Communication 2nine2 Topics for Concept Paper 1

Preface,

1.       Why do you think the four authors wrote this book?

2.  How do you understand the five themes of this text and course?

3.  What does the term “practical” mean to you?

For Chapter 1, “Introduction”

1.       What does it mean to “think critically” about something?

2.       Why do we have theory?

3.       What are “lay” or “implicit” theories?

4.       What does a good theory “do”?

5.       What are some common metaphors for organizations?

6.       How would you define “organizational communication”?

For Chapter 2, “Structure”

1.       What are some different ways of understanding organizational structure?

2.       How does structure relate to process?

3.       What do we mean by the “duality of structure”?

4.       What are the three main dimensions of organizational structure?

5.       How is systems theory practically as well as conceptually useful?

6.       What are Weber’s three main types of authority and associated types of organization?

7.       What are the main elements of bureaucracy?

8.       What are the key advantages and disadvantages of bureaucracy?

9.       Can we eliminate bureaucracy?  Should we try?  Explain.

10.   What do we mean by “alternative organizational structures” and what are some examples?++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

11.    In what ways can structure emerge?

12.   Think of how the idea of a “self-organizing system” applies to everyday life?

Chapter 3, “Rationality”

1.       How would you define rationality, generally speaking?

2.       Are there different forms of rationality? Please explain.

3.       What is Robert Michels’ Iron Rule of Oilgarchy? How does is apply to a variety of organizations?

4.       Hoe did Max Weber distinguish between formal and substantive rationality? And, what difference does this distinction make in everyday decision making?

5.       How are “Theory X” and “Theory Y” important to understanding the ways we see human motivation at work?

6.       What are various ways of conceptualizing and measuring efficiency? How does efficiency relate to effectiveness, according to Chester Barnard? Is efficiency always a good thing?

7.       In what senses is bureaucracy more rational than other organizational forms? How does bureaucracy sometimes undermine the pursuit of its own goals?

8.       How do we often promote “A” while rewarding “B”? Why does this happen?

9.       What does Herbert Simon mean by “satisficing”?

10.   What Karl Weick mean by “equivolcality”?

11.   How do we “enact” our decision-making environments?

12.   What kinds of phases do groups experience in their decision making?

13.   What is the “functional” model of group process?

14.   How is the metaphor of “the garbage can” helpful for reframing our interpretations or organizational decision making?

15.   How do actual or contextual group factors such as history, culture, ethnicity, gender and values influence the way rationality “looks”?

16.   How is the idea of collective mind or group (“socially distributed”) cognition meaningful?

17.   How is “emotion labor” important at work?

18.   What do Mumby and Putnam mean by “bounded emotionality”?

19.   What do we mean by “the partial inclusion” of people in organizations? What are advantages and disadvantages of this for the individual?

20.   How are certain routines, such as environmental scanning and market surveys, sometimes more important for the appearance of rationality than for the production of usable information?

Chapter 4, “Culture

1. What is culture? And, what are the origins of the metaphor?
2. What is the difference between saying that culture is something an organization “has” versus something it “is”?
3. What do we mean by a “symbolist” perspective on organizational culture in contrast with a “functionalist” one?
4. How is the metaphor of culture different from the climate metaphor as applied to organizations?
5. What are the elements of W. Charles Redding’s “Ideal Managerial Climate”?  How can these be successfully promoted?
6. What are Edgar Schein’s three levels of organizational culture? How can we think about organizational culture in terms of the metaphor of depth?
7. In what ways do national differences affect organizational culture? What trends in organizations, business, and work today seem to override differences in national-level culture?

8. What do we mean by organizational vocabularies, narratives, sagas, rites, and rituals?
9. How is the concept of organizational sub-culture practically meaningful for managers and administrators?
10. What do we mean by organizational “socialization” or “assimilation”?
11. How is the concept of organizational socialization biased toward the organization? What aspects of the individual-organizational relationship are overlooked by our usual understanding of organizational socialization?
12.  What are the primary stages of organizational socialization? Why do we need to pay attention to them? Why are the early experiences of organizational newcomers so important?
13. What are “memorable messages,” “turning points,” and “critical junctures” as applied to organizational or work relationships?  Can you think of three examples from your own experience?
14.  What did Emile Durkheim mean by “organic” versus “mechanical” solidarity?  How do these concepts apply to organizations as well as to larger societies?
15. What are Joanne Martin’s three perspectives on organizational culture?  How is “integration” unduly favored in both thinking aabout and practice in organizations?

 Chapter 5, “Identity”

1.       How is the very idea of identity historically and culturally embedded/situated?  Why does that matter?

2.       How would you define organizational identity and image?

3.       Why and how do individuals seek to identify with organizations?

4.       What challenges to organizational identification/commitment/loyalty have we witnessed in recent years?

5.       What do we mean by “the corporate person”?  What are the multiple senses of that term?

6.       How does a strong identification with an organization influence one’s decision making?

7.       In your view, which types of organizations (in any sectors) solicit/elicit the strongest forms of identification from individuals?

8.       When would you say individuals (alumni) are most likely to identify with their alma mater (university)?  Explain.

9.       Why is it difficult to identify with an organization when its boundaries are fuzzy?  How do (virtual) organizations deal with this problem?

10.   What do we mean by various groups of stakeholders for an organization? What demands on organizational identity do certain stakeholders make?

11.   How are advertising, public relations and marketing all concerned these days with organizational identities?

12.   How do many organizations position their identities and brands vis-à-vis those of other organizations (including competitors)?

13.   How can corporate or organizational identity play off of or contribute to other identities (say, national or global ones)?

14.   What is integrated marketing communication and how does it often revolve around a “univocal” expression of organizational identity?

15.   What are the several ways in which organizations “auto-communicate,” or talk to themselves?  Why do they do this?