Various prescriptions for the design of Power Point presentations have been developed based on opinion rather than research. This study assesses the validity of two common prescriptions: the number of lines on a slide should be no more than seven and bulleted items should be displayed on a slide one at a time. In this study, different groups of participants were shown different versions of a presentation to test these prescriptions. Participants were asked a series of questions designed to test their liking of the presentation, perceptions of speaker credibility and retention of presented material. The results of this study do not support these two common prescriptions and call into question the legitimacy of their use in the design of Power Point presentations. Audience liking of the presentation and perceptions of speaker credibility were not affected by the number of lines per slide or by the manner in which bulleted items were displayed. Although audience retention of presented material was not affected by the number of lines on a slide, retention was affected by the manner in which these items were displayed. Retention increased when bulleted items were displayed all at once, not one at a time. These results directly conflict with the prescription that dictates items to be displayed one at time. The results of this study give insight into the accuracy of these two common prescriptions and subsequently, may affect the design of Power Point in oral presentations and classroom instruction. Communication scholars should avoid offering opinions as facts, and this study suggests that further investigation into these prescriptions and others is needed.

This research explores corporate advocacy and support for the Black Lives Matter movement. Using organizational legitimacy theory as a theoretical framework, this research employed thematic analyses in order to study statements issued by Fortune's 50 most admired companies in response to the re-energized Black Lives Matter movement. These statements were studied using thematic content analysis in order to gauge corporate engagement with the movement, as well as indicate themes of authenticity or hypocrisy apparent in the statements. The study revealed major themes of support and authentic engagement, as well as highlighted the missing components that may indicate hypocritical stances to stakeholders. This research contributes to public relations scholarship through its examination of how practitioners strategically communicate around racial or social justice issues in the context of corporate social advocacy. Stakeholders grant legitimacy to companies and cyclically, that legitimacy is earned and reinforced by ongoing corporate actions, to include perceptions of authentic corporate engagement with controversial social-political issues. This study expands on public relations research about communicating corporate commitment to social advocacy, specifically as it pertains to contentious social justice issues. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed. This paper is broken into five chapters. The first chapter includes an introduction to the study, a mention of the theoretical frameworks employed in the study, and a description of the study's relevance. Chapter Two includes an in-depth literature review of the theoretical frameworks relevant to the research, as well as background on the Black Lives Matter movement and its recent resurgence. The second chapter also highlights how organizations have responded to the BLM movement. Next, Chapter Three describes the study's methodology, a qualitative content analysis of official corporate statements about the BLM civil rights movement. Chapter Four then outlines results in the form of common themes identified across corporate statements. Last, Chapter Five provides the discussion, future research suggestions, and practical implications of the research conducted.

In recent years, with industry changes and fierce competition in the international market, and many enterprises in order to enhance their competitiveness, reduce costs and risk, have adopted various strategies and improvement of production activities, outsourcing is often one of the strategies used. However, outsourcing has its risks and shortcomings, and mainly in the outsourcing relationship management to minimize these deficiencies, outsourcing benefits to the greatest play. And good relationship management, to ensure that the contract called for quality products, if problems can be found and for the improvement of rapid response. Outsourcing operation mechanism of the organization members and organizational communication link will be good or bad, what means of communication where organizations do a good communication? In this paper, to investigate the case by the actual communication with the outsourcing strategy of the Organization for the impact of organizational goals. In this study, a polarized version of the manufacturer as an example, the customer response to quality problems, problems by analyzing causes and find out the internal management mechanism and organization of the problem arising from the consultation mechanism to identify its organizational communication problems. Stressed as a result of the longitudinal structure function of information communication, and business structure to emphasize the horizontal flow of information, quality assurance is therefore proposed to replace the matrix organization structure as a boundary intermediary role of the contact person, you can put these two information flows At the same time, the realization of the enterprise. Because of the obstacles facing enterprises as a message to communicate time-sensitive and difficult to grasp the feelings of the limitations of communication, it is proposed to import information bulletin recommendations, resource sharing and document management to communicate its impact on organizations to increase opportunities for communication, information and equal power to foster active communication attitude, work to enhance coordination and cooperation, environmental protection will help to increase the breadth of content of communication to reduce communication processes and reduce the frequency of communication and the provision of repeat members strong logistical support.

The purpose of this action research was to effectively measure and evaluate the extent to which implementing professional learning communities in a high school setting can shift the school toward a more collaborative culture. Additionally, the study set out to aide school leadership in analyzing their role in designing and implementing PLCs so that they might make informed decisions regarding PLCs for collaborative school culture and improvement in the future. Data was collected utilizing staff surveys before and after the implementations of PLCs. Additionally, a focus group of staff was interviewed and provided feedback regarding PLCs and the role of school leadership in the implementation process. Analysis of the data suggests that the culture of the school remained mostly unchanged after PLC implementation, noting only marginal improvement in the fragmented culture. It may be concluded that the staff’s lack of knowledge and experience in the PLC process before the study contributed to inaccuracy in their perspectives and further studies could be conducted to evaluate the root causes of this lack of knowledge and balkanized school culture.

Developed from the public relations process model, the purpose of this study was to identify parental perceptions of university drinking norms and their relationship with parental perceptions of the organizational legitimacy of the university. This study used a web-based survey to assess an N = 173 parents of current university students at the University of Tennessee – Knoxville. The results of this study identified that parents have exaggerated misperceptions of college drinking that are related to their overall perceptions of the university in terms of organizational legitimacy. The study also found that parental awareness of university prevention efforts were strongly correlated with parental perceptions of organizational legitimacy. This study advocates the importance for universities to approach alcohol prevention from an issues management perspective that includes the use of two-way symmetrical communication with parents as well as the possible benefits of using social marketing as a public relations tool.

This thesis focuses on ways that rhetorical theory can assist in better understanding the dysfunctions of the modern organizational environment. At its root, organizational dysfunction refers to those parts of our organizations that do not function as we think they should. Dysfunction points to actions of organizational members that defies and violates shared organizational norms and expectations or core societal values, mores and standards of proper conduct.1 As an element of focus, this thesis uses Kenneth Burkes theory of dramatism and dramatistic methods such as pentadic criticism and cluster criticism to analyze leadership actions within the fictional BBC television programme The Office. Using The Office as a representative case study, the analysis applies Burkes theories, and particularly the pentadic elements of Agent, Scene, and Act to gain a more complete picture of the role an office manager can play in an organizations dysfunction. A more complete picture can then assist in finding solutions to that dysfunction.<p> Burkes methods allow for a critic to gain multiple perspectives on the same situation by attributing different terms of the pentad to the same elements of the situation being described. When looking for causes of dysfunction in an organization, often formal leaders are held accountable. But what does it mean to blame the leader? What specific role have they played in the dysfunction? Using Burkes pentad, this thesis explores three roles that office manager David Brent plays in the organizational dysfunction.<p> The first chapter explores office leader Brent as an Agent of dysfunction and analyzes his own dysfunctions in order to understand the offices dysfunctions. The second chapter looks at the ramifications for labeling Brent as part of the Scene and analyzes how Brent and other scenic elements combine to create office dysfunction. In the final analysis chapter, Brent is labeled as an Act of dysfunction himself which positions Brent as a mere symptom of a larger dysfunction within the organization. The perspectives are combined and contrasted to reveal insights that may have been previously hidden proving that rhetorical theory is a valuable approach to better understand organizations and the people within them.<p> 1 Y. Vardi and Y. Weiner. Misbehaviour in Organizations: A Motivational Framework, Organizational Science, (7,1996) 151-65.

Persuasion is becoming increasingly prevalent and important for executives in the business world, especially in light of the current economic situation and the shifting dynamic in organizational management. As a result, it is worth examining the scientific process behind persuasion and how applying these findings will produce more effective executive leaders. This paper will dive into the realm of persuasion in the work place by first drawing upon the history between persuasion and rhetoric, how these historical thought processes have influenced the persuasion we know and understand today, as well as examine how certain techniques can make persuasion most effective, to not only produce more influential leaders, but also passionate and motivated organizations as a whole. Specifically, it will look into how becoming a persuasive leader is like putting together a jigsaw puzzle of the four main principles of effective persuasion: establishing credibility, framing the argument, providing compelling evidence, and connecting emotionally.

This thesis focuses on ways that rhetorical theory can assist in better understanding the dysfunctions of the modern organizational environment. At its root, organizational dysfunction refers to those parts of our organizations that do not function as we think they should. Dysfunction points to actions of organizational members that defies and violates shared organizational norms and expectations or core societal values, mores and standards of proper conduct.1 As an element of focus, this thesis uses Kenneth Burkes theory of dramatism and dramatistic methods such as pentadic criticism and cluster criticism to analyze leadership actions within the fictional BBC television programme The Office. Using The Office as a representative case study, the analysis applies Burkes theories, and particularly the pentadic elements of Agent, Scene, and Act to gain a more complete picture of the role an office manager can play in an organizations dysfunction. A more complete picture can then assist in finding solutions to that dysfunction.<p> Burkes methods allow for a critic to gain multiple perspectives on the same situation by attributing different terms of the pentad to the same elements of the situation being described. When looking for causes of dysfunction in an organization, often formal leaders are held accountable. But what does it mean to blame the leader? What specific role have they played in the dysfunction? Using Burkes pentad, this thesis explores three roles that office manager David Brent plays in the organizational dysfunction.<p> The first chapter explores office leader Brent as an Agent of dysfunction and analyzes his own dysfunctions in order to understand the offices dysfunctions. The second chapter looks at the ramifications for labeling Brent as part of the Scene and analyzes how Brent and other scenic elements combine to create office dysfunction. In the final analysis chapter, Brent is labeled as an Act of dysfunction himself which positions Brent as a mere symptom of a larger dysfunction within the organization. The perspectives are combined and contrasted to reveal insights that may have been previously hidden proving that rhetorical theory is a valuable approach to better understand organizations and the people within them.<p> 1 Y. Vardi and Y. Weiner. Misbehaviour in Organizations: A Motivational Framework, Organizational Science, (7,1996) 151-65.

This project examines how social media is being used by individuals within the State Department engaged in public diplomacy and how the use of these technologies may or may not represent a paradigm shift in diplomatic operation. Assessments of social media and government in popular culture argue a fundamental shift has taken place in government operations. Yet this argument calls for theoretical examination using communication theory and via examination of organizational praxis. Using Ammon's criterion for paradigm shift in communications technology and diplomacy, I evaluated State's current program of social media and public diplomacy called 21st Century Statecraft. I conducted a content analysis of organizational Twitter feeds and also interviewed actors within the organization working with public diplomacy and social media. I also examined historical accounts of State's Voice of America radio program, and compared current organizational uses of social media with the appropriation of radio in the second half of the 20th century. The results suggest that paradigm shift has not yet occurred despite the uses of the new technologies. In many cases, social media is being used akin to technologies from previous paradigms due in part to the constraints of organizational structures. Twitter platforms were used as spaces to push information and policy to the masses, similar to the ways in which radio was used after World War II and throughout the Cold War. Organizational actors characterized social media as a tool to accomplish public diplomacy, not as the change agent those outside of the organization have argued it to be. They described organizational challenges of incorporating social media including questions of voice, information control, and doing 'in-reach' inside the organization. Finally, they described aspects of the interaction that took place as an opportunity to create dialogue amongst interested citizens around the world and to come into face-to-face contact with individuals outside the embassy. Although anomalous practices have begun to emerge as a result of new media's use in the State Department, we have not reached what Kuhn would term a 'critical mass,' necessitating a shift in worldview and practice.

The concept ¡§World Cafe Community¡¨, which is proposed by Juanita Brown and David Issacs, is becoming a new method for team learning. According to Peter Senge¡¦s opinion, ¡§World Cafe¡¨ is just a detail implementation to a deeply dialogue, which is a method for achieving team learning. The main meaning of ¡§World Cafe¡¨ is through group discussion and idea exchange to realize brain storming. However, ¡§World Cafe¡¨ is helpful for diversified communications, but some of the concrete operation details are not suitable for Eastern. The main purpose of this study is to develop a serious of action researches to improve the operation details in the ¡§World Cafe¡¨ model. Through holding three conferences with ¡§World Cafe¡¨, some improved skills in team communication are introduced in each conference. We hope use these improved skills to find out a suitable model of organizational communication and knowledge sharing in holding ¡§World Cafe¡¨ in Eastern societies. This study proposed some improvements such as a new entire printed page, mind-mapping, and talking stick, which could impress participators about the discussion contents and processes. These improvements also make the discussed issues focused. Therefore, the suggested improvements by this study can make people who are not familiar with ¡§World Cafe¡¨ quickly understand the communicated and shared key point and hence, create more team brain storming.