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  • About
  • The Global ETD Search service is a free service for researchers to find electronic theses and dissertations. This service is provided by the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations.
    Our metadata is collected from universities around the world. If you manage a university/consortium/country archive and want to be added, details can be found on the NDLTD website.
1

At the intersection of intercultural and organisational communication : a study of communication within ATSIC and between ATSIC and its clients

Ford, Suzanne, n/a January 1998 (has links)
The realm of research into the various aspects of organisations is wide-ranging, offering any researcher immense freedom to investigate those area(s) which are of particular interest to him/her. While there are set theoretical parameters for studying organisations, eg. various theories looking at organisational communication, structure and networks, the only real limitation lies in the mind of the researcher. That is the beauty and nature of organisations, they do not have to wholly conform to any set ideal, rather they have the opportunity to be unique and diverse depending upon the organisation's purpose. It seems that most investigations of organisations are one dimensional, ie. reporting on what actually happens or how efficient processes are or attempting to define aspects of culture. However, in this thesis a second dimension has been added�intercultural aspects of communication. Hence, the research evaluates the intersection of the intercultural communication which exists within an organisation. For this two dimensional approach, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC) was chosen. As with most bureaucratic organisations, due to the size and complexity it is not practicable to look at an entire organisation For this thesis, a case study of one of ATSIC's twenty-seven regional offices was undertaken. Details of this follow in the paper; however, the two main reasons for choosing to complete a case study of ATSIC are 1) because the author is full-time employee with access to people, facts and inside information that might otherwise not be available and 2) ATSIC is not a typical bureaucracy; rather it is atypical due to its structure and purpose, which is to further the economic, social and cultural diversity of Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders. While part of the Commonwealth Government, ATSIC is founded upon, and is committed to, furthering both intercultural concepts and the economic status of Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders. This is accomplished by ATSIC being the major advisory body to Government; attending national and international policy forums; raising awareness of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures; and in providing supplementary funding (through both grant and loan initiatives) which supports other funding that is given to indigenous people or organisations through Government mainstream programs (health, housing, education, social welfare etc.). To further limit the scope of this research, the communication which has been analysed is that relating to grant administration. As ATSIC plays a major role in providing grant funding to indigenous people, this area of evaluation is highly important, as it shows how ATSIC (represented by one regional office) carries out its functions and business: providing services and assistance to its clients�the Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders. The case study includes comments gleaned from both questionnaires and interviews from staff and managers within the chosen regional office. This also includes views of indigenous and non-indigenous people as well as views from the elected community representatives of that region. It is envisaged that by incorporating the views of those mentioned above, that the data is as complete, valid and reliable as possible As with any traditional group of people, there are different norms and cultures which permeate their social and working lives. The information presented in this thesis is based on views of a non-indigenous person who has collected data from one specific region and it is not valid to generalise these findings to other regions in Australia. Communication in ATSIC is highly complex and difficult to explain to those outside the organisation. A main reason for this is that there are many requirements that both the Government and the indigenous communities place on ATSIC, and unfortunately they are often diametrically opposed. This creates quite an ironic and disharmonious situation for all parties concerned�a bureaucracy versus intercultural perspectives. These situations are discussed throughout the thesis. It is important for readers to note that the ideas which are conveyed in this thesis are the author's own and are not necessarily those of ATSIC, the Government or indigenous people. This research experience is one which has been extremely beneficial for the author. While the author's personal views may not be aligned with others, I challenge those people to read not only this thesis, but other work like it so that they may be in a position to make their own informed decisions about controversial issues such as Aboriginal affairs.

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