Instructor Resource
Scandura, Essentials of Organizational Behavior, 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2022
Lecture Notes
Chapter 12: Organizational Communication
Learning Objectives
12.1: Describe the communication process, and discuss sources of noise in the process.
12.2: Identify how communication apprehension affects the communication process.
12.3: Compare and contrast different forms of communication networks.
Chapter Summary
Chapter summary here.
Annotated Chapter Outline
I. “Thin–Slicing” a Conversation
A. First few minutes of a conversation are “thin slices” of behavior.
i. Thin slices are predictive of eventual impressions of an individual.
B. Negative affect, extraversion, conscientiousness, and intelligence were judged
moderately well after just 5 seconds of exposure.
II. What is Organizational Communication?
A. Organizational communication: The process by which individuals stimulate
meaning in the minds of other individuals by means of verbal or nonverbal
messages in the context of a formal organization
Instructor Resource
Scandura, Essentials of Organizational Behavior, 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2022
B. The Communication Process
i. Shannon-Weaver model of communication: A model essential to
understanding the two-party communication process
a. See Figure 12.1 The Communication Process
ii. Sender: Source of transmission, who selects a desired message from a set
of possible messages
a. Consists of written or spoken words, visuals, gestures, or some
combination of these
v. Decoding: Receiver decodes message sent through selected channel by
translating sensory input into an understanding of the message.
a. Noise: Communication barriers that may affect how people interpret
messages
b. Noise can include perceptual biases, language choice, cultural
differences, and the room being too hot.
vi. The receiver: Person or persons who receive the message
a. May also create noise; not paying attention or distracted by ambient
sound
III. Barriers to Effective Communication
A. Communication Apprehension
i. Communication apprehension (CA): Anxiety or fear suffered by an
individual of either actual or anticipated communication, with a group or a
person, which can profoundly affect their oral communication, social skills,
and self-esteem
Instructor Resource
Scandura, Essentials of Organizational Behavior, 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2022
b. Individuals with CA may seek jobs with lower communication
requirements and seek less advice or assistance from their
managers.
iii. Self-awareness and assertiveness training may help those with high CA.
B. Language
i. Words may have different meanings to different people even if they are
communicating in the same language.
a. Slang and colloquialisms are used within organizations and may
confuse outsiders.
b. Context is also important to correct interpretation.
iii. Mindfulness is connected to active listening.
iv. Active listening is a powerful sales tool for effective salespeople.
a. Listen to potential customers more than they talk
v. Effective managers engaged significantly more in positive, relations-
oriented, “active listening” and “agreeing” behaviors, and significantly less
in “task monitoring” and counterproductive work behaviors.
IV. Communication Networks
A. See Figure 12.2 Communication Networks.
i. Wheel network: A communication network where all communication
flows through one person, who is most likely the group leader
Instructor Resource
Scandura, Essentials of Organizational Behavior, 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2022
ii. Circle network: A communication network in which each person can
communicate with two others located adjacent to them
B. Communication networks are an important way for job applicants to learn about
job opportunities.
i. “Strength of weak ties thesis” states that weak ties help people tap into
nonredundant pools of information.
C. Communication Flows in Organizations
i. External communication: Information that is shared with the public
through marketing and public relations efforts
a. The impressions of various stakeholders such as customers,
shareholders, the government, and the general public are heavily
influenced by external communication.
iii. Employees are now considered important organizational stakeholders,
which, among other roles, has blurred the line between external and
internal communications.
a. Boundary spanners: Employees that communicate externally with
suppliers, customers, or clients
iv. Fusion of internal and external communication is called “integrated
communications.”
v. Upward communication: Process by which employees communicate
with others that are higher in the organizational hierarchy
vi. Downward communication: Flow of information from the leader of an
organization to employees
Instructor Resource
Scandura, Essentials of Organizational Behavior, 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2022
vii. Lateral communication: Takes place among peers or members of the
same team or work group
viii. Followers’ reputations and perceptions of their competence were
affected by whether they communicated in a way that indicated the
importance of their idea to the organization’s goals
a. Also, supervisors are more likely to grant requests if the follower
was not seen as aggressive or self-promoting in making it.
ix. Upward communication is essential for leaders to implement change
because it facilitates the following:
a. Promotion of shared leadership
D. The Grapevine
i. Grapevine: Informal network of organizational communication.
a. Often rumor and gossip
b. Nonetheless, an important source of information for leaders
ii. Five motivators for grapevine communication:
a. Social enjoyment
b. Information gathering
iii. Grapevine rumors may be destructive:
a. Drain on productivity
b. Reduce profits
iv. Employees may engage in Internet grapevine behavior due to:
Instructor Resource
Scandura, Essentials of Organizational Behavior, 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2022
a. Familiarity with the Internet
b. Anonymity
V. Electronic Communication
A. Email
i. A primary mode of organizational communication
a. People pay less attention to social cues suppressing information and
are more uninhibited in emails, which may make harassment more
likely through email.
b. E-harassment: Harassment that occurs through email rather than
face-to-face interactions
ii. Netiquette: Email etiquette
a. Bad netiquette is a subtler offense than e-harassment.
iii. Amount of email sent and received is positively related to job
performance.
a. However, checking email frequently may result in interruptions that
affect the flow of work and is associated with avoidant decisional
styles like procrastination.
iv. Off-hours emails are often stressful.
a. Managers need to be mindful of employees’ needs to “unplug” from
work.
B. Text Messages
i. Text messages are far more likely to be sent from handheld mobile devices
than from desktop or laptop computers.
C. Social Networking
Instructor Resource
Scandura, Essentials of Organizational Behavior, 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2022
i. Social networking can contribute to power development, but comes with
caveats:
a. Current or prospective employers may check public profiles.
b. First Amendment does not protect employees by giving them the
right to say whatever they want about their job or employer.
ii. Blogs can be an important means of promotion for an organization.
a. “Smart brands use Twitter in meaningful ways, and most of them
use their brand name as a way to make sure customers can find and
recognize them.”
iii. Cyberslacking: Personal use of the Internet during working hours
a. Has increased over time
iv. Guidelines for employee social media usage:
a. Recognize the inevitable presence of social media
b. Dialogue with employees about social media
c. Employees can be great ambassadors if they use social media to
communicate about the organization they work for in a positive
way.
D. Videoconferencing
i. Most large organizations depend on videoconferencing to coordinate work
among employees who are not colocated.
ii. Advantageous because you are able to discern emotions through the tone
of voice and facial expressions
iii. Make global communication possible
VI. Cross-Cultural Communication
A. Intercultural communication: Communication that focuses on the behavior of
two individuals’ communication patterns
B. Differences in communication styles:
Instructor Resource
Scandura, Essentials of Organizational Behavior, 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2022
iii. Mismatches in these styles can result in uncomfortable silence and
misunderstandings.
C. Perceptions of time, individualism, risk, relationship orientation, and power may
affect intercultural communication.
D. Nine levels of differences on which cross-cultural communication may falter:
i. When to talk
ii. What to say
E. Nonverbal communication, like gestures, also vary from culture to culture.
i. Eye contact is valued in some cultures but rude in other.
ii. Personal space also varies by culture.
VII. Nonverbal Communication
A. Nonverbal communication: The sending and receiving of thoughts and feelings
via nonverbal behavior
i. Includes:
a. Facial expression (55%)
ii. Words spoken account for just 7% of a person’s understanding of a
conversational partner.
B. Information communicated nonverbally:
i. Display of personal attributes
C. Silence
i. Employee silence is the intentional withholding of meaningful information
from management, which includes asking questions, expressing concerns,
and offering suggestions.
ii. Employees who have negative emotions and also worry about their job
situation are more likely to withhold information.
Instructor Resource
Scandura, Essentials of Organizational Behavior, 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2022
a. Effect strengthened in roles with high problem-solving demands
iii. Climates of organizational silence emerge due to:
a. Organizational structures/policies
b. Managerial practices
c. Degree of demographic dissimilarity between employees and top
managers
VIII. Leadership Implications: The Management of Meaning
A. “Talk” is not limited to verbal, face–to-face conversation.
B. Leaders create a frame of reference for employees, particularly during times of
organizational change.
i. Manage meaning for followers, making the knowledge and skills in this
chapter essential
ii. Framing: the ability to shape the meaning of a subject, to judge its
character and significance
C. Five communication guidelines for leaders to follow in the management of
meaning:
i. Leaders’ nonverbal behaviors will also be interpreted, as well as their
noncommunication.
D. Effective communication from leaders relates to follower satisfaction and
motivation.
i. Good relationships with followers also positively influence team and
organizational communication.
E. Leaders influence followers through effective communication that helps them
make sense of organizational events.
Instructor Resource
Scandura, Essentials of Organizational Behavior, 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2022