Pub Date : 2025-03-20DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2025.3561609
Ben Markey
Background: Instructors in STEM fields help prepare students to be effective communicators in the workplace, partially through instruction of professional genres such as client-facing reports. At the same time, class sizes are increasing, and writing assessment often falls to teaching assistants (TAs). Literature review: Research suggests that TAs possess a maturing but inchoate sense of writing in their field, which potentially complicates their ability to deliver quality feedback. This study uses frame semantics, a form of discourse analysis, to probe TAs for their beliefs about writing in statistics. Research questions: 1. When asked to describe the function and role of writing in statistics, what lexical verbs do TA informants use? 2. What frames are invoked by those verbs? 3. How do the invoked semantic frames position writing in relation to disciplinary and professional work in the field? Research methodology: This study interviewed three TAs from an introductory statistics course about their perceptions of writing in statistics. Frame semantics was used to analyze TA responses. Results: Less experienced TAs tended to perceive writing as a means of presentation, which entailed a weak sense of the role of rhetoric in technical communication and a muddied understanding of writing assessment. The more advanced TA perceived writing as a means of contextualizing statistical evidence for particular audiences. Conclusion: Due to their maturing perceptions of writing in their disciplines, TAs might not possess the ability to deliver quality formative feedback. One means of support for these TAs may be opportunities to discuss assessment decisions with one another, thereby calibrating against available expectations and rubrics.
{"title":"Presenting and Making Relevant: Analyzing Teaching Assistant Perceptions of Writing in Statistics Using Semantic Frames","authors":"Ben Markey","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2025.3561609","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2025.3561609","url":null,"abstract":"<italic><b>Background:</b></i> Instructors in STEM fields help prepare students to be effective communicators in the workplace, partially through instruction of professional genres such as client-facing reports. At the same time, class sizes are increasing, and writing assessment often falls to teaching assistants (TAs). <italic><b>Literature review:</b></i> Research suggests that TAs possess a maturing but inchoate sense of writing in their field, which potentially complicates their ability to deliver quality feedback. This study uses frame semantics, a form of discourse analysis, to probe TAs for their beliefs about writing in statistics. <italic><b>Research questions:</b></i> 1. When asked to describe the function and role of writing in statistics, what lexical verbs do TA informants use? 2. What frames are invoked by those verbs? 3. How do the invoked semantic frames position writing in relation to disciplinary and professional work in the field? <italic><b>Research methodology:</b></i> This study interviewed three TAs from an introductory statistics course about their perceptions of writing in statistics. Frame semantics was used to analyze TA responses. <italic><b>Results:</b></i> Less experienced TAs tended to perceive writing as a means of presentation, which entailed a weak sense of the role of rhetoric in technical communication and a muddied understanding of writing assessment. The more advanced TA perceived writing as a means of contextualizing statistical evidence for particular audiences. <italic><b>Conclusion:</b></i> Due to their maturing perceptions of writing in their disciplines, TAs might not possess the ability to deliver quality formative feedback. One means of support for these TAs may be opportunities to discuss assessment decisions with one another, thereby calibrating against available expectations and rubrics.","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"68 2","pages":"155-171"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-03-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144171073","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 : 2025-03-19DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2025.3562716
Tzipora Rakedzon;Orit Hazzan
About the case: We suggest using Aristotle's rhetorical triangle, a tool for analyzing communication in terms of logos (logic), pathos (values), and ethos (identity), in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) undergraduate classes. We investigate how the triangle can enhance students’ communication skills by developing awareness of pathos and ethos, and shed light on values, considerations, and professional identity at different stages of their studies. Situating the case: Developing communication skills among STEM students is imperative even in the age of AI-based tools. Although many books and platforms exist to help facilitate communication in general, STEM students require practical tools to foster the rhetorical skills needed for effective and persuasive communication. Methods: The rhetorical triangle intervention was implemented in two undergraduate courses to help students develop the other necessary elements of effective communication beyond logos: i.e., pathos and ethos. Results: Our results show that the intervention enhanced students’ ability to express shared values (pathos) with their audience and fostered the development of professional identity (ethos). Our findings also revealed notable differences in professional identity expression when comparing two different samples of future scientists and engineers in their freshmen and senior years. Conclusion: We suggest that incorporating the elements of the rhetorical triangle into STEM education can enhance students’ communication skills, particularly in expressing the value of their work and developing a strong professional identity. We recommend integrating these elements throughout various stages of the curriculum to deepen students’ understanding of effective communication and persuasion.
{"title":"Beyond Logic: Developing Pathos and Ethos in STEM Undergraduate Communication Using the Rhetorical Triangle","authors":"Tzipora Rakedzon;Orit Hazzan","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2025.3562716","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2025.3562716","url":null,"abstract":"<bold><i>About the case:</i></b> We suggest using Aristotle's rhetorical triangle, a tool for analyzing communication in terms of logos (logic), pathos (values), and ethos (identity), in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) undergraduate classes. We investigate how the triangle can enhance students’ communication skills by developing awareness of pathos and ethos, and shed light on values, considerations, and professional identity at different stages of their studies. <bold><i>Situating the case:</i></b> Developing communication skills among STEM students is imperative even in the age of AI-based tools. Although many books and platforms exist to help facilitate communication in general, STEM students require practical tools to foster the rhetorical skills needed for effective and persuasive communication. <bold><i>Methods:</i></b> The rhetorical triangle intervention was implemented in two undergraduate courses to help students develop the other necessary elements of effective communication beyond logos: i.e., pathos and ethos. <bold><i>Results:</i></b> Our results show that the intervention enhanced students’ ability to express shared values (pathos) with their audience and fostered the development of professional identity (ethos). Our findings also revealed notable differences in professional identity expression when comparing two different samples of future scientists and engineers in their freshmen and senior years. <bold><i>Conclusion:</i></b> We suggest that incorporating the elements of the rhetorical triangle into STEM education can enhance students’ communication skills, particularly in expressing the value of their work and developing a strong professional identity. We recommend integrating these elements throughout various stages of the curriculum to deepen students’ understanding of effective communication and persuasion.","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"68 2","pages":"241-254"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-03-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=11006889","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144171051","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-03-15DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2025.3559741
Amber Hedquist
Introduction: Participant recruitment is a difficult stage of the research process, often resulting in considerable time and cost, with challenges in the diversity, quantity, and quality of participants. Existing scholarship on recruitment focuses on recruitment outcomes, specifically the development of a useful sample. This article directs attention from outcomes to processes by reconsidering this transactional, sample-building process as a relationship-building process through the lens of invitational rhetoric. About the case: The study analyzes the advertisements used on university study discovery sites (SDSs) to initiate participant recruitment and build sustainable relationships with the community. Universities rely on study advertisements to initiate recruitment on SDSs, which can serve as the foundation for the participant-researcher relationship. Situating the case: This case is situated in larger calls for research efficiency and the technical and professional communicationdiscipline's call for less transactional and more personalized recruitment processes. Methods: After tracking and defining the rhetorical moves in study advertisements, the moves are characterized through invitational rhetoric to assess how they create conditions for value, safety, and freedom. Results/discussion: This study finds that the main rhetorical moves of the advertisements are establishing credentials, introducing the offer (offering the product or service, essential detailing of the offer, indicating value of the offer), including study identifiers, and soliciting responses. The moves enacting invitational rhetoric are attentive to building reciprocity, transparency, and agency. Conclusion: To avoid transactional relationships with participants, researchers can incorporate invitational rhetoric into their recruitment materials by creating the conditions for value, safety, and freedom.
{"title":"Inviting Participation: From Sample-Building to Relationship-Building in Participant Recruitment Processes","authors":"Amber Hedquist","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2025.3559741","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2025.3559741","url":null,"abstract":"<bold>Introduction:</b> Participant recruitment is a difficult stage of the research process, often resulting in considerable time and cost, with challenges in the diversity, quantity, and quality of participants. Existing scholarship on recruitment focuses on recruitment outcomes, specifically the development of a useful sample. This article directs attention from outcomes to processes by reconsidering this transactional, sample-building process as a relationship-building process through the lens of invitational rhetoric. <bold>About the case:</b> The study analyzes the advertisements used on university study discovery sites (SDSs) to initiate participant recruitment and build sustainable relationships with the community. Universities rely on study advertisements to initiate recruitment on SDSs, which can serve as the foundation for the participant-researcher relationship. <bold>Situating the case:</b> This case is situated in larger calls for research efficiency and the technical and professional communicationdiscipline's call for less transactional and more personalized recruitment processes. <bold>Methods:</b> After tracking and defining the rhetorical moves in study advertisements, the moves are characterized through invitational rhetoric to assess how they create conditions for value, safety, and freedom. <bold>Results/discussion:</b> This study finds that the main rhetorical moves of the advertisements are establishing credentials, introducing the offer (offering the product or service, essential detailing of the offer, indicating value of the offer), including study identifiers, and soliciting responses. The moves enacting invitational rhetoric are attentive to building reciprocity, transparency, and agency. <bold>Conclusion:</b> To avoid transactional relationships with participants, researchers can incorporate invitational rhetoric into their recruitment materials by creating the conditions for value, safety, and freedom.","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"68 2","pages":"228-240"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-03-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144170921","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 : 2025-03-10DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2025.3547681
{"title":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication Information for Authors","authors":"","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2025.3547681","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2025.3547681","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"68 1","pages":"C3-C3"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-03-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10918897","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143583257","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-03-10DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2025.3541973
George F. Hayhoe
{"title":"An Editor's Thanks","authors":"George F. Hayhoe","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2025.3541973","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2025.3541973","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"68 1","pages":"1-3"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-03-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10918899","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143583154","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-03-10DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2025.3547680
{"title":"IEEE Professional Communication Society Publication Information","authors":"","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2025.3547680","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2025.3547680","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"68 1","pages":"C2-C2"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-03-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10918876","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143583275","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-03-10DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2025.3547658
{"title":"IEEE Professional Communication Society Information","authors":"","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2025.3547658","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2025.3547658","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"68 1","pages":"C4-C4"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-03-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10918898","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143583192","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-03-07DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2025.3558371
Kathryn Chunn;Bremen Vance
Background: Constructivism is a prevalent theory in technical and professional communication (TPC) pedagogy that extends to various aspects of learning, including textbook design. This study considers the way that learners interact with textbooks and how incorporating constructivist design elements is important for both instructors and students. Literature review: Previous research has highlighted the importance of textbook design in facilitating learning and the ways that textbooks reflect ideology. However, there is limited literature on the role of constructivist principles in textbook design and their impact on learners and faculty. Research questions: 1. What design elements in textbooks align with a constructivist pedagogy? 2. To what extent do textbooks in TPC follow a constructivist design? 3. Do students and faculty prefer constructivist designs? Research methodology: The study employed a heuristic review using a novel heuristic, the Constructivist Textbook Rubric, to evaluate a sample of eight technical communication textbooks. Following this, comparative usability testing was conducted with both professors and students to assess preferences and learning outcomes. Results: The study resulted in the development of a comprehensive tool for evaluating textbooks based on alignment with constructivist design principles and learning theory. Both the heuristic review and user testing demonstrated advantages associated with textbooks that incorporated constructivist elements in their design. Conclusion: The findings suggest that textbooks designed with constructivist principles can improve learning outcomes for both learners and faculty. By using the Constructivist Textbook Rubric, college instructors can make informed decisions when selecting textbooks, ultimately benefiting learners through enhanced information synthesis and retention.
{"title":"Using UX and LXD to Analyze Constructivism in Technical Communication Textbook Design","authors":"Kathryn Chunn;Bremen Vance","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2025.3558371","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2025.3558371","url":null,"abstract":"<bold>Background:</b> Constructivism is a prevalent theory in technical and professional communication (TPC) pedagogy that extends to various aspects of learning, including textbook design. This study considers the way that learners interact with textbooks and how incorporating constructivist design elements is important for both instructors and students. <bold>Literature review:</b> Previous research has highlighted the importance of textbook design in facilitating learning and the ways that textbooks reflect ideology. However, there is limited literature on the role of constructivist principles in textbook design and their impact on learners and faculty. <bold>Research questions:</b> 1. What design elements in textbooks align with a constructivist pedagogy? 2. To what extent do textbooks in TPC follow a constructivist design? 3. Do students and faculty prefer constructivist designs? <bold>Research methodology:</b> The study employed a heuristic review using a novel heuristic, the Constructivist Textbook Rubric, to evaluate a sample of eight technical communication textbooks. Following this, comparative usability testing was conducted with both professors and students to assess preferences and learning outcomes. <bold>Results:</b> The study resulted in the development of a comprehensive tool for evaluating textbooks based on alignment with constructivist design principles and learning theory. Both the heuristic review and user testing demonstrated advantages associated with textbooks that incorporated constructivist elements in their design. <bold>Conclusion:</b> The findings suggest that textbooks designed with constructivist principles can improve learning outcomes for both learners and faculty. By using the Constructivist Textbook Rubric, college instructors can make informed decisions when selecting textbooks, ultimately benefiting learners through enhanced information synthesis and retention.","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"68 2","pages":"193-208"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-03-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144170956","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 : 2025-03-03DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2025.3541984
Ya Sun;Pan Zheng;Na Zhang
Introduction: Efficient and effective business communication depends on appropriate communication adjustments that are at the core of communication accommodation theory. This theory has been used to explore the role of communication accommodation in driving business performance and organizational success. However, there has been no systematic survey of linguistic accommodation in business communication. Research questions: 1. What are general characteristics of studies on the impact of linguistic accommodation in business communication? 2. What are the foci of linguistic accommodation in business communication? 3. What are the contexts, participants (actors and targets), transactional goals, and relational goals of linguistic accommodation in business communication? Methodology: We conducted an integrative literature review based on journal articles from the database Web of Science Core Collection. After retrieving 32 articles corresponding to our research purpose, we conducted a qualitative content analysis to describe general characteristics of these articles and identify foci of linguistic accommodation, contexts, participants (actors and targets), transactional goals, and relational goals of linguistic accommodation. Results and conclusions: In both external and internal business communication, actors tend to accommodate or nonaccommodate targets by choosing different languages and communication styles on different linguistic levels based on their language proficiency. We found that linguistic accommodation generally has a positive impact on transactional goals (such as service quality perceptions, negotiation effectiveness, and group performance) and relational goals (such as brand trust, consumer engagement, and cooperation intentions). This review may help business professionals adopt appropriate linguistic accommodation strategies to achieve transactional or relational goals, and aid teachers of business communication in developing students’ accommodation competence.
引言：高效有效的商务沟通取决于适当的沟通调整，这是沟通调节理论的核心。这一理论已被用于探索沟通适应在推动业务绩效和组织成功方面的作用。然而，目前还没有对商务交际中的语言适应进行系统的调查。研究问题：1；关于语言适应在商务交际中的影响的研究的一般特征是什么？2. 商务交际中语言适应的重点是什么？3. 商务交际中语言适应的语境、参与者（参与者和目标）、交易目标和关系目标是什么？方法：我们基于Web of Science Core Collection数据库中的期刊文章进行了综合文献综述。在检索了与我们的研究目的相对应的32篇文章后，我们进行了定性内容分析，以描述这些文章的一般特征，并确定语言适应的焦点、语境、参与者（行动者和目标）、交易目标和关系目标。结果与结论：在商务交际中，无论是对外交际还是对内交际，行为体都会根据自己的语言水平，在不同的语言层次上选择不同的语言和交际风格，从而倾向于迁就或不迁就目标。我们发现，语言适应通常对交易目标（如服务质量感知、谈判有效性和团队绩效）和关系目标（如品牌信任、消费者参与和合作意愿）有积极影响。本研究可帮助商务人士采取适当的语言适应策略，以达成交易或关系目标，并协助商务交际教师培养学生的适应能力。
{"title":"The Impact of Linguistic Accommodation on Transactional and Relational Goals in Business Communication","authors":"Ya Sun;Pan Zheng;Na Zhang","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2025.3541984","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2025.3541984","url":null,"abstract":"<bold>Introduction:</b> Efficient and effective business communication depends on appropriate communication adjustments that are at the core of communication accommodation theory. This theory has been used to explore the role of communication accommodation in driving business performance and organizational success. However, there has been no systematic survey of linguistic accommodation in business communication. <bold>Research questions:</b> 1. What are general characteristics of studies on the impact of linguistic accommodation in business communication? 2. What are the foci of linguistic accommodation in business communication? 3. What are the contexts, participants (actors and targets), transactional goals, and relational goals of linguistic accommodation in business communication? <bold>Methodology:</b> We conducted an integrative literature review based on journal articles from the database Web of Science Core Collection. After retrieving 32 articles corresponding to our research purpose, we conducted a qualitative content analysis to describe general characteristics of these articles and identify foci of linguistic accommodation, contexts, participants (actors and targets), transactional goals, and relational goals of linguistic accommodation. <bold>Results and conclusions:</b> In both external and internal business communication, actors tend to accommodate or nonaccommodate targets by choosing different languages and communication styles on different linguistic levels based on their language proficiency. We found that linguistic accommodation generally has a positive impact on transactional goals (such as service quality perceptions, negotiation effectiveness, and group performance) and relational goals (such as brand trust, consumer engagement, and cooperation intentions). This review may help business professionals adopt appropriate linguistic accommodation strategies to achieve transactional or relational goals, and aid teachers of business communication in developing students’ accommodation competence.","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"68 1","pages":"4-21"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-03-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143583186","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 : 2025-02-26DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2025.3533177
Sheng Yuan
Background: Corporations are increasingly leveraging social media to communicate their corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices and corporate ability (CA) messages. Concurrently, the overseas expansion of Chinese corporations is significantly affecting global environmental sustainability and CSR practices. Literature review: Drawing upon the conceptual framework of stakeholder engagement proposed by Kujala et al., this study measures the engagement effects of specific CSR/CA topics communicated by Chinese corporations on Facebook. Although previous research has compared the effectiveness of CSR and CA topics, it has resulted in a lack of consistent findings on which specific CSR/CA topics spark more responses from stakeholders. Research questions: 1. Which CSR/CA topics are likely to generate the higher amount of public engagement (measured by the count of likes, shares, and comments) on social media? 2. Which CSR/CA topics are likely to elicit comments with the most positive tone on social media? 3. Does the tone of corporate posts correlate with that of the public comments that they evoke? Research methodology: Using content and sentiment analysis, this study examined 11,628 corporate posts and 235,976 fan comments on the Facebook accounts of 34 large Chinese corporations to investigate the influence of message topics and emotions on public responses. Results: The results indicated that CA topics elicited more responses than CSR topics did, but public comments on the latter were more favorable. Among the CSR topics, “public health commitment” generated the most responses, and “supporting cultural/sport events” received the most favorable comments. “Industry leadership” generated more favorable comments than other CA topics did. Overall, topics differed significantly in terms of the number of responses and the tone of comments that they yielded. The tone of CSR posts was positively correlated with the tone of the ensuing public comments, but such a relationship was not observed with CA posts. Conclusion: Corporations should constantly scrutinize stakeholder responses to different topics posted on their social media accounts and adjust topic proportions accordingly to optimize communication outcomes. Scholars can enrich theories of Western roots through Eastern perspectives by studying how Chinese corporations communicate messages globally.
{"title":"Which Topic Category Is More Engaging on Chinese Corporations’ Facebook Accounts: Corporate Ability or Corporate Social Responsibility?","authors":"Sheng Yuan","doi":"10.1109/TPC.2025.3533177","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TPC.2025.3533177","url":null,"abstract":"<bold>Background</b>: Corporations are increasingly leveraging social media to communicate their corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices and corporate ability (CA) messages. Concurrently, the overseas expansion of Chinese corporations is significantly affecting global environmental sustainability and CSR practices. <bold>Literature review:</b> Drawing upon the conceptual framework of stakeholder engagement proposed by Kujala et al., this study measures the engagement effects of specific CSR/CA topics communicated by Chinese corporations on Facebook. Although previous research has compared the effectiveness of CSR and CA topics, it has resulted in a lack of consistent findings on which specific CSR/CA topics spark more responses from stakeholders. <bold>Research questions:</b> 1. Which CSR/CA topics are likely to generate the higher amount of public engagement (measured by the count of likes, shares, and comments) on social media? 2. Which CSR/CA topics are likely to elicit comments with the most positive tone on social media? 3. Does the tone of corporate posts correlate with that of the public comments that they evoke? <bold>Research methodology:</b> Using content and sentiment analysis, this study examined 11,628 corporate posts and 235,976 fan comments on the Facebook accounts of 34 large Chinese corporations to investigate the influence of message topics and emotions on public responses. <bold>Results:</b> The results indicated that CA topics elicited more responses than CSR topics did, but public comments on the latter were more favorable. Among the CSR topics, “public health commitment” generated the most responses, and “supporting cultural/sport events” received the most favorable comments. “Industry leadership” generated more favorable comments than other CA topics did. Overall, topics differed significantly in terms of the number of responses and the tone of comments that they yielded. The tone of CSR posts was positively correlated with the tone of the ensuing public comments, but such a relationship was not observed with CA posts. <bold>Conclusion:</b> Corporations should constantly scrutinize stakeholder responses to different topics posted on their social media accounts and adjust topic proportions accordingly to optimize communication outcomes. Scholars can enrich theories of Western roots through Eastern perspectives by studying how Chinese corporations communicate messages globally.","PeriodicalId":46950,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication","volume":"68 1","pages":"61-81"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-02-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143583276","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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