organizational communication patterns

In Chapter 15, Cheney et al. observe, "To understand organizational communication, it's often important not to focus on a single message but rather to look at a broad pattern" (p. 440). This quote reminded me of my dissertation work. My committee included an interpersonal communication scholar, a qualitative methods media studies scholar, a quantitative health communication scholar, and two sociologists, one a critical theorist and the other a specialist in complex organizations. Quite a mix of perspectives for my project on person-centered communication in hospice interdisciplinary health care teams.

For my dissertation, I used observation, focus groups, individual interviews, and a questionnaire to gather data. My primary focus was on the messages team members exchanged when comforting and persuading each other. By examining a large body of messages, I was able to tease out patterns of person-centered communication. Still, that provided a fairly micro view of organizational communication. The sociologists on my committee encouraged me to consider the broader environment in which the teams functioned, including the larger organizational structures and the realities of the U.S. health care system. For example, the critical theorist pointed out that these hospices, which were not-for-profit, functioned in a for-profit world, interfacing with hospitals and insurance companies. As I blogged about previously, interacting with these highly bureaucratic organizations influenced the hospices' internal structures.

When Cheney et al. emphasize the need to go beyond a single message and examine patterns, they're also suggesting that organizational communication researchers place their work within the larger contexts in which such communication takes place.

~ Professor Cyborg