Pub Date : 2023-08-24DOI: 10.1108/jcom-03-2023-0037
V. Madsen, Helle Eskesen Gode, Mona Agerholm Andersen
PurposeThe study explores internal listening on internal social media (ISM) during a crisis at a large Danish hospital.Design/methodology/approachThe study employs a netnographic qualitative design to analyze 142 posts shared by employees on the hospital's ISM platform “The Word is Free” and how these posts are listened to by employees, support functions and management.FindingsThe study finds seven different types of internal listening. Categories of vertical listening included respectful listening, delegated listening, formal listening and no listening, while horizontal listening included confirmatory listening, responsive listening, challenging listening and no listening.Research limitations/implicationsThe study focuses on listening on ISM between January 2019 and March 2022. Interviews with employees and managers are needed to further investigate how internal listening at the hospital influences organizational life both in general and during a crisis.Practical implicationsEspecially in crisis situations, organizations are encouraged to approach ISM with a holistic understanding of listening and apply three principles: (1) embrace ISM as an employee communication arena where confirmatory, responsive and challenging listening among employees helps them to cope with strenuous situations; (2) monitor the ISM communication arena and (3) conduct respectful listening.Originality/valueThis study focuses on internal listening on ISM during a crisis and suggests a holistic understanding of internal listening that combines vertical and horizontal listening.
目的探讨丹麦一家大型医院危机期间内部社交媒体(ISM)的内部倾听。设计/方法/方法本研究采用网络定性设计，分析了142篇员工在医院的ISM平台“the Word is Free”上分享的帖子，以及员工、支持部门和管理层对这些帖子的倾听情况。该研究发现了七种不同类型的内心倾听。纵向倾听包括尊重型倾听、委托型倾听、正式型倾听和无倾听;横向倾听包括确认型倾听、响应型倾听、挑战型倾听和无倾听。研究局限/启示本研究重点关注2019年1月至2022年3月期间ISM的听力。需要与员工和管理人员进行访谈，以进一步调查医院内部倾听在一般情况下和危机期间如何影响组织生活。特别是在危机情况下，鼓励组织从整体上理解倾听的角度来处理ISM，并应用三个原则:(1)将ISM作为员工沟通的舞台，在这里，员工之间的确认性、反应性和挑战性的倾听有助于他们应对紧张的情况;(2)监控ISM的传播舞台;(3)进行尊重的倾听。独创性/价值本研究关注危机中ISM的内部倾听，并建议对内部倾听进行纵向和横向相结合的整体理解。
{"title":"Vertical and horizontal listening on internal social media during a time of crisis: a case study of a Danish hospital","authors":"V. Madsen, Helle Eskesen Gode, Mona Agerholm Andersen","doi":"10.1108/jcom-03-2023-0037","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/jcom-03-2023-0037","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeThe study explores internal listening on internal social media (ISM) during a crisis at a large Danish hospital.Design/methodology/approachThe study employs a netnographic qualitative design to analyze 142 posts shared by employees on the hospital's ISM platform “The Word is Free” and how these posts are listened to by employees, support functions and management.FindingsThe study finds seven different types of internal listening. Categories of vertical listening included respectful listening, delegated listening, formal listening and no listening, while horizontal listening included confirmatory listening, responsive listening, challenging listening and no listening.Research limitations/implicationsThe study focuses on listening on ISM between January 2019 and March 2022. Interviews with employees and managers are needed to further investigate how internal listening at the hospital influences organizational life both in general and during a crisis.Practical implicationsEspecially in crisis situations, organizations are encouraged to approach ISM with a holistic understanding of listening and apply three principles: (1) embrace ISM as an employee communication arena where confirmatory, responsive and challenging listening among employees helps them to cope with strenuous situations; (2) monitor the ISM communication arena and (3) conduct respectful listening.Originality/valueThis study focuses on internal listening on ISM during a crisis and suggests a holistic understanding of internal listening that combines vertical and horizontal listening.","PeriodicalId":51660,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Communication Management","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2023-08-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42094868","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-22DOI: 10.1108/jcom-10-2022-0117
Tatiana Anisimova, Soniya Billore, P. Kitchen
PurposeVia the lens of the ego-depletion phenomenon (Baumeister et al., 1998) and Higgins' (1998) regulatory focus theory, this paper seeks to explain why current controlled communications are failing to achieve coherence between people's free will and their actions pursuing sustainable goals in a society. This paper explains how ego-depletion triggered by controlled communications can lead to confusion and decision fatigue in a society, thus potentially sabotaging people's participation in sustainable behaviour.Design/methodology/approachThe authors applied Jaakkola's (2020) theory synthesis approach to integrate concepts from previously unconnected disciplines in order to generate novel insights in the area of controlled communication management.FindingsThe authors develop a theoretical framework and present research propositions that can help advance research and the discourse at the intersection of controlled communication and self-regulation theories.Research limitations/implicationsThis paper possesses the limitations associated with conceptual papers, e.g. the lack of empirical support of the study’s conceptual arguments.Practical implicationsThis paper generates novel insights to assist communication practitioners and policymakers to improve vehicles and mechanisms of controlled communication with the public regarding sustainable goals pursuit.Originality/valueTo the best of authors' knowledge, this is one of the first papers that has merged the domains of self-regulation, ego-depletion, and controlled communication in an integrative framework in order to explain the mechanisms of how to enhance the effectiveness of controlled communication associated with sustainable goals pursuit.
目的通过自我耗竭现象（Baumeister et al.，1998）和Higgins（1998）的调节焦点理论，本文试图解释为什么当前受控的沟通未能实现人们在社会中追求可持续目标的自由意志和行动之间的一致性。本文解释了受控沟通引发的自我耗竭如何导致社会中的困惑和决策疲劳，从而可能破坏人们对可持续行为的参与。设计/方法论/方法作者应用Jaakkola（2020）的理论综合方法来整合以前不相关学科的概念，以在受控通信管理领域产生新的见解。发现作者建立了一个理论框架，并提出了有助于推进控制沟通和自我调节理论交叉点的研究和话语的研究主张。研究局限性/含义本文具有与概念论文相关的局限性，例如缺乏对研究概念论点的实证支持。实际含义本文产生了新的见解，以帮助传播从业者和政策制定者改进与公众就可持续目标追求进行受控沟通的工具和机制。原创性/价值据作者所知，这是第一篇将自我调节、自我消耗和受控沟通领域合并在一个综合框架中的论文之一，目的是解释如何提高与可持续目标追求相关的受控沟通的有效性的机制。
{"title":"Ego-depletion is in the way: the challenges of controlled communication and the role of the regulatory focus theory in sustainable goals pursuit","authors":"Tatiana Anisimova, Soniya Billore, P. Kitchen","doi":"10.1108/jcom-10-2022-0117","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/jcom-10-2022-0117","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeVia the lens of the ego-depletion phenomenon (Baumeister et al., 1998) and Higgins' (1998) regulatory focus theory, this paper seeks to explain why current controlled communications are failing to achieve coherence between people's free will and their actions pursuing sustainable goals in a society. This paper explains how ego-depletion triggered by controlled communications can lead to confusion and decision fatigue in a society, thus potentially sabotaging people's participation in sustainable behaviour.Design/methodology/approachThe authors applied Jaakkola's (2020) theory synthesis approach to integrate concepts from previously unconnected disciplines in order to generate novel insights in the area of controlled communication management.FindingsThe authors develop a theoretical framework and present research propositions that can help advance research and the discourse at the intersection of controlled communication and self-regulation theories.Research limitations/implicationsThis paper possesses the limitations associated with conceptual papers, e.g. the lack of empirical support of the study’s conceptual arguments.Practical implicationsThis paper generates novel insights to assist communication practitioners and policymakers to improve vehicles and mechanisms of controlled communication with the public regarding sustainable goals pursuit.Originality/valueTo the best of authors' knowledge, this is one of the first papers that has merged the domains of self-regulation, ego-depletion, and controlled communication in an integrative framework in order to explain the mechanisms of how to enhance the effectiveness of controlled communication associated with sustainable goals pursuit.","PeriodicalId":51660,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Communication Management","volume":"7 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2023-08-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41256702","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-21DOI: 10.1108/jcom-09-2022-0113
Elise Karinshak, Yan Jin
PurposeDisinformation, false information designed with the intention to mislead, can significantly damage organizational operation and reputation, interfering with communication and relationship management in a wide breadth of risk and crisis contexts. Modern digital platforms and emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), introduce novel risks in crisis management (Guthrie and Rich, 2022). Disinformation literature in security and computer science has assessed how previously introduced technologies have affected disinformation, demanding a systematic and coordinated approach for sustainable counter-disinformation efforts. However, there is a lack of theory-driven, evidence-based research and practice in public relations that advises how organizations can effectively and proactively manage risks and crises driven by AI (Guthrie and Rich, 2022).Design/methodology/approachAs a first step in closing this research-practice gap, the authors first synthesize theoretical and technical literature characterizing the effects of AI on disinformation. Upon this review, the authors propose a conceptual framework for disinformation response in the corporate sector that assesses (1) technologies affecting disinformation attacks and counterattacks and (2) how organizations can proactively prepare and equip communication teams to better protect businesses and stakeholders.FindingsThis research illustrates that future disinformation response efforts will not be able to rely solely on detection strategies, as AI-created content quality becomes more and more convincing (and ultimately, indistinguishable), and that future disinformation management efforts will need to rely on content influence rather than volume (due to emerging capabilities for automated production of disinformation). Built upon these fundamental, literature-driven characteristics, the framework provides organizations actor-level and content-level perspectives for influence and discusses their implications for disinformation management.Originality/valueThis research provides a theoretical basis and practitioner insights by anticipating how AI technologies will impact corporate disinformation attacks and outlining how companies can respond. The proposed framework provides a theory-driven, practical approach for effective, proactive disinformation management systems with the capacity and agility to detect risks and mitigate crises driven by evolving AI technologies. Together, this framework and the discussed strategies offer great value to forward-looking disinformation management efforts. Subsequent research can build upon this framework as AI technologies are deployed in disinformation campaigns, and practitioners can leverage this framework in the development of counter-disinformation efforts.
{"title":"AI-driven disinformation: a framework for organizational preparation and response","authors":"Elise Karinshak, Yan Jin","doi":"10.1108/jcom-09-2022-0113","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/jcom-09-2022-0113","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeDisinformation, false information designed with the intention to mislead, can significantly damage organizational operation and reputation, interfering with communication and relationship management in a wide breadth of risk and crisis contexts. Modern digital platforms and emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), introduce novel risks in crisis management (Guthrie and Rich, 2022). Disinformation literature in security and computer science has assessed how previously introduced technologies have affected disinformation, demanding a systematic and coordinated approach for sustainable counter-disinformation efforts. However, there is a lack of theory-driven, evidence-based research and practice in public relations that advises how organizations can effectively and proactively manage risks and crises driven by AI (Guthrie and Rich, 2022).Design/methodology/approachAs a first step in closing this research-practice gap, the authors first synthesize theoretical and technical literature characterizing the effects of AI on disinformation. Upon this review, the authors propose a conceptual framework for disinformation response in the corporate sector that assesses (1) technologies affecting disinformation attacks and counterattacks and (2) how organizations can proactively prepare and equip communication teams to better protect businesses and stakeholders.FindingsThis research illustrates that future disinformation response efforts will not be able to rely solely on detection strategies, as AI-created content quality becomes more and more convincing (and ultimately, indistinguishable), and that future disinformation management efforts will need to rely on content influence rather than volume (due to emerging capabilities for automated production of disinformation). Built upon these fundamental, literature-driven characteristics, the framework provides organizations actor-level and content-level perspectives for influence and discusses their implications for disinformation management.Originality/valueThis research provides a theoretical basis and practitioner insights by anticipating how AI technologies will impact corporate disinformation attacks and outlining how companies can respond. The proposed framework provides a theory-driven, practical approach for effective, proactive disinformation management systems with the capacity and agility to detect risks and mitigate crises driven by evolving AI technologies. Together, this framework and the discussed strategies offer great value to forward-looking disinformation management efforts. Subsequent research can build upon this framework as AI technologies are deployed in disinformation campaigns, and practitioners can leverage this framework in the development of counter-disinformation efforts.","PeriodicalId":51660,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Communication Management","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2023-08-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46869888","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-07-21DOI: 10.1108/jcom-06-2022-0075
N. Eng, Cassandra L. C. Troy, D. Bortree
PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to assess online corporate communication around commitments to sustainable development goal (SDG) 12, sustainable production and consumption.Design/methodology/approachGuided by legitimacy theory, a qualitative directed content analysis was conducted on 13 companies' webpages (81 webpages, 78,947 words).FindingsCompanies broadly failed to communicate about all 11 SDG 12 targets, neglected to consistently address multiple stakeholder groups, missed opportunities to provide concrete evidence of progress and relied on a mix of substantive and symbolic legitimation strategies.Originality/valueSDG 12 has been under-researched and this paper is one of the first to offer an in-depth analysis of corporate communication regarding SDG 12.
{"title":"Symbolic and substantive legitimation: examining corporate commitments to sustainable development goal 12","authors":"N. Eng, Cassandra L. C. Troy, D. Bortree","doi":"10.1108/jcom-06-2022-0075","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/jcom-06-2022-0075","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to assess online corporate communication around commitments to sustainable development goal (SDG) 12, sustainable production and consumption.Design/methodology/approachGuided by legitimacy theory, a qualitative directed content analysis was conducted on 13 companies' webpages (81 webpages, 78,947 words).FindingsCompanies broadly failed to communicate about all 11 SDG 12 targets, neglected to consistently address multiple stakeholder groups, missed opportunities to provide concrete evidence of progress and relied on a mix of substantive and symbolic legitimation strategies.Originality/valueSDG 12 has been under-researched and this paper is one of the first to offer an in-depth analysis of corporate communication regarding SDG 12.","PeriodicalId":51660,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Communication Management","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2023-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48897680","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-07-11DOI: 10.1108/jcom-04-2022-0035
Laura L. Lemon, Matthew S. VanDyke
PurposeThe purpose of this research was to understand the role of interdisciplinarity in research and how communication structures and processes at universities facilitates such work.Design/methodology/approachTwenty-one semi-structured interviews with administrators, faculty, and staff from US R-1 Carnegie-designated higher education institutions were conducted.FindingsInstitutional culture reportedly drives interdisciplinary research efforts and participants offered different values associated with pursuing interdisciplinary work. Participants also shared formal and informal incentives that motivate their pursuit of interdisciplinary collaborations. Participants seemed to prefer a blended centralized-decentralized approach for the communication function's support of interdisciplinary research efforts.Originality/valueThis research fills a gap in understanding of how organizational capacities, structures and processes support collaborative research work and public communication about such work.
{"title":"Addressing grand challenges: perceptions of interdisciplinary research and how communication structures facilitate interdisciplinary research at US research-intensive universities","authors":"Laura L. Lemon, Matthew S. VanDyke","doi":"10.1108/jcom-04-2022-0035","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/jcom-04-2022-0035","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeThe purpose of this research was to understand the role of interdisciplinarity in research and how communication structures and processes at universities facilitates such work.Design/methodology/approachTwenty-one semi-structured interviews with administrators, faculty, and staff from US R-1 Carnegie-designated higher education institutions were conducted.FindingsInstitutional culture reportedly drives interdisciplinary research efforts and participants offered different values associated with pursuing interdisciplinary work. Participants also shared formal and informal incentives that motivate their pursuit of interdisciplinary collaborations. Participants seemed to prefer a blended centralized-decentralized approach for the communication function's support of interdisciplinary research efforts.Originality/valueThis research fills a gap in understanding of how organizational capacities, structures and processes support collaborative research work and public communication about such work.","PeriodicalId":51660,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Communication Management","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2023-07-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45030974","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-07-10DOI: 10.1108/jcom-09-2022-0105
Hao Xu, Bugil Chang
PurposeCompanies' voices on social justice issues, such as racial justice, gender equality and LGBTQ rights, have become increasingly prevalent. To contribute to current knowledge around corporate communication on social justice, this study aims to understand the differential effects of three types of corporate social justice statements – symbolic statements, substantive statements on external actions and substantive statements on internal actions.Design/methodology/approachA between-subjects experiment was conducted (N = 502), with different types of statements as the independent variable and corporate reputation and perceived corporate relationship-building efforts as outcomes. The three dimensions of perceived authenticity (i.e. perceived benevolence, transparency and commitment) were included as parallel mediators.FindingsThis study found that compared to symbolic statements, substantive statements on external or internal actions generated higher perceived authenticity on at least one of the three dimensions, which in turn, led to a more positive corporate reputation and perceived relationship-building efforts. Substantive statements on external actions and on internal actions also had differential indirect effects on the outcomes through different dimensions of perceived authenticity. Partisanship did not have a moderating effect on the mediating effects of perceived authenticity.Practical implicationsThis study highlights the importance of authenticity in corporate social justice communication and reveals practical implications about how businesses should communicate with publics when engaging in social justice issues.Originality/valueThis study is among the earliest efforts to examine the effects of different corporate social justice statements. It contributes to the existing literature by demonstrating the impacts of perceived authenticity on publics' evaluation of companies and opens up an avenue for future research to further examine various authenticity dimensions.
{"title":"Goodwill or just for show? The effects of different corporate social justice statements and the role of perceived authenticity","authors":"Hao Xu, Bugil Chang","doi":"10.1108/jcom-09-2022-0105","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/jcom-09-2022-0105","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeCompanies' voices on social justice issues, such as racial justice, gender equality and LGBTQ rights, have become increasingly prevalent. To contribute to current knowledge around corporate communication on social justice, this study aims to understand the differential effects of three types of corporate social justice statements – symbolic statements, substantive statements on external actions and substantive statements on internal actions.Design/methodology/approachA between-subjects experiment was conducted (N = 502), with different types of statements as the independent variable and corporate reputation and perceived corporate relationship-building efforts as outcomes. The three dimensions of perceived authenticity (i.e. perceived benevolence, transparency and commitment) were included as parallel mediators.FindingsThis study found that compared to symbolic statements, substantive statements on external or internal actions generated higher perceived authenticity on at least one of the three dimensions, which in turn, led to a more positive corporate reputation and perceived relationship-building efforts. Substantive statements on external actions and on internal actions also had differential indirect effects on the outcomes through different dimensions of perceived authenticity. Partisanship did not have a moderating effect on the mediating effects of perceived authenticity.Practical implicationsThis study highlights the importance of authenticity in corporate social justice communication and reveals practical implications about how businesses should communicate with publics when engaging in social justice issues.Originality/valueThis study is among the earliest efforts to examine the effects of different corporate social justice statements. It contributes to the existing literature by demonstrating the impacts of perceived authenticity on publics' evaluation of companies and opens up an avenue for future research to further examine various authenticity dimensions.","PeriodicalId":51660,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Communication Management","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2023-07-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46200728","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-06-28DOI: 10.1108/jcom-12-2021-0148
Helena Stehle
PurposeEngaging with stakeholders in “a personal, intimate way” (Men and Tsai, 2016, p. 932) or “includ[ing] the ‘personal touch’” (Kent and Taylor, 1998, p. 323) is often seen as desirable in internal communication management. While the importance of personal communication is undisputed from the perspectives of internal communication, its communicators, and from internal stakeholders, this is not true when it comes to the dimensions and characteristics that constitute an experience of communication as feeling personal. The present study aims to explore what makes communication personal from the employees' perspective.Design/methodology/approachThe study used the Q methodology and Q method, thus focusing on an individual's subjective perspective. The Q methodology was implemented in the form of a Q-sort survey exploring the perceptions of 32 German employees (selected from a representative cross-section of 400 employees in Germany, using a balanced-block design to maximize heterogeneity).FindingsThe results show that while direct and dyadic communication is often perceived as personal, many other dimensions and characteristics are also considered “personal” in both the literature and based on stakeholder perceptions. The Q-sort survey revealed four perception types whose perceptions of communication as “personal” vary widely, with all these types rejecting non-human communicators.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the limited understanding of employees' perceptions of internal communication as “personal.” It shows how the Q methodology and Q method—a rarely used perspective—can complement existing theoretical and empirical research on internal communication. For internal communication management, the findings show that a “one-size-fits-all” approach must be questioned and that a communication team's involvement in personal communication can have negative consequences.
{"title":"What employees perceive as personal communication: results of a Q study on internal communication","authors":"Helena Stehle","doi":"10.1108/jcom-12-2021-0148","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/jcom-12-2021-0148","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeEngaging with stakeholders in “a personal, intimate way” (Men and Tsai, 2016, p. 932) or “includ[ing] the ‘personal touch’” (Kent and Taylor, 1998, p. 323) is often seen as desirable in internal communication management. While the importance of personal communication is undisputed from the perspectives of internal communication, its communicators, and from internal stakeholders, this is not true when it comes to the dimensions and characteristics that constitute an experience of communication as feeling personal. The present study aims to explore what makes communication personal from the employees' perspective.Design/methodology/approachThe study used the Q methodology and Q method, thus focusing on an individual's subjective perspective. The Q methodology was implemented in the form of a Q-sort survey exploring the perceptions of 32 German employees (selected from a representative cross-section of 400 employees in Germany, using a balanced-block design to maximize heterogeneity).FindingsThe results show that while direct and dyadic communication is often perceived as personal, many other dimensions and characteristics are also considered “personal” in both the literature and based on stakeholder perceptions. The Q-sort survey revealed four perception types whose perceptions of communication as “personal” vary widely, with all these types rejecting non-human communicators.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the limited understanding of employees' perceptions of internal communication as “personal.” It shows how the Q methodology and Q method—a rarely used perspective—can complement existing theoretical and empirical research on internal communication. For internal communication management, the findings show that a “one-size-fits-all” approach must be questioned and that a communication team's involvement in personal communication can have negative consequences.","PeriodicalId":51660,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Communication Management","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2023-06-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46908260","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-06-15DOI: 10.1108/jcom-12-2022-0139
Timo Lenk
PurposeIn today's volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous world, organizations deal with fragmented publics in contested public spheres. At the core, public opinion is not so much divided by issues per se but by deeply rooted moral concerns. Hence, while normative perspectives on morality prevail in strategic communication research, understanding the moral motives of stakeholders and publics from a descriptive standpoint becomes vital. In this light, the present conceptual paper discusses the implications of moral foundations theory (MFT), as an influential evolutionary-anthropological approach to morality, for strategic communication research and practice.Design/methodology/approachAdopting micro-, meso- and macro-perspectives, MFT's potential contribution to strategic communication research is explored regarding three foci: (1) moral framing, (2) narratives and (3) public discourse dynamics.FindingsThe paper concludes that frames and more complex narratives in strategic communication allude to MFT's five foundations – care, fairness, loyalty, authority and purity – in diverse ways and are given different readings by stakeholders and publics. Building on MFT, novel empirical tools are available to access and understand the complex web of moral meaning infused in public discourses.Originality/valueFor the first time, MFT is discussed systematically and in detail in the context of strategic communication research. The theory contributes to deepening the understanding of the conditions, e.g. for issues management and strategic mobilization. On broader view, this paper adds to the discussion on evolutionary perspectives in strategic communication research.
{"title":"Navigating moral minefields in a VUCA world: the contribution of moral foundations theory to strategic communication research and practice","authors":"Timo Lenk","doi":"10.1108/jcom-12-2022-0139","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/jcom-12-2022-0139","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeIn today's volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous world, organizations deal with fragmented publics in contested public spheres. At the core, public opinion is not so much divided by issues per se but by deeply rooted moral concerns. Hence, while normative perspectives on morality prevail in strategic communication research, understanding the moral motives of stakeholders and publics from a descriptive standpoint becomes vital. In this light, the present conceptual paper discusses the implications of moral foundations theory (MFT), as an influential evolutionary-anthropological approach to morality, for strategic communication research and practice.Design/methodology/approachAdopting micro-, meso- and macro-perspectives, MFT's potential contribution to strategic communication research is explored regarding three foci: (1) moral framing, (2) narratives and (3) public discourse dynamics.FindingsThe paper concludes that frames and more complex narratives in strategic communication allude to MFT's five foundations – care, fairness, loyalty, authority and purity – in diverse ways and are given different readings by stakeholders and publics. Building on MFT, novel empirical tools are available to access and understand the complex web of moral meaning infused in public discourses.Originality/valueFor the first time, MFT is discussed systematically and in detail in the context of strategic communication research. The theory contributes to deepening the understanding of the conditions, e.g. for issues management and strategic mobilization. On broader view, this paper adds to the discussion on evolutionary perspectives in strategic communication research.","PeriodicalId":51660,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Communication Management","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2023-06-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48027477","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-05-31DOI: 10.1108/jcom-12-2022-0147
Elin Helgesson
PurposeThis article addresses recent calls in the literature for advancing our understanding of public affairs consultants and their role conceptions. By testing and further exploring self-perceptions of public affairs consultants the study aims to offer new insight into how consultants define and view their occupational role.Design/methodology/approachThe study draws on a nationwide survey with public affairs consultants in Sweden.FindingsFour main role conceptions were identified (advocate, do-gooder, expert and intermediary). Further, the study tests how personal and professional characteristics correlate with different role conceptions, by viewing professional experience and consultants' selection of clients. Data also suggest that consultants' background in politics does not promote any specific role perception. Finally, the findings also show that how consultants choose clients is a divider in the industry, where some act as passive intermediaries while other take a more active role in their choice of clients.Originality/valueThe findings enhance our understanding of public affairs as a field, and specifically about the modelling of professional roles amongst consultants. The empirical results in this study show how contemporary role typologies needs to be extended to better capture the specificities of consultants' roles in public affairs. By addressing the issue of how consultants choose clients the study engages with the complex debate of whether consultants ought to act as objective or subjective agents and hence join the conversation on ethics in public affairs.
{"title":"Paid to lobby but up for debate: role conceptions and client selection of public affairs consultants","authors":"Elin Helgesson","doi":"10.1108/jcom-12-2022-0147","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/jcom-12-2022-0147","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeThis article addresses recent calls in the literature for advancing our understanding of public affairs consultants and their role conceptions. By testing and further exploring self-perceptions of public affairs consultants the study aims to offer new insight into how consultants define and view their occupational role.Design/methodology/approachThe study draws on a nationwide survey with public affairs consultants in Sweden.FindingsFour main role conceptions were identified (advocate, do-gooder, expert and intermediary). Further, the study tests how personal and professional characteristics correlate with different role conceptions, by viewing professional experience and consultants' selection of clients. Data also suggest that consultants' background in politics does not promote any specific role perception. Finally, the findings also show that how consultants choose clients is a divider in the industry, where some act as passive intermediaries while other take a more active role in their choice of clients.Originality/valueThe findings enhance our understanding of public affairs as a field, and specifically about the modelling of professional roles amongst consultants. The empirical results in this study show how contemporary role typologies needs to be extended to better capture the specificities of consultants' roles in public affairs. By addressing the issue of how consultants choose clients the study engages with the complex debate of whether consultants ought to act as objective or subjective agents and hence join the conversation on ethics in public affairs.","PeriodicalId":51660,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Communication Management","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2023-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44236177","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-05-24DOI: 10.1108/jcom-06-2022-0072
Hogne Lerøy Sataøen, Mats Eriksson
PurposeThe aim of the study is to deepen the knowledge about municipalities' risk communication for preparedness. This objective was pursued by analyzing how risk communication functions were organized in municipalities and by scrutinizing tensions in risk communication management.Design/methodology/approachThe study relies on 19 qualitative, semi-structured interviews with communication practitioners in Swedish municipalities. The sample was purposive and included Swedish municipalities varying in number of inhabitants, geographical location, degree of urbanization, size and risk profile.FindingsRisk communication is seen as a sub-field of crisis communication in municipalities' communication management. The task of initiating risk communication activities and campaigns is frequently assigned to the municipalities' safety units or emergency coordinators and is normally not part of communication practitioners' duties. Municipal communication practitioners often face challenges in trying to demonstrate the significance of the practitioners' role in risk communication and other risk-related activities within the municipality. The practitioners' work is characterized by four categories of tensions that are identified as follows: constitutional/legal, organizational, cultural and technological.Practical implicationsThe identified tensions in risk communication are important for reflexive practitioners to consider, and the paper suggests three steps that municipal communication managers can take to handle them.Originality/valueThe study contributes with novel knowledge about municipal communication management in a context of risk communication. The study challenges the existing and dominant risk communication research and offers a more contextual and reflexive understanding of actual risk communication processes in municipalities.
{"title":"“Striking the right balance”: tensions in municipal risk communication management for preparedness","authors":"Hogne Lerøy Sataøen, Mats Eriksson","doi":"10.1108/jcom-06-2022-0072","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/jcom-06-2022-0072","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeThe aim of the study is to deepen the knowledge about municipalities' risk communication for preparedness. This objective was pursued by analyzing how risk communication functions were organized in municipalities and by scrutinizing tensions in risk communication management.Design/methodology/approachThe study relies on 19 qualitative, semi-structured interviews with communication practitioners in Swedish municipalities. The sample was purposive and included Swedish municipalities varying in number of inhabitants, geographical location, degree of urbanization, size and risk profile.FindingsRisk communication is seen as a sub-field of crisis communication in municipalities' communication management. The task of initiating risk communication activities and campaigns is frequently assigned to the municipalities' safety units or emergency coordinators and is normally not part of communication practitioners' duties. Municipal communication practitioners often face challenges in trying to demonstrate the significance of the practitioners' role in risk communication and other risk-related activities within the municipality. The practitioners' work is characterized by four categories of tensions that are identified as follows: constitutional/legal, organizational, cultural and technological.Practical implicationsThe identified tensions in risk communication are important for reflexive practitioners to consider, and the paper suggests three steps that municipal communication managers can take to handle them.Originality/valueThe study contributes with novel knowledge about municipal communication management in a context of risk communication. The study challenges the existing and dominant risk communication research and offers a more contextual and reflexive understanding of actual risk communication processes in municipalities.","PeriodicalId":51660,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Communication Management","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2023-05-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41666454","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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