Legitimation , legitimization ( US ), or legitimisation ( UK ) is the act of providing legitimacy . Legitimation in the social sciences refers to the process whereby an act, process, or ideology becomes legitimate by its attachment to norms and values within a given society . It is the process of making something acceptable and normative to a group or audience .
119-404: Legitimate power is the right to exercise control over others by virtue of the authority of one's superior organization position or status. For example, the legitimation of power can be understood using Max Weber 's traditional bases of power. In a bureaucracy , people gain legitimate use of power by their positions in which it is widely agreed that the specified person hold authority. There
238-412: A "theoretical perspective such as a conceptual framework, a specific ideology, or an advocacy position and employs what will best serve the researcher's theoretical or ideological perspective". Therefore, with this research design, it could be either the qualitative or quantitative method that is used first and priority depends on circumstance and resource availability, but can be given to either. With
357-480: A channel member's control over another's strategy increases with its informational power source. According to Raven, there will be more use of Information power if the motive is a need for achievement and can also be affected by an agent's self-esteem . Feldman summarizes informational power as the most transitory type of power. If one gives information away, then the power is given away, which differs from other forms of power because it's grounded in what you know about
476-616: A child's activities; the President's legitimacy to live in the White House; and the Congress' legitimacy to declare war. Some pitfalls can arise when too heavy reliance is placed on legitimate power; these include: (a) unexpected exigencies call for non-legitimized individuals to act in the absence of a legitimate authority – such as a citizen's arrest in the absence of a police official; and (b) military legitimacy The legitimate power of reciprocity
595-501: A different leader and follower. The manner in which the power strategy is utilized will also affect its success or failure. Where coercion is deemed necessary, a leader might soften its negative effects with a touch of humor. There have been studies indicating that cultural factors may determine the effectiveness of power strategies." Coercive power uses the threat of force to gain compliance from another. Force may include physical, social, emotional, political, or economic means. Coercion
714-407: A focus on effective management. Informal and formal communication are both essential to an organization’s inner workings, but must be used appropriately. Understanding effective communication techniques can be used to minimize and resolve conflict within an organization. The field of organizational communication strives to identify and teach successful communication skills that can be applied within
833-427: A general basis for legitimate power of one entity over another. Such legitimacy is conferred by others and this legitimacy can be revoked by the original granters, their designees, or their inheritors. Legitimate power originates from a target of influence accepting the power of the influencing agent whereas behavioral change or compliance occurs based on target's obligation. One who uses legitimate power may have
952-469: A hierarchical structure and chain of command. The structure is typically top down, from leaders in various departments and senior staff in the organization, which funnel down to lower level employees. Informal communication, generally associated with interpersonal, horizontal communication, was primarily seen as a potential hindrance to effective organizational performance. This is no longer the case. Informal communication has become more important to ensuring
1071-427: A high need for power which is their motivator to use this base for change in behavior and influence. There may be a range of legitimate power. The legitimate position power is based on the social norm which requires people to be obedient to those who hold superior positions in a formal or informal social structure. Examples may include: a police officer's legitimacy to make arrests; a parent's legitimacy to restrict
1190-545: A large realm of research pertaining to persuasion tactics and leadership practices. Through social communication studies, it has been theorized that leadership and power are closely linked. It has been further presumed that different forms of power affect one's leadership and success. This idea is used often in organizational communication and throughout the workforce. Though there have been many formal definitions of leadership that did not include social influence and power, any discussion of leadership must inevitably deal with
1309-457: A little like role model power. It depends on respecting, liking, and holding another individual in high esteem. It usually develops over a long period of time. The power of holding the ability to administer to another a sense of personal acceptance or personal approval. This type of power is strong enough that the power-holder is often looked up to as a role model. This power is often regarded as admiration, or charm. The responsibility involved
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#17328454990211428-413: A mixed methods research approach, compared to using a qualitative or quantitative research approach. There are more than fifteen mixed method design typologies that have been identified. Because these typologies share many characteristics and criteria, they have been classified into six different types. Three of these types are sequential, meaning that one type of data collection and analysis happens before
1547-468: A much more varied and complex landscape. Governments around the world became increasingly interested in multilateral organizations and began supporting their goals and interests; this factor increased the profits for investors who were able to capitalize on the changes occurring. In the early 2000s, organizational communications saw discoveries of illegality and corruption, which led to the bankruptcies of extremely large organizations (Ex. Arthur Anderson ). As
1666-406: A multitude of other conflicts to arise if not dealt in a timely manner. Another example is if another co-worker tends to be disruptive or raise their voice. Both instances can be related to both internal and external sources, however, must be dealt with the same sufficiency since they could become reoccurring, daily issues if not dealt with. A leaders ability in conflict management is important. It
1785-457: A notable study of power conducted by social psychologists John R. P. French and Bertram Raven in 1959, power is divided into five separate and distinct forms. They identified those five bases of power as coercive, reward, legitimate, referent, and expert . This was followed by Raven's subsequent addition in 1965 of a sixth separate and distinct base of power: informational power . French and Raven defined social influence as "a change in
1904-403: A person acting in opposition to the expert's instructions if the target feels that the expert has personal gain motives. Some examples include: (a) a violinist demonstrating through audition skill with music; (b) a professor submits school transcripts to demonstrate discipline expertise; (c) a bricklayer relies on 20+ years of experience to prove expertise. Some pitfalls can emerge when too heavy
2023-573: A person whom is highly valued. According to Changingminds.org "demonstrations of the harm are often used to illustrate what will happen if compliance is not gained". The power of coercion has been proven to be related with punitive behavior that may be outside one's normal role expectations. However coercion has also been associated positively with generally punitive behavior and negatively associated to contingent reward behavior . This source of power can often lead to problems and in many circumstances it involves abuse . These type of leaders rely on
2142-403: A person would have to be consistently watched by the influencing agent in order for the change to remain in effect. An example of impersonal coercion relates a person's belief that the influencing agent has the real power to physically threaten, impose a monetary fine or dismiss an employee. An example of personal coercion relates to a threat of rejection or the possibility of disapproval from
2261-419: A power strategy that works immediately but relies on surveillance (for example, reward power or coercive power) may not last once surveillance ends. One organizational study found that reward power tended to lead to greater satisfaction on the part of employees, which means that it might increase influence in a broad range of situations. Coercive power was more effective in influencing a subordinate who jeopardized
2380-427: A practical solution to contemporary social problems, the constitutive model is presented. For example, traditional ideas and institutions are eroding, cultural diversity and interdependence are increasing, and democratic participation in social reality is in high demand. Critical approaches to organizational communication maintain a focus on power structures and power imbalances in regards to organizing. Critical theory
2499-563: A reliance is made on expertise; these include: (a) sometimes inferences are made suggesting expertise is wider in scope than it actually is; for example, an expert in antique vases may have little expertise in antique lamps; (b) one's expertise is not everlasting; for example, a physician who fails to keep up with medical technology and advances may lose expertise; and (c) expertise does not necessarily carry with it common sense or ethical judgement . French and Raven's original five powers brought about change after many years, by which Raven added
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#17328454990212618-415: A result, it changed how people see ethics and corporate social responsibility in organizational communications. Organizational communication became richer and more fragmented as structural-functional perspectives waned. For the future of this field, it is inevitable that diversity will lead to intellectual competition, and that hierarchy will be established among perspectives. In the most recent history of
2737-483: A sixth base of power. Informational is the ability of an agent of influence to bring about change through the resource of information. Raven arguably believed that power as a potential influence logically meant that information was a form of influence and the social power base of Information Power was derived. Informational influence results in cognition and acceptance by the target of influence. The ability for altered behavior initiated through information rather than
2856-401: A small child not to run into the street unattended). A military officer leading his troops into combat might be severely handicapped if he had to give complete explanations for each move. Instead, he would want to rely on unquestioned legitimate position power, backed up by coercive power. Power resources, which may be effective for one leader, dealing with one target or follower, may not work for
2975-424: A specific change agent is called socially independent change. In order to establish Information Power, an agent of influence would likely provide a baseline of information to a target of influence to lay the groundwork in order to be effective with future persuasion . A link between informational power, control, cooperation, and satisfaction have been hypothesized and tested in a lab study. The findings indicate that
3094-528: A specific change agent is called socially independent change. Power socially independent of change may reflect the target continuing changed behavior without referring to, or even remembering, the supervisor or individual of authority as an agent of change because the target understands and accepts the reasoning of information received. Raven acknowledged leaders can attempt to influence subordinates by access and control of information. Information power may be used in both personal and positional classifications and
3213-407: A student is admitted into an honor society for excellent effort; (c) a retiree is praised and feted for lengthy service at a retirement party; and (d) New York firefighters were heralded as heroes for their acts on September 11, 2001 . Some examples of reward power (negative reward) are: (a) a driver is fined for illegal parking; (b) a teenager grounded for a week for misbehaving; (c) a rookie player
3332-461: A successful business; they need questions. Answers can come from anyone, anytime, anywhere in the world due to the plethora of electronic communication tools at our disposal. This has turned the real job of management into determining what business specifically needs to know, along with the who/what/where/when and how of learning it. To effectively solve problems, seize opportunities, and achieve objectives, questions need to be asked by managers—these are
3451-416: A target of influence. Use of this power base and its outcomes may be negative or positive. An agent for change motivated with a strong need for affiliation and concern of likeability will prefer this power base and will influence their leadership style. Ingratiation or flattery and sense of community may be used by an agent of influence to enhance their influence. Referent power in a positive form utilizes
3570-440: A widespread system of social codes. An audience-based theory of legitimation posits that various social audiences develop expectations about what organizations can or should do and accordingly evaluate organizational action. Candidate organizations that pass the code test are legitimated in the social environment. One of the consequences is that they enjoy greater survival. Early elaborations of this idea include attempts to understand
3689-469: Is a central function of organizations, as the success of an organization is reliant on individuals coming together for the benefit of organizational success. Organizational communication provides insights and makes sense of the human processes that occur within organizations. This encompasses power struggles, team building, conflict, decision making, compliance, and all other human aspects of an organization. In early years, organizations gave little regard to
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3808-452: Is a form of personal or collective power that is based on controlling information needed by others in order to reach an important goal. Our society is now reliant on information power as knowledge for influence, decision making, credibility, and control. Timely and relevant information delivered on demand can be the most influential way to acquire power. Information may be readily available through public records, research, however, information
3927-451: Is a relatively new area of scholarship, originating in the 1970's. Similar to the critical approach, feminist theory highlights power relations in organizational structures and institutionalized male domination as an instrument of oppression against women. The feminist approach is intersectional, calling for the recognition of multiple perspectives of race, sexuality, and nationality. The underlying assumption in feminist organizational theory
4046-519: Is also a third research approach called mixed methods. "Mixed methods is a type of procedural approach for conducting research that involves collecting, analyzing, and mixing quantitative and qualitative data within a single program of study. Its rationale postulates that the use of both qualitative and quantitative research provides a better and richer understanding of a research problem than either traditional research approach alone provides." Complex contextual situations are easier to understand when using
4165-399: Is among the most preferable power bases. Informational power includes not only possessing information, but also the ability to obtain relevant information in a timely way to amass a power base. The use of tools or technological mechanisms such as internet , smart phones, and Social media progresses society's access to information but informational power as a base is derived by determining
4284-440: Is based on the premise that there is a wrong that can be made right, which may be a compensatory form of righting the wrong. The legitimate power of dependence is based on the social norm of social responsibility . Social responsibility norm states how people feel obligated to help someone who is in need of assistance. People traditionally obey the person with this power solely based on their role, position or title rather than
4403-421: Is based on the social norm of reciprocity . Which states how we feel obligated to do something in return for someone who does something beneficial for us. The legitimate power of equity is based on the social norm of equity (or compensatory damages ) The social norm of equity makes people feel compelled to compensate someone who has suffered or worked hard. As well as someone whom we have harmed in some way
4522-416: Is centered around the argument that power imbalances, and therefore oppression and domination, are innate parts of social structures and organizations. The critical approach seeks to identify organizational sources of power and control in order to empower groups of oppressed people. Within this approach there is a focus on ideological and hegemonic systems. Feminist approaches to organizational communication
4641-539: Is closely controlled by few people. Examples of information that is sensitive or limits accessibility: (a) national security data; (b) personnel information for government or business; (c) corporate trade secrets; (d) juvenile court records; (e) many privately settled lawsuit documents; (f) Swiss bank account owners; and (g) private phone conversations. Of course, legally obtained phone tap warrants, spying, eavesdropping, group and group member leaks can allow others not intended to be privy to information. Possessing information
4760-400: Is established based on variables such as position or title, are interrelated. The levels of each have a direct relationship in the manipulation and levels of one another. The bases of power differ according to the manner in which social changes are implemented, the permanence of such changes, and the ways in which each basis of power is established and maintained. The effectiveness of power
4879-558: Is generally seen as a legitimate part of the formal or appointed leadership role and most managerial positions in work organizations carry with them, some degree of expected reward and punishment." This type of formal power relies on position in an authority hierarchy . Occasionally, those possessing legitimate power fail to recognize they have it, and may begin to notice others going around them to accomplish their goals. Three bases of legitimate power are cultural values, acceptance of social structure, and designation. Cultural values comprise
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4998-429: Is heavy and the power easily lost, but when combined with other forms of power it can be very useful. Referent power is commonly seen in political and military figures, although celebrities often have this as well. Expert power is based on what one knows, experience, and special skills or talents. Expertise can be demonstrated by reputation, credentials certifying expertise, and actions. The effectiveness and impacts of
5117-477: Is how people adapt to a changing world. Informal and formal communication are used in an organization. Formal communication flows downward, horizontal and upward while informal communication is generally referred to as "the grapevine". Formal communication refers to the flow of official information through proper, predefined channels and routes. The flow of information is controlled and needs deliberate effort to be properly communicated. Formal communication follows
5236-736: Is known as a dead-ender . An employee that receives less than half of the grapevine information is an isolate . Grapevine can include destructive miscommunication, but it can also be beneficial by allowing feelings to be expressed, and increasing the productivity of employees. Additionally, McPhee and Zaug (1995) take a more nuanced view of communication as constitutive of organizations (also referred to as CCO ). They identify four constitutive flows of communication, formal and informal, which become interrelated in order to constitute organizing and an organization: Organizational communication refers to exchanging and transmitting information between individuals and groups within an organization. Communication
5355-479: Is no inherent right to wield power. For example, a president can exercise power and authority because the position is fully legitimated by society as a whole. In another example, if an individual attempts to convince others that something is "right," they can invoke generally accepted arguments that support their agenda . Advocacy groups must legitimate their courses of action based on invoking specific social norms and values. Invoking these norms and values allows
5474-404: Is not always recognized by the target of influence. This type of power is based upon the idea of coercion . The main idea behind this concept is that someone is forced to do something that he/she does not desire to do. The main goal of coercion is compliance. Coercive power's influence is socially dependent on how the target relates to the change being desired by the influence agent. Furthermore,
5593-406: Is not, typically, the vital act; it is what one can and does do or potentially can do with the information that typically is of vital importance. Information can, and often is, used as a weapon as in a divorce, a child custody case, business dissolution, or in civil suits discoveries. Information has been used by some to extort action, utterance, agreement, or settlement by others. Information power
5712-717: Is ridiculed for not following tradition; and (d) President Warren G. Harding 's name is commonly invoked whenever political scandal is mentioned. Some pitfalls can emerge when a too heavy reliance is placed on reward power; these include: (a) some people become fixated and too dependent on rewards to do even mundane activities; (b) too severe fears of punishment can immobilize some people; (c) as time passes, past rewards become insufficient to motivate or activate desired outcomes; and (d) negative rewards may be perverted into positive attention. An example of impersonal reward relates to promises of promotions, money and rewards from various social areas. An example of personal reward relates to
5831-466: Is said to be illegitimate. Once a child has been legitimated, he or she is entitled to such benefits as ordained by law as he or she would if that man had been married to the child's mother at the time of the child's birth. (Some benefits are still withheld under various systems, such as the British peerage .) The father is responsible for providing support to the child and the child is entitled to inherit from
5950-417: Is situational. Given there are six bases of power studied in the communication field, it is very important to know the situational uses of each power, focusing on when each is most effective. According to French and Raven, "it is of particular practical interest to know what bases of power or which power strategies are most likely to be effective, but it is clear that there is no simple answer. For example,
6069-417: Is sometimes assumed privileged or confidential. The target of influence accepts, comprehends and internalizes the change independently, without having to go back to the influencing agent.< Informational power is based on the potential to utilize information. Providing rational arguments, using information to persuade others, using facts and manipulating information can create a power base. How information
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#17328454990216188-850: Is that the theory compares organizations to a family. As this theory compares organization to a family, it focuses on workers satisfaction and the relationship within the organizations more compared to the work performance element. The human relation approach emphasizes the importance of employee attitudes, and encourage organizations management team to focus on interpersonal relationships, group dynamics, and leadership styles in achieving organizational effectiveness. It attempts to unearth how directing attention at these areas can helps managers and other organizational actors motivative employees in order to increase productivity and organizational functioning. In using this approach, researchers commonly refer to Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs to aid in identifying how meeting employee's individual needs have an effect on
6307-442: Is that women generally adapt to male norms within the workplace but are still subject to female stereotypes. The feminist approach aims to identify structural and cultural barriers in the workplace and how to eliminate them. Communicative rationality is a theory developed from the works of Jürgen Habermas , a german philosopher. The communicative rationality approach has been developed to explain why successful communication needs
6426-401: Is the perception of expertise that provides the power base. When individuals perceive or assume that a person possesses superior skills or abilities, they award power to that person. Expert power in a positive form influences the target to act accordingly as instructed by the expert, based on the assumption of the expert's correct knowledge. Expert power in a negative form can result from
6545-407: Is the best strategy. Informational influence or persuasion would generally be favorable however it may not be best suited if timing and effort lacks. Information possessed that no one needs or wants is powerless. Information power extends to the ability to get information not presently held such as a case with a librarian or data base manager. Not all information is readily available; some information
6664-409: Is theorized as (Re)production of social order and the critical approach theorized as discursive reflection. Networks are another aspect of direction and flow of communication. Bavelas has shown that communication patterns, or networks, influence groups in several important ways. Communication networks may affect the group's completion of the assigned task on time, the position of the de facto leader in
6783-493: Is used – sharing it with others, limiting it to key people, keeping it secret from key people, organizing it, increasing it, or even falsifying it – can create a shift in power within a group. Information presented by the influencing agent directly to the target of change. Information presented influencing agent indirectly to the target of change void of attempting influence, such as hints or suggestions. The ability for altered behavior initiated through information rather than
6902-514: The Industrial Revolution and the increased mechanization of work, classical approaches to organizing involve a vertical flow of communication that is highly formal and often written, mostly in a downward direction. The main idea of the classical approach of organizational communication is that the theory compares organizations to a machine. The theory observed and analyze that workers perform the task they are given to in order to contribute to
7021-416: The effectiveness of communication . Some are found in the environment in which communication takes place, some in the personalities of the sender and the receiver, and some in the relationship that exists between sender and receiver . These different variables suggest some of the difficulties of communicating with understanding between two people. The sender wants to formulate an idea and communicate it to
7140-414: The 1930s through the 1950s. Until then, organizational communication as a discipline consisted of a few professors within speech departments who had a particular interest in speaking and writing in business settings. The current field is established with its own theories and empirical concerns distinct from other fields. Several seminal publications stand out as works broadening the scope and recognizing
7259-488: The Bases of Social Power. As mentioned above, there are now six main concepts of power strategies consistently studied in social communication research. They are described as Coercive, Reward, Legitimate, Referent, Expert, and Informational. Additionally, research has shown that source credibility has an explicit effect on the bases of power used in persuasion. Source credibility, the bases of power, and objective power, which
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#17328454990217378-467: The Expert power base may be negative or positive. According to Raven, there will be more use of Expert power if the motive is a need for achievement. The ability to administer to another information, knowledge or expertise. (Example: Doctors, lawyers). As a consequence of the expert power or knowledge, a leader is able to convince their subordinates to trust them. The expertise does not have to be genuine – it
7497-650: The French postulations brought about by theorist Michel Foucault . Foucault is often revered as the father of Post-modern thought and has been described as a “radical relativist” by contemporaries such as Camille Paglia . From the 2000s onward, organizational communications experienced a “discursive turn”. This turn started in the 1980s with the rise of globalization and explains the changed relationship between organizations and governments. After 1980, interpretive and critical organizational communication research expanded rapidly and combined with functionalist research, creating
7616-412: The aforementioned elements of management; scalar chain , unity of command, unity of direction, division of labor, order, and span of control; relative to this approach. The human relation approach is based on several different theorists such as: Elton Mayo, McGregors's Douglas, Abraham Maslow, Mary Parker Follett's and Argyris. The main idea of the human relation approach of organizational communication
7735-544: The association with the heroic NYC firefighters. Some pitfalls can occur related to referent assumptions; these include: (a) guilt or glory by association where little or no true tie is established; (b) associative traits tend to linger long after real association ends; (c) some individuals tend to pay dearly for associates' misdeeds or terrible reputations. It is important to distinguish between referent power and other bases of social power involving control or conformity . According to Fuqua, Payne, and Cangemi, referent power acts
7854-469: The basis of research and evidence, there have been many other developments and elaborations on the original theory. French and Raven developed an original model outlining the change dependencies and also further delineating each power basis. It is a common understanding that most social influence can still be understood by the original six bases of power, but the foundational bases have been elaborated and further differentiated. Table 2 further differentiates
7973-402: The belief, attitude, or behavior of a person (the target of influence) which results from the action of another person (an influencing agent)", and they defined social power as the potential for such influence, that is, the ability of the agent to bring about such a change using available resources. Relating to social communication studies, power in social influence settings has introduced
8092-577: The capability of sharing their stories. With the rapid advancement of technology, there is no telling how far the field of organizational communications will advance in years to come. Some of the main assumptions underlying much of the early organizational communication research were: Herbert A. Simon introduced the concept of bounded rationality which challenged assumptions about the perfect rationality of communication participants. He maintained that people making decisions in organizations seldom had complete information, and that even if more information
8211-514: The concept of input-throughput-output identifies how this process is identified within this system. The constitutive approach is an organizational communications theory originating in Robert T. Craig’s chapter of the book Communication Theory: Communication Theory as a Field. An organizational constitutive approach views communication processes as a means of forming and maintaining organizations. Ideas of communication have evolved throughout history. As
8330-557: The consequences of acting one way or another, and a variety of possible ways of responding to the situation. This memory system determines what things we will notice and respond to in the environment. At the same time, stimuli in the environment help to determine what parts of the memory system will be activated. Hence, the memory and the environment form an interactive system that causes our behavior. As this interactive system responds to new experiences, new learnings occur which feed back into memory and gradually change its content. This process
8449-427: The content of a specific situation. Other forms of power are independent of the content. Information power comes as a result of possessing knowledge that others need or want. In the age of Information technology , information power is increasingly relevant as an abundance of information is readily available. There may be a cost-benefit analysis by an agent of influence to determine if Information Power or influence
8568-483: The early 1980s, the interpretive revolution took place in organizational communication. In Putnam and Pacanowsky's 1983 text Communication and Organizations: An Interpretive Approach . they argued for opening up methodological space for qualitative approaches such as narrative analyses, participant-observation, interviewing , rhetoric and textual approaches readings) and philosophic inquiries. In addition to qualitative and quantitative research methodologies, there
8687-422: The effective conduct of work in modern organizations. Grapevine is a random, unofficial means of informal communication. It spreads through an organization with access to individual interpretation as gossip, rumors, and single-strand messages. Grapevine communication is quick and usually more direct than formal communication. An employee who receives most of the grapevine information but does not pass it onto others
8806-516: The employee's needs as well as have success with continual adaptations within the organization. According to Shockley-Zalabak, the meaning centered approach is "a way of understanding organizational communication by discovering how organizational reality is generated through human interaction". This approach is more concerned with what communication is instead of why and how it works, and message functions as well as message movement are not focused on as thoroughly in this perspective. Emerging out of
8925-436: The experiential elements of an organization; beliefs and values; and the implicit assumptions about and among the organization. The systems approach to organizing views organizations as complex organisms and sees interaction with the external environmental as essential to survival. Components of this approach include hierarchical ordering, interdependence , and permeability. Processes of exchange are central to this approach;
9044-506: The father. While legitimation can be as simple as a statement by the father, in some jurisdictions the father must officially recognise the child. This option is typically also available to non-biological fathers ("social fathers"). Legitimation is a term in Roman Catholic canon law to remove the canonical irregularity of illegitimacy for candidates for the priesthood. Legitimate power List of forms of government In
9163-487: The field of organizational communication. Organizations are formed and sustained through continuous communication between members of the organization and both internal and external sub-groups who possess shared objectives for the organization. The flow of communication encompasses internal and external stakeholders and can be formal or informal. The field traces its lineage through business information, business communication , and early mass communication studies published in
9282-523: The functional tradition is "a way of understanding organizational communication by describing what messages do and how they move through organizations." There are different functions within this process that all work together to contribute to the overall success of the organization, and these functions occur during the repetition of communication patterns in which the members of the organization engage in. The first types of functions are message functions which are "What communication does or how it contributes to
9401-424: The group to proceed in a rational and coherent manner with the expectation that their subsequent behavior is legitimated by the norms and values which guide their organizations. Sociologists and organizational ecologists have shown that legitimation originates from consensus among certain agents (an audience) on which features and behaviors of an actor (a candidate) should be viewed as appropriate and desirable within
9520-420: The group, or they may affect the group members' satisfaction from occupying certain positions in the network. Although these findings are based on laboratory experiments, they have important implications for the dynamics of communication in formal organizations. There are several patterns of communication, such as "chain", "wheel", "star", "all-channel" network, and "circle". Abbreviations are used to indicate
9639-453: The importance of communication in the organizing process, and in using the term "organizational communication". Nobel laureate Herbert A. Simon wrote in 1947 about "organization communications systems", saying communication is "absolutely essential to organizations". W. Charles Redding played a prominent role in the establishment of organizational communication as a discipline. In the 1950s, organizational communication focused largely on
9758-406: The last five years, organizational communications have seen huge differences in how public opinion sees mass media . This shift has led to began to move away from traditional news sources like the newspaper and rely more on social media like Twitter for their news sources. With this change, communication is more vulnerable to things like “ fake news ”; however, it gives all members of the public
9877-501: The last seven White House press secretaries have been paid handsomely for their memoirs relating to their presence at the seat of government; (b) Mrs. Hillary Clinton gained political capital by her marriage to the President; (c) Reverend Pat Robertson lost a bid for the Republican Party's nomination for President due, in significant part, to his religious affiliation; and (4) national firefighters have received vocational acclaim due to
9996-462: The level of observability and the extent to which power is dependent or independent of structural conditions. Dependency refers to the degree of internalization that occurs among persons subject to social control. Using these considerations it is possible to link personal processes to structural conditions". The bases of social power have evolved over the years with benefits coming from advanced research and theoretical developments in related fields. On
10115-432: The meaning of words) combine to form a part of our memory system that helps us respond to reality. In this sense, March and Simon compare a person to a data processing system. Behavior results from an interaction between a person's internal state and environmental stimuli. What we have learned through past experience becomes an inventory, or data bank, consisting of values or goals, sets of expectations and preconceptions about
10234-419: The means by which a leader gets the members of a group or organization to act and move in a particular direction. Whereby, this is to be considered "power" in social influential situations. The original French and Raven (1959) model included five bases of power – reward, coercion, legitimate, expert, and referent – however, informational power was added by Raven in 1965, bringing the total to six. Since then,
10353-417: The model has gone through very significant developments: coercion and reward can have personal as well as impersonal forms. Expert and referent power can be negative or positive. Legitimate power, in addition to position power, may be based on other normative obligations: reciprocity, equity, and responsibility. Information may be utilized in direct or indirect fashion. French and Raven defined social power as
10472-401: The order in which data is collected is reversed. Researchers begin with collecting qualitative data and analyzing it, then follow up by building on it through a quantitative research method. They use the results from qualitative data to form variables, instruments and interventions for quantitative surveys and questionnaires. Researchers in line with sequential transformative design are led by
10591-436: The organization and on a personal level. As awareness of the functions of organizational communication has increased, organizations have had an elevated need for roles that focus on organizational consulting, job training, and career development. Shockley-Zalabak identified the following two perspectives, essentially as ways of understanding the organizational communication process as a whole. According to Shockley-Zalabak,
10710-484: The other. The other three designs are concurrent, meaning both qualitative and quantitative data are collected at the same time. To achieve results from a sequential explanatory design, researchers would take the results from analyzing quantitative data and get a better explanation through a qualitative follow up. They then interpret how the qualitative data explains the quantitative data. Although sequential exploratory design may resemble sequential explanatory design,
10829-457: The overall functioning of the organization", and we describe message functions in three different categories which are organizational functions, relationship functions, and change functions. Organizing functions as Shockley-Zalabak states, are "Messages that establish the rules and regulations of a particular environment". These messages can include items such as newsletters or handbooks for a specific organization, that individuals can read to learn
10948-636: The overall well-being of the organization. Each member has their purpose in the group, just like a part of a machine works does its tasks while cooperate with other parts to have a well-managed, functioning machine. Additionally, just like a machine that collapse when one part fails to function. An organization will fall apart when members are not doing their designated task appropriately. Henri Fayol 's work on classical management identifies five elements of management suggesting tasks for managers; planning, organizing, command, coordination, and control; and six principles of management suggesting how managers might enact
11067-516: The overall wellbeing of an organization. The cultural approach to organizing views organizations through a cultural lens, looking at both organizational culture and cultural influences and impacts on organizing. Scholars of cultural organizational communication attempt to identify the value and attributes of strong organizational culture in order to understand its effects on organizational functioning. Edgar Schein suggests three "levels of analysis" for interpreting organizational culture: artifacts, or
11186-411: The people responsible for the operation of the enterprise as a whole. Ideally, the meanings sent are the meanings received. This is most often the case when the messages concern something that can be verified objectively. For example, "This piece of pipe fits the threads on the coupling." In this case, the receiver of the message can check the sender's words by actual trial, if necessary. However, when
11305-537: The person specifically as a leader. Therefore, this type of power can easily be lost and the leader does not have his position or title anymore. This power is therefore not strong enough to be one's only form of influencing/persuading. Referent power is rooted in the affiliations we make and/or the groups and organizations we belong to. Our affiliation with a group and the beliefs of the group are shared to some degree. As Referent power emphasizes similarity, respect for an agent of influence's superiority may be undermined by
11424-664: The policies and expectations for a certain company. Relationship functions are "Communication that helps individuals define their roles and assess the compatibility of individual and organizational goals". These relationship functions are a key aspect to how individuals identify with a company and it helps them develop their sense of belonging which can greatly influence their quality of work. The third and final subcategory within message functions are change functions, which are defined as "messages that help organizations adapt what they do and how they do it". Change messages occur in various choice making decisions, and they are essential to meet
11543-415: The potential for influence (a change in the belief, attitude or behavior of a someone who is the target of influence. As we know leadership and power are closely linked. This model shows how the different forms of power affect one's leadership and success. This idea is used often in organizational communication and throughout the workforce. "The French-Raven power forms are introduced with consideration of
11662-565: The psychological needs of employees. Organizational communication considers how to motivate individuals within an organization by ensuring human needs are met in the workplace. Modern organizational communication studies consider work-from-home and remote work structures, a phenomenon that emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic as digital communication took the forefront. Organizational communication extensively covers what communication techniques are appropriate and effective in specific scenarios with
11781-503: The realm of communication studies, organizational communication is a field of study surrounding all areas of communication and information flow that contribute to the functioning of an organization . Organizational communication is constantly evolving and as a result, the scope of organizations included in this field of research have also shifted over time. Now both traditionally profitable companies, as well as NGO's and non-profit organizations, are points of interest for scholars focused on
11900-416: The receiver. This desire to communicate may arise from his thoughts or feelings or it may have been triggered by something in the environment. The communication may also be influenced by the relationship between the sender and the receiver, such as status differences, a staff-line relationship, or a learner-teacher relationship. Whatever its origin, information travels through a series of filters, both in
12019-401: The reward of receiving approval from a desired person and building relationships with romantic partners. Legitimate power comes from an elected, selected, or appointed position of authority and may be underpinned by social norms . This power which means the ability to administer to another certain feelings of obligation or the notion of responsibility. "Rewarding and Punishing subordinates
12138-504: The role of communication in improving organizational life and organizational output. In the 1980s, the field turned away from a business-oriented approach to communication and became concerned more with the constitutive role of communication in organizing. In the 1990s, the rise of critical theory garnered influence within the field as organizational communication scholars focused more on communication's ability to both oppress and liberate organizational members. This shift in thought arose from
12257-417: The sender and in the receiver, and is affected by different channels, before the idea can be transmitted and re-created in the receiver's mind. Physical capacities to see, hear, smell, taste, and touch vary between people, so that the image of reality may be distorted even before the mind goes to work. In addition to physical or sense filters, cognitive filters, or the way in which an individual's mind interprets
12376-410: The sender to cause significantly different perceptions and evaluations of the topic under discussion. As we shall see later, such differences form a basic barrier to communication . Nonverbal content always accompanies the verbal content of messages. When speaking about nonverbal communication, Birdwhistell says "it is complementary to (meaning "adds to") rather than redundant with (or repeating of)
12495-418: The sender's words describe a feeling or an opinion about something that cannot be checked objectively, meanings can be very unclear. "This work is too hard" or "Watergate was politically justified" are examples of opinions or feelings that cannot be verified. Thus, they are subject to interpretation and hence to distorted meanings. The receiver's background of experience and learning may differ enough from that of
12614-471: The shared personal connection or shared belief between the influencing agent and target with the intention of positively correlated actions of the target. Referent power in a negative form produces actions in opposition to the intent of the influencing agent, this is the result from the agent's creation of cognitive dissonance between the referent influencing agent and the target's perception of that influence. Examples of referent power include: (a) each of
12733-455: The success of the overall organization or threatened the leader's authority, even though in the short term it also led to resentment on the part of the target. A power strategy that ultimately leads to private acceptance and long-lasting change (for example, information power) may be difficult to implement, and consume considerable time and energy. In the short term, complete reliance on information power might even be dangerous (for example, telling
12852-499: The telephone, a messenger, or a letter, the situation or context in which the message is sent becomes part of its non-verbal content. For example, if the company has been losing money , and in a letter to the production division, the front office orders a reorganization of the shipping and receiving departments, this could be construed to mean that some people were going to lose their jobs — unless it were made explicitly clear that this would not occur. A number of variables influence
12971-502: The two-way flow of information or other transactions, e.g. B2B is "business to business". Duplex point-to-point communication systems, computer networks , non-electronic telecommunications, and meetings in person are all possible with the use of these terms. Examples: Interpersonal communication amongst individuals can be expressed both verbally and non-verbally, such as through the use of gestures, facial expressions, and overall body language. Managers do not need answers to operate
13090-494: The use of human rationality to be effective. The theory derives from the philosophical study of universal pragmatics , which looks to understand what circumstances are needed for reaching understanding in communications. Conflict is experienced by all organizations, therefore strategies to mitigate its effects on the wellbeing of organizations have been developed over time by both researchers and scholars alike. Professionals solely aim to diminish any conflicts that may arise within
13209-399: The use of threats in their leadership style . Often the threats involve saying someone will be fired or demoted. Reward power is based on the right of some to offer or deny tangible, social, emotional, or spiritual rewards to others for doing what is wanted or expected of them. Some examples of reward power (positive reward) are: (a) a child is given a dollar for earning better grades; (b)
13328-565: The usefulness and appropriateness of the information. Tradition power is that force that is exerted upon us to conform to traditional ways. Traditions, for the most part, are social constructs; they invite, seduce, or compel us to conform and act in predictable, patterned ways. Breaking with traditions put people at risk of social alienation. Traditions can blunt rationality; they can block innovation; and they can appear to outsiders as silly when original traditions' rationales become outdated or forgotten. Organizational communication Within
13447-403: The variations of codes across different audiences; the impact of code violation on organizational performance; the role of the network connecting social actors and their audiences in shaping the formation and operation of social codes. Legitimation can also be used as a legal term where a father of a child born out of wedlock becomes the child's legal father. Prior to legitimation, the child
13566-429: The verbal behavior". For example, if someone is talking about the length of an object, they may hold out their hands to give a visual estimate of it. This is reasonably clear in the case of face-to-face communication. As Virginia Satir has pointed out, people cannot help but communicate symbolically (for example, through their clothing or possessions) or through some form of body language. In messages that are conveyed by
13685-402: The workplace in the most effective manner as possible. In order to do this, these employees must possess strong conflict resolution skills. Since conflicts in the workplace typically arise in various magnitudes, it is important that they are dealt with as soon as possible. For instance, if an individual tends to leave their space consistently messy, it can disrupt the entire office and leave for
13804-476: The world around him, will influence his assumptions and feelings. These filters will determine what the sender of a message says, how he says it, and with what purpose. Filters are present also in the receiver, creating a double complexity that once led Robert Louis Stevenson to say that human communication is "doubly relative". It takes one person to say something and another to decide what he said. Physical and cognitive, including semantic filters (which decide
13923-557: The world. The seven different domains are rhetorical, semiotic, phenomenological, cybernetic, sociopsychological, sociocultural and critical. The rhetorical approach can be theorized as the practical art of discourse and the semiotic approach theorized as intersubjective mediation by signs. The phenomenological approach can be theorized as experiences of otherness; dialogue, and the cybernetic approach as information processing. The socialpsychological approach can be theorized as expression, interaction and influence. The sociocultural approach
14042-543: Was available, they tended to pick the first acceptable option, rather than exploring further to pick the optimal solution. In the early 1990s Peter Senge developed new theories on organizational communication. These theories were learning organization and systems thinking . These have been well received and are now a mainstay in current beliefs toward organizational communications. Robert Craig suggested that there were seven components of communication theory ,seven different ways of thinking about how communication works in
14161-536: Was found that leaders who focus on collaboration have a higher success rate than those who focus on avoidant or dominating conflict behaviour. It is also important that leaders are trained correctly on conflict management before being placed on the floor. Historically, organizational communication was driven primarily by quantitative research methodologies. Included in functional organizational communication research are statistical analyses (such as surveys , text indexing, network mapping and behavior modeling ). In
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