Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2002. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 320-333). Available also in a digital version from Dissertation Abstracts.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oklahoma, 1991. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 89-100).

With the rapid growth of bilateral trade between China and Africa in the past decade, more and more Africans are coming to China to seek what they see as appealing business opportunities. Guangzhou, the economic centre in Southern China, has become the largest enclave for Africans. It is estimated that there are about 100,000 Africans living and doing business in Guangzhou. This large number of Africans in Guangzhou has drawn the attention of many researchers. However, current research on Africans in Guangzhou focuses predominantly on sociological and ethnographic aspects. Although the issue of communication problems has been brought up frequently, little has been investigated in depth about actual communication, especially the actual language use between Africans and Chinese. This thesis analyzes the English-based contact language used in the marketplace between Africans and Chinese in Guangzhou. It has two main focuses: first of all, by analyzing the results from a questionnaire survey, it provides a socio-cultural and linguistic profile of the Africans in Guangzhou as well as the Chinese who has constant contact with the Africans; second, it examines several major language features based on actual language data collected from real-world communication in the marketplace. On the basis of these socio-cultural and linguistic features, I argue that the speech form between Africans and Chinese in the marketplace in Guangzhou could be regarded as a rudimentary pidgin, which has the potential of developing into a pidgin in the future. / published_or_final_version / Linguistics / Master / Master of Philosophy

This thesis was designed to determine Fortune 500 communicators' opinions about objectives for employee communications. The study compared communicators' opinions about stated objectives for employee communications objectives to their opinion about how their corporations implement the same stated objectives.An opinion questionnaire was mailed to directors of employee communication or equivalent titles at all Fortune 500 companies. Of the 500 instruments mailed, 129 or 25.8 percent were returned and used for data.Participants' responses were analyzed by mean scores, t-tests, confidence interval ratings and rank-order correlation tests. Demographic data was collected concerning budget sizes, staffdemographic data was cross tabulated with 40 statements of objectives the existence of written objectives, and types of activities used. The for employee communications activities to further describe Fortune 500 communicators.The study found a significant difference between the communicators' opinions toward employee communications objectives and the employee communications activities implemented within their corporations. The study also found companies with and without objectives for employee communications both implement similar employee activities. / Department of Journalism

This research utilized Q Method to learn whether attitudes regarding integrated marketing communication (IMC) among both educators and practitioners are consistent with placing IMC in an inductive or pre-theory stage of development within the theory building-research cycle. The analysis indicates an acceptance of IMC as a valid method of communication management among study participants. However the data is consistent with a negative, or at best ambiguous, conclusion when it comes to placing attitudes regarding IMC in an inductive or pre-theory stage of development within the theory building-research cycle. This then permits the conclusion that IMC at present is a communications management approach, not a nascent communication theory. / Department of Journalism

This study explored the possible connection between organizational culture and worldview and the narratives professional associations use to sell these perspectives to external audiences. Burke's pentad and ratio analysis were utilized to identify the dominant terms in nineteen narratives featured in a promotional booklet published by the National Business Incubation Association. In eleven of the stories, the "agent" elements were most prevalent in these stories, signaling an idealistic worldview. The remaining eight narratives were agency-dominant and provided an underlying pragmatism to the highly idealistic outlook of the agent-focused stories. In addition to providing a philosophical label for the narrative messages, analyzing the pentad elements gave clues as to this association's value system toward incubation clients and the business incubation industry in general. The implications of this professional association's influence on an emerging industry were also discussed. / Department of Communication Studies

Study project (MPhil)--University of Stellenbosch, 2007. / Bibliography. Also available via the Internet.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität, Frankfurt (Main), 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 285-320).

Thesis (M.A.)--George Mason University, 2008. / Vita: p. 83. Thesis director: Douglas Eyman. Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in English. Title from PDF t.p. (viewed July 8, 2008). Includes bibliographical references (p. 80-82). Also issued in print.

Thesis (M.B.A.)----University of North Carolina Wilmington, 2008. / Title from PDF title page (viewed May 27, 2009) Includes bibliographical references (p. 44-46)