A once organized, effective and, creative school teacher goes from "Teacher of the Year" candidate to an employee in need of improvement, without any notice of decline. The discouraged teacher begins to struggle with working relationships, schedules, and communication with students, parents, and colleagues. Why did the teacher never ask…

This article explores how Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) manages knowledge retrieval by employees when they need to access documents written by colleagues in geographically distant units. CSC's establishment of virtual communities of practice facilitates the coordination of knowledge, and minimises contextual gaps between senders and…

We systematically analyze the role of social comparison processes in organizations. Specifically, we describe how social comparison processes have been used to explain six key areas of organizational inquiry: (1) organizational justice, (2) performance appraisal, (3) virtual work environments, (4) affective behavior in the workplace, (5) stress,…

Analyzes mid-life professional women's experiences of growing older at work. Notes that women do not simply reproduce the decline narrative (experiencing and articulating growing older in terms of loss, isolation, and diminished material resources)--they also offer resistant stories. Highlights implications for theory and practice, and suggests…

Examines some examples of discourse practices among managers and employees in the customer service department of a large manufacturing firm. Shows how knowledge of the ways that language can both include and exclude people from cultural groups in the worksite can help professional communicators facilitate more effective and responsible…

States that research in organizational socialization outlines a common process of transition making--newcomers first anticipating what the workplace and their involvement there will be like, then adjusting expectations upon encountering reality. Surveys student interns. Suggests that classes intended to prepare students for workplace communication…

This paper argues that communication researchers could benefit from incorporating a rules approach as a supplement to more traditional methods of organizational analysis. Two major flaws in the methodology of traditional organizational analysis are noted: failing to account for actor or participant meanings--how the actor interprets relationships,…

Investigates types of organizational rumors, their prevalence and effects, effectiveness of rumor management strategies, and associated psychological and situational variables. Finds 3 distinct dimensions of rumor effects: external ramifications (bad press), internal attitudes (lowered morale), and internal behaviors (increased absenteeism). (NH)

Engages Silicon Valley as both a real site of high technology organizations and as a contested, symbolic site of cultural discourse. Develops five themes that indicate how communication scholars might engage Silicon Valley as a "noisy" site swarming with the interrelated dialects of organization and culture. Demonstrates how the…

Differences in men's and women's communication styles affect their interactions with each other. Organizations must be flexible enough to recognize situations in which traditional male values of competition may be most functional and those in which more collaborative, female strategies are more appropriate. Personnel training can help ensure that…

Field research was conducted to evaluate the workgroup meetings of an organization. The evaluation served to determine whether management's established objectives for the meetings were reached and to develop research strategies useful in examining individual communication activities. Two questionnaires (for supervisory/nonsupervisory personnel)…

A review of research suggests that major factors in job satisfaction among women in higher education administration are (1) perceptions of the communication climate; (2) elements contributing to chronic job stress; and (3) facets of work support. Within each category, a variety of elements are important. (MSE)

Purpose: This paper aims to look at the issue of culture's role in knowledge transfer within multinational corporations (MNCs). Studies of MNCs have hinted at the importance of culture to the performance of subsidiaries. Using Hofstede's cultural dimensions of power distance, individualism/collectivism, uncertainty avoidance, and…

The General Accounting Office (GAO) examined selected experiences that six government agencies implemented to help empower or involve frontline employees. The agencies reviewed were as follows: the Federal Aviation Administration; the Federal Emergency Management Agency; the Internal Revenue Service; the Office of Personnel Management; and the…