Because investigations of organizational communication involve the intersection of two complex concepts – organization and communication – the discipline of organizational communication involves a number of diverse topical interests. Most scholars would agree that “organizations” are social collectives, embedded in a larger environment, in which activities are coordinated to achieve individual and collective goals. The
Organizational behavior (OB) can be defined as the study of human behavior in the workplace. More specifically, investigators employ the principles of the scientific method to help them understand, predict, and manage employee behavior. The knowledge that follows rigorous, systematic study is used to enhance the productivity of organizations and the quality of work life
Organizational development (OD) is a field of professional practice focused on facilitating organizational change and improvement. The theory and practice of OD is grounded in both the social and behavioral sciences. The field originated in the 1960s and has been evolving ever since. This evolution has been influenced by a wide range of disciplines including
Change has been considered the most reliable constant within organizations. Yet, although the phenomenon has been recognized as important for years, organizational change is one of the least understood aspects of organization life, evidenced by numerous failed initiatives. In spite of the books and articles written about managing change, perhaps the paradox between prevalence and
The term organizational climate has been used in many different ways to refer to a wide variety of constructs. In recent years some consensus about what precisely should be included in the construct—and what should not be included in the construct—has begun to emerge. Research interest in climate has remained high, despite the variety of
Formal organizational communication is not an easily defined term. Organizational communication is a complicated phenomenon that has no clear boundaries. Several definitions attempt to conceptualize the abstract nature of organizational communication. The study of organizational communication involves the intersection of two complex and dynamic concepts: organizations and communications. An organization has three primary characteristics: Social
Some scholars argue that the informal organization is more powerful than the formal organization. Scholars also suggest that a great deal of communication in organizations is informal communication. Elton Mayo and his famous Hawthorne studies found that informal communication influenced the development and reinforcement of performance standards, member expectations, and values at the work group
Organizational image refers to people’s global impressions of an organization; it is defined as people’s loose structures of knowledge and beliefs about an organization. Organizational image represents the net cognitive reactions and associations of customers, investors, employees, and applicants to an organization’s name. Accordingly, it serves as a template to categorize, store, and recall organization-related
The term organizational politics refers to the informal ways people try to exercise influence in organizations through the management of shared meaning. As such, politics should be viewed as neither an inherently bad nor good phenomenon but rather one to be observed, analyzed, and comprehended to gain a more informed understanding of organizations and how
It has been broadly reported that change is happening at an accelerated rate in organizations. As a result, employees are constantly required to understand the changes, cope with the challenges, and ultimately adapt. In this environment, a typical employee response is to resist the change. A recent review of empirical research on reactions to change