themselves as “active architects and travelers following national policy.” In the environmental dimension, Chinese companies delineate themselves as “determined environmental protectors” and “faithful friends” of nature, while American companies describe themselves as “environment-conscious travelers”and “responsible stewards” of nature. Both identify themselves as “good corporate citizens” in the social dimension.
背景：企业社会责任（CSR）报告是一种战略工具，可通过建立和维护有利身份和正面形象来赢得利益相关者的支持和信任。文献综述：企业社会责任报告中对企业形象的隐喻构建很少受到学术界的关注。研究问题1.中美企业社会责任报告中的 CEO 信主要使用了哪些特定体裁的概念隐喻？2.这些隐喻如何构建公司的企业身份？数据和方法：我们收集了 630 封企业社会责任报告中的中美 CEO 信，使用荷兰弗里耶大学隐喻识别程序（MIPVU）识别了语言隐喻，推断了特定体裁的概念隐喻，并对基于隐喻的立场和身份进行了比较分析。结果与结论虽然中美两国的企业共享一些特定类型的概念隐喻，但用于产生立场和评价的隐喻情景存在差异，而这些立场和评价有助于构建有利的企业形象。在经济维度上，两国企业都把自己描绘成 "能干的建设者"、"称职的参与者 "和 "辛勤的园丁"，但只有中国企业认为自己是 "积极的建筑师和国家政策的执行者"。在环境方面，中国企业将自己描述为 "坚定的环境保护者 "和大自然的 "忠实朋友"，而美国企业则将自己描述为 "具有环境意识的旅行者 "和大自然的 "负责任的管理者"。在社会方面，双方都认为自己是 "良好的企业公民"。
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Pub Date : 2024-02-27DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2024.3358906
Heidi Willers
Introduction: This case study examines the efficacy of Sushil Oswal's model of Accessible User Experience (AUX) as a diagnostic and planning tool for Technical and Professional Communicators (TPCers) to interrogate approaches to accessibility and disability inclusion in their practices by analyzing Microsoft's Inclusive Design Toolkit (“toolkit”) through the principles of AUX. About the case: As a technology giant recognized for its disability inclusion work, Microsoft provides an intriguing test case via its toolkit to consider the practical application of AUX principles to interrogate workplace practices. Situating the case: In the past five years, three technical and professional communication (TPC) journals published special issues focused on accessibility, noting a lack of sustained attention to accessibility and how to practically apply it in the workplace. Multiple calls have been made for a paradigm shift in the way TPCers consider accessibility in their work. Methods/approach: I conduct a case study using thematic coding to analyze foundational texts in the toolkit to demonstrate how TPCers can use Oswal's model of AUX to diagnose current practices by examining them through an AUX lens and identify opportunities to achieve greater accessibility. Results/discussion: Applying an AUX framework as an analytical tool illuminated strengths within the toolkit's methodology and practices, and identified opportunities to expand its practices for greater accessibility. Conclusion: AUX holds promise as a tool for TPCers to analyze current approaches to accessibility and plan for even more inclusive practices.
导言：本案例研究通过分析微软公司的包容性设计工具包（"工具包"），探讨了苏希尔-奥斯瓦尔的无障碍用户体验（AUX）模型作为诊断和规划工具的功效，技术和专业传播者（TPCers）可以通过 AUX 的原则，对其实践中的无障碍和残疾包容性方法进行审视。关于案例：作为一家在残疾包容性工作方面广受认可的技术巨头，微软通过其工具包提供了一个有趣的测试案例，让我们思考如何将 AUX 原则实际应用到工作场所的实践中。案例背景：在过去的五年中，有三份技术与专业交流（TPC）期刊出版了以无障碍为主题的特刊，指出人们对无障碍以及如何在工作场所实际应用无障碍缺乏持续的关注。人们多次呼吁，技术与职业交流人员在工作中考虑无障碍问题的方式应发生模式转变。方法/途径：我进行了一项案例研究，使用主题编码法分析了工具包中的基础文本，以展示 TPC 人员如何使用奥斯瓦尔的无障碍模式，通过无障碍视角审视当前的实践，从而对其进行诊断，并找出实现更高无障碍性的机会。结果/讨论：将 "无障碍 "框架作为一种分析工具，揭示了工具包方法和实践中的优势，并确定了扩展其实践以提高无障碍程度的机会。结论：AUX 有望成为 TPC 人员分析当前无障碍性方法和规划更具包容性实践的工具。
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Pub Date : 2024-02-19DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2024.3353388
Alicia J. Carthell
Background: In this article, I examined 10 technical and professional communication books (TPCBs) to get a glimpse into whether and how the authors discuss bias in language (BIL), which I argue is a diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and social justice issue that warrants responsiveness in the technical and professional communication (TPC) field. Literature review: I situate this analysis in relation to research about BIL, the pejorative impact of BIL on people and groups, and the DEI and social justice conversation, research, and action within the TPC field. Research questions: 1. Do TPCB authors discuss BIL to illuminate the interplay of language use and equity and inclusion? 2. If so, what types of biases are discussed? 3. What do their BIL discussions include? Research methodology: Using content analysis, I examined 10 TPCBs to determine whether and how the authors address BIL. When found, I documented the presence, frequency, and composition of all BIL discussions for all 10 TPCBs analyzed. Results/discussion: I found that nine out of the 10 TPCBs examined include discussion of BIL, and of the BIL types found, sexist/gendered language was mentioned the most—appearing in nine of the 10 TPCBs. I provide tables to show the composition of the authors’ BIL discussions. Conclusion: I conclude with three recommendations to TPCB authors (as well as to practitioners, researchers, and educators surveying TPCBs for practice, research, and teaching), discuss implications and the limitations of my analysis, and give my final thoughts.
背景：在本文中，我研究了 10 本技术与专业交流书籍（TPCBs），以了解作者是否以及如何讨论语言偏见（BIL），我认为这是一个多样性、公平与包容（DEI）和社会正义问题，需要技术与专业交流（TPC）领域做出回应。文献回顾：我将这一分析与有关 BIL 的研究、BIL 对个人和群体的贬义影响以及技术和专业交流领域内的多样性、公平和包容（DEI）与社会正义对话、研究和行动联系起来。研究问题1.TPCB 的作者是否通过讨论 BIL 来阐明语言使用与公平和包容之间的相互作用？2.如果有，讨论了哪些类型的偏见？3.他们对 BIL 的讨论包括哪些内容？研究方法：通过内容分析，我检查了 10 篇 TPCB，以确定作者是否以及如何讨论 BIL。发现问题后，我记录了所分析的全部 10 篇 TPCB 中所有 BIL 讨论的存在、频率和构成。结果/讨论：我发现，在所研究的 10 部 TPCB 中，有 9 部包含了对 BIL 的讨论，而在所发现的 BIL 类型中，性别歧视/性别语言被提及最多--在 10 部 TPCB 中的 9 部中出现。我提供了一些表格，以显示作者对 BIL 讨论的构成。结论：最后，我向 TPCB 的作者（以及为实践、研究和教学而调查 TPCB 的从业人员、研究人员和教育工作者）提出了三点建议，讨论了我的分析的意义和局限性，并给出了我的最终想法。
{"title":"An Analysis of Bias in Language Content in Books Used in Technical and Professional Writing Courses: A Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Social Justice Matter","authors":"Alicia J. Carthell","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2024.3353388","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2024.3353388","url":null,"abstract":"<bold>Background:</b>\u0000 In this article, I examined 10 technical and professional communication books (TPCBs) to get a glimpse into whether and how the authors discuss bias in language (BIL), which I argue is a diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and social justice issue that warrants responsiveness in the technical and professional communication (TPC) field. \u0000<bold>Literature review:</b>\u0000 I situate this analysis in relation to research about BIL, the pejorative impact of BIL on people and groups, and the DEI and social justice conversation, research, and action within the TPC field. \u0000<bold>Research questions:</b>\u0000 1. Do TPCB authors discuss BIL to illuminate the interplay of language use and equity and inclusion? 2. If so, what types of biases are discussed? 3. What do their BIL discussions include? \u0000<bold>Research methodology:</b>\u0000 Using content analysis, I examined 10 TPCBs to determine whether and how the authors address BIL. When found, I documented the presence, frequency, and composition of all BIL discussions for all 10 TPCBs analyzed. \u0000<bold>Results/discussion:</b>\u0000 I found that nine out of the 10 TPCBs examined include discussion of BIL, and of the BIL types found, sexist/gendered language was mentioned the most—appearing in nine of the 10 TPCBs. I provide tables to show the composition of the authors’ BIL discussions. \u0000<bold>Conclusion:</b>\u0000 I conclude with three recommendations to TPCB authors (as well as to practitioners, researchers, and educators surveying TPCBs for practice, research, and teaching), discuss implications and the limitations of my analysis, and give my final thoughts.","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"67 1","pages":"26-46"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-02-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140135217","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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