Browsing by Subject "Communication"
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Item A content analysis of Green-Band and Red-Band trailers advertising R-rated feature films released in the United States in 2008(2012-05) Lowry, Kent; Bradley, Samuel D.; Cummins, Robert G.; Farnall, OlanContent analyses of material in motion pictures considered inappropriate for young audiences have been conducted since the Payne Fund Studies in the 1930s, and content analyses of such material in film trailers have been conducted for the past decade. However, no social science research has been published on the two-tiered system of film trailers. The present study analyzes the mature content of green-band trailers (approved for all audiences) and red-band trailers (approved for restricted audiences aged 17 and older) advertising the same feature films, those released with both categories of trailers in 2008. Violent content was coded most frequently, with sexual content the second-most-common category among green-band trailers and potentially offensive language the second-most-common category coded in red-band trailers. Implications for potential young viewers are addressed, as is a broader research agenda utilizing a similar population of trailers.Item A crisis communication case study of American airlines flights 965, 1420, and 587(2006-12) Condit, Barbee; Williams, David E.; Olaniran, Bolanle A.; Hughes, Patrick C.Crisis communication and crisis response statements are vital in an organization’s attempt to maintain a positive image. This study investigates crisis response strategies following American Airlines disasters. The framework for this study uses response strategies by Coombs. Research indicates various response strategies employed by those organizations that are confronted with a crisis. This study offers guidelines to assist the airline industry in crisis communication efforts.Item A micropolitical perspective of strategic communication between a principal and teachers in a productive, innovative elementary school(Texas Tech University, 1996-12) Moore, Valerie VoglerThe purpose of this qualitative study was to focus on strategic communication between a principal and teachers in a productive, elementary school. The research questions were: What strategic communication does the principal at Walters Elementary School use when communicating to her teachers? and What strategic communication do teachers at Walters Elementary School use when communicating to their principal? Based on the findings of this study, I have three insights. First, strategic communication is the process through which micropolitical behaviors are implemented. Second, people have purposes behind their actions. Third, people respond to others' behaviors as if they are purposeful. Strategic communication between the teachers and principal in this school were found to fall into three categories. First, strategic communication was used to build or strengthen the relationship between the teachers and principal. This communication centered around ceremonial events, trust, respect, friendship, empathy, and humor. Second, strategic communication empowered teachers. This communication focused on training, money, support, extra work, involvement, and creativity. Third, strategic communication was used to relay expectations. Expectations centered around children, appraisals, the suggestion box, the basket, nonnegotiables, and praise. However, these three broad categories, relationships, empowerment, and expectations, were not mutually exclusive because I observed that people can use strategic communication to attempt to accomplish several goals simultaneously. This was a single-case study, and I recognize that different people may have different methods through which they strategically communicate their messages. This study describes how the principal and teachers at Walters Elementary School strategically communicated.Item A practical method for proactive information exchange within multi-agent teams(Texas A&M University, 2004-11-15) Rozich, Ryan TimothyPsychological studies have shown that information exchange is a key component of effective teamwork. In addition to requesting information that they need for their tasks, members of effective teams often proactively forward information that they believe other teammates require to complete their tasks. We refer to this type of communication as proactive information exchange and the formalization and implementation of this is the subject of this thesis. The important question that we are trying to answer is: under normative conditions, what types of information needs can agent teammates extract from shared plans and how can they use these information needs to proactively forward information to teammates? In the following, we make two key claims about proactive information exchange: first, agents need to be aware of the information needs of their teammates and that these information needs can be inferred from shared plans; second, agents need to be able to model the beliefs of others in order to deliver this information efficiently. To demonstrate this, we have developed an algorithm named PIEX, which, for each agent on a team, reasonably approximates the information-needs of other team members, based on analysis of a shared team plan. This algorithm transforms a team plan into an individual plan by inserting coomunicative tasks in agents' individual plans to deliver information to those agents who need it. We will incorporate a previously developed architecture for multi-agent belief reasoning. In addition to this algorithm for proactive information exchange, we have developed a formal framework to both describe scenarios in which proactive information exchange takes place and to evaluate the quality of the communication events that agents running the PIEX algorithm generate. The contributions of this work are a formal and implemented algorithm for information exchange for maintaining a shared mental model and a framework for evaluating domains in which this type of information exchange is useful.Item The advertising construction of identity in Lebanese television(2010-08) Nasr, Assem; Wilkins, Karin Gwinn, 1962-; Straubhaar, Joseph D.; Kackman, Michael; Kraidy, Marwan M.; Kumar, ShantiThe Middle East saw much social change in recent tumultuous decades. On one hand, some communities embraced Westernness as part of the inevitable path to development and modernization. On the other hand, there were communities that resisted global trends that were mostly dominated by the West. The latter deemed these trends as a threat to native cultures, religious groups, and local traditions. This made the Arab world a ground for constant redefinition of the meaning of identity. Of the countries in the region undergoing a turbulent debate over what constitutes national identity, Lebanon serves as a good example. Ever since its independence, Lebanon was a nation-state with no sense of nationality to unite its people. As some communities saw themselves more francophone than Arab, others felt a close connection to a pan-Arab nation. Arguably, the Lebanese people found themselves amidst a tension between the two poles. Defining one’s identity required a negotiation between the two extremes. Not only did this negotiation demand a thorough investigation of one’s beliefs, social network, and history, but it also necessitated a diligent ‘performance’ of identity. An individual represented her identity by habits and expressions that she associated with that particular identity. The study at hand is an exploration of the relationship between identity and consumption in the Lebanese society. This project applies a unique approach in that it considers the producers’ agency in the construction of identity. Taking television advertising as a site for inquiry, the study explores how commercial advertisers utilize the tension between the local and the non-local to promote the consumption of the advertised products. Through exploring the values that educate advertising producers’ choices in creating text and meaning, this study applies theories of globalization, postcolonial studies, and consumer behavior through which advertisers manifest an ambivalence of identity. Therefore, by taking Lebanon as an example and focusing on advertising, this study contributes to the debates of globalization and the Arab world by invoking questions of producers’ agency in producing identity references through attitudes, behaviors, and social status associated with the featured products.Item American political documentaries: Structure, agency, and communication of meaning(2012-05) Borua, Shankar; Stoker, Kevin; Chambers, Todd; Sparks, Johnny V.; Langford, Catherine L.This dissertation advances inquiry in the area of documentary filmmaking as a cultural act of meaning-creation and recognizes the process of meaning-creation enabled by an American documentarian through the production of a political documentary. The project identifies deliberate choices that a filmmaker makes in a pre-meditated strategy to use resources of sounds and moving pictures to convey meanings in the American public sphere and highlight contentious issues that tend to polarize public opinion. Using structuration theory and textual analysis, this study examines the concepts of structure, agency, and reflexivity that enable communication of meaning through the film text as well as transformation of the documentary structure. The documentary structure enables agency of a filmmaker and the production of a documentary (the filmmaker interacting with the documentary structure) further reproduces and transforms the structure. The structure provides agency to a filmmaker to engage in a discourse on a politically charged issue in American public space and highlight his/her interpretation of the American condition and experience. Using "found material" and documentary conventions, a filmmaker constructs an argument to communicate meaning and provides "evidence" in the narrative to authenticate it. By examining American political documentaries through the prism of structuration theory, this dissertation offers interpretive insight into the deliberate process of meaning-creation actively enabled by the structure of documentary film and highlights the ongoing transformation of the documentary structure.Item An Empirical Study of Tactile Communicator Types(Texas Tech University, 1978-08) Hines, Debbie GwenNot Available.Item An ethnomethodological account of Catholic members' identity(2011-08) Martinez, Heidi A.; Carter, Narissra M.; Roach, Kenneth D.; Scholl, Juliann C.The Catholic Church is a complex and broad organization where many different types of communication occur. This setting allowed for the study to take off in any direction that was developed by the participants and researcher. For the most reliable data possible from the participants’ observation and interviews were conducted. This allowed participants to tie into their comfort zone and dive into important aspects of communication (within the church) that relates to their identity An ethnomethodological approach was used along with symbolic interactionism to evaluate the participants’ information. This study included 11 female participants that were able to relate their experiences as Catholic members’ to their identity. This study focused on symbols and the framework of mass. Specifically, the study focused on the following questions 1) how do symbols influence your identity as a Catholic person? 2) how does the framework (procedures) of mass influence your identity as a Catholic person? Participants for this study were from a Catholic Church in the west Texas area. Data was analyzed using Mead’s Philosophy of the Act. There were several symbols and parts of the framework that was similar with the participants. Findings and implications are discussed.Item An examination of the relationship between lay evangelism communication, argumentativeness and religious orientation(Texas Tech University, 2006-05) Sparks, Alexis Ann; Hughes, Patrick C.; Williams, David E.; Stewart, Robert A.The researcher conceptualized a lay evangelism approach survey. The researcher studied the relationship between the approaches to evangelism, argumenativeness and religious orientation.Item An investigation of downward communication within a church organization(Texas Tech University, 1975-12) Lemmons, Coleman LafayetteNot availableItem An analysis of consumers' knowledge and perceptions in relation to genetically engineered (GE) Cotton : marketing and utility(2011-12) Watson, Megan Mignon; Krifa, Mourad; Lee, Hyun-Hwa; Xu, BugaoCotton makes up a majority of the world’s fiber market, with genetically engineered (GE) cotton the current staple of the US agricultural landscape. With GE cotton’s overall acceptance for US farmers and manufacturers, it is of concern that the majority of literature concerning GE crops primarily compares negative attitudes towards GE food crops in stricter economies such as the European Union. Due to the inadequate literature regarding both the market advantages and consumer perceptions of GE cotton specifically, this study was conceived to provide marketers with a baseline analysis of the factors that affect US consumers’ current attitudes (knowledge, risk perceptions, etc.) regarding GE cotton. Multiple regression analyses were used for our models which measured purchase intentions towards GE cotton and perceived risks of GE cotton based on both intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Paired and single t-tests were performed to predict the current positioning of GE cotton as a marketable alternative to organic and conventional cotton, and to determine which institutions consumer’s trust most for information on the risks and benefits of GE cotton. Our studies showed that while knowledge of cotton and agriculture is low, GE cotton was regarded more positively than conventional cotton with the potential to improve in consumer’s opinions. According to our findings, by efficiently communicating the benefits of GE cotton through trusted channels of communication (i.e. scientists, consumer organizations, the media), particularly addressing ethical concerns, policy regulation, and how the product is useful to the consumer individually, GE cotton could become a comparative market alternative to organic, at a greater available supply.Item Between 3-D Computer Models and 3-D Physical Models: People?s Understanding and Preference(2014-12-16) Jiang, YinGood communication between architects and clients is an important factor for a successful architectural project. It is critical for architects to present their design ideas effectively and unambiguously to reduce or eliminate their clients? misunderstanding. For people who are not professionally trained in architecture, a three-dimensional (3-D) model is one of the most effective medium of communication. The purpose of this study is to compare laypeople?s understanding and preference of digital and physical models, how these models are used in design practice and how architects evaluate their client?s understanding and preference. In such context, this research study consisted of a quantitative phase and a qualitative phase. The quantitative part of the study compared desktop-Based interactive 3-D architectural models to physical models by investigating laypeople's understanding of spatial layout and their preferences regarding these two models. An office complex and a single-family residence building were designed, and each type was represented by both physical and digital forms with the same level of detail. Participants were asked to memorize the building components and reassemble them Based on their memory. The qualitative phase involved a series of semi-structured interviews with eight experienced design professionals, its aim was to collect their opinions about how they perceive their clients' preferences and understandings of these two types of models during their practice. The data from both phases were analyzed. In general, Results from the quantitative phase reveals that laypeople who studied physical models performed their tasks significantly better than those studied digital models. The qualitative phase discusses architects? choice of models, the factors that drive their decisions, the communication with clients, and their clients? understanding of those models.Item Building a framework for institutional change: the small worlds of assets for independence act grantees and their financial partners(2004) Reid, Kristen Elisa; Streeter, Calvin L.Item Can those immersed in the group look beyond it? : links between identity fusion and group-related communication and guilt(2012-05) Brooks, Matthew Logan; Swann, William B.Research on identity fusion (Swann, Gomez, Seyle, & Morales, 2009), a recent phenomenological approach to social identification, suggests that some people have a deep personal bond with a group that they belong to. Evidence shows that fused people have a persistent connection between their group identity and personal selves. The notion of a social identity that is deeply entwined with the personal self stands in contrast to traditional views of social identification (e.g. Self-Categorization Theory; Turner, Oakes, Haslam, & McGarty, 1994), which tend to see group membership as something that is only important in particular group-related situations. Whereas most people are able to compartmentalize their identities based on the context they are in, a fused group identity can be active even in situations that are unrelated to it. The ability to compartmentalize may be beneficial in some cases, however. Downplaying an identity that is not active can allow people to insulate themselves from negative information about the group and can improve the quality of social interactions. Without the ability to compartmentalize, people who are fused with a group may have trouble with both of these things. Three studies tested whether fused people do indeed experience such repercussions. The first study presented University of Texas students with a fake news story describing the school hurting local family farmers. Participants who were highly identified with UT were more likely to feel guilty after reading the story, while participants who were highly fused with UT were more likely to engage in a subsequent charitable task (whether they read the news story or were in a control condition). In the second study, UT students were asked to chat with each other about a variety of topics, and have the quality of their interactions linguistically analyzed. The final study had UT students write about either their relationship with UT or with their immediate family. Participants who were more highly fused with UT were less likely to use words signifying negative emotion or uncertainty, but were more likely to use inclusive pronouns. Implications for future research on identity fusion are discussed.Item Combinatorial media use in organizations: understanding why people use more than on medium to communicate(2005) Stephens, Keri Keilberg; Browning, Larry D.; Rice, Ronald E.Item Communicating Carbon Capture and Storage Technologies: Opportunities and Constraints across Media(2011-10-21) Feldpausch-Parker, Andrea MarieIn 2003, the U.S. Department of Energy created regional joint governmentindustry partnerships as part of a larger incentive to develop carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) technologies to address the issue of climate change. As part of their missions, DOE and their partners are responsible for creating and distributing public outreach and education materials discussing climate change and CCS technologies. In this dissertation, I sought to evaluate processes for communicating CCS to the public by examining different pathways including direct communication through DOE and regional partnership websites (Chapter I), news media from states with energy projects proposed or underway (Chapter II), and alternative strategies for communication such as an online educational game for youth (Chapter IV). My study also included focus groups in communities where CCS technologies have been piloted to determine public knowledge and acceptance of CCS (Chapter III). In Chapter I, a critique of DOE and partnership websites, I found authority to be a dominant theme throughout DOE and partnership website content, often incorporating technical jargon beyond laymen understanding and, in many cases, targeting industry audiences over the intended public. In Chapter II, I analyzed newspaper articles from the states of Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana and Texas using Luhmann?s social theory and the SPEED framework to determine how CCS has been framed by the media. Findings indicated that political, legal, economic and technical frames dominated, with emphasis on benefits, rather than risks of adoption. I also found that CCS reporting increased dramatically as pilot projects started to come on line. In my study of community acceptance of CCS in the American Southwest, Chapter III, I found that participants focused their conversations on industry and government knowledge, risks and unknowns of CCS and processes for decision-making. These topics also provided an impetus for caution. Skepticism and distrust of government entities and corporations influenced participant willingness to accept storage risks to mitigate for CO2 emissions. After open discussion of pros and cons associated with the technology, however, participants were more willing to consider CCS as an option, indicating a need to talk through the issue and to come to their own conclusions. Finally, in focus groups used to evaluate of an online game titled The Adventures of Carbon Bond, I found that it was difficult for participants to discuss environmental issues with students that are viewed as contentious (i.e. climate change and CCS), but that gaming was a valuable tool for addressing such sensitive subjects. Overall, these four chapters demonstrate that communication of CCS has only reached portions of the public and has not consistently connected with those potentially impacted by the technology. They also show that CCS must overcome numerous barriers to deployment, foremost of which is public acceptance.Item Communicating social identities: exploring boundary spanners in interorganizational collaborations(2009-12) Isbell, Matthew Gustave; Lewis, Laurie K.; Ballard, Dawna I.The purpose of this study is to investigate the ways in which members of interorganizational collaborations (IOCs) create and maintain the processes and structures of collaborative organizing. This research argues that IOCs are complex organizations that include ongoing communicative processes among individuals who act as collaborative members and constituent representatives. Specifically, this research seeks to explain how individual boundary spanners come to understand collaborative identities that create structures affecting actions and outcomes of the collaboration. Five research questions are posed using social identity theory as a guide to explore the data collected. The communication processes of IOC boundary spanners was investigated during a 13-month ethnographic field study, which included meeting observations, in-depth interviews, video stimulated recall, and document analysis. Overall, over 90% of the active members in the IOC were interviewed. Data was analyzed using the constant comparative method and organized by research question. Results indicate that boundary spanners in IOC use social identity to help orient and organize the diverse voices present within the collaboration. IOC members invoked group prototypes that created sub-groups within the IOC, thus allowing members with different goals for participation to find ways to justify membership. These prototypes also formed norms for communicating between members and created a collaborative environment that eventually led to organizational collapse. In addition, memberships within the IOC was constantly negotiated between members as the IOC worked towards certain goals. As sub-groups communicatively interacted with each other in the IOC, individuals would become more or less engaged in the collaborative process based on the successes and failures of the sub-group a boundary spanner has joined. Overall, this study helps us better understand how individuals within the IOC experience the collaboration and emphasize the importance of communication in collaborative processes. This study concludes with a discussion of the results and implications of the data for social identity theory, boundary spanner research and IOC research, as well as implications for practice. Limitations and future directions are also discussed.Item Communicating without words: the power of nonverbal communication in business(2009-12) Green, Ryan Michael; Lewis, Kyle, 1961-; Paulson, Gaylen D.Communication is essential to business. A major component of communication is nonverbal communication. This form of communication has existed and been capitalized upon much longer than verbal communication. Nevertheless, the majority of people do not receive any formalized training on the subject. The objective of this report is to outline the importance of nonverbal communication by providing the reader with a practical introduction to the topic and define how it is applicable to business.Item Communication apprehension and college retention: a focus group study(Texas Tech University, 1996-08) Marshall, Rodney K.Student retention has long been of interest to college and university administrators and instructors as indicated by the number of studies given to the subject (see Pantages & Creedon, 1978; Tinto, 1975). These studies have shown that personality variables play a significant role in the decisions of students to stay in school. Anxiety is one personality variable that may be the common denominator for low self-esteem, poor communication skills, and low educationed achievement (Witherspoon, Long, & Nickel, 1991). Witherspoon et al. (1991) state that discomfort and anxiety are factors in students' inability to use or learn adequate communication skills which contribute to a lack of success in classroom situations. Communication apprehension (CA) seems to encompass the fears or anxieties exhibited by high school seniors to avoid higher education opportunities (Monroe & Borzi, 1988). Defined as "an individual's level of fear or anxiety associated with either real or anticipated communication with another person or persons" (McCroskey, 1977a, p. 78), one can understand that an individual with a high level of CA would have a difficult time with the college environment. The general impression is that students with high apprehension find the amount of interaction required in college threatening and are less likely to benefit from their experience than are students with low apprehension (Monroe & Borzi, 1988). Highly apprehensive individuals would need to learn more skills and communication techniques to help them continue and graduate from college. With this thought in mind, the aim of this project is to look at the coping skills of high CA college students. It is hoped that strategies and suggestions can be found that will help others that experience high CA to continue their plans to attend and finish college. A comparison of coping skills and personal outlooks of high CAs and low CAs will be made. All in all, it is hoped through this project to determine what can be done to not only keep high CA students in college, but to help them finish and move on to a more productive life after college.