Q 1. In examining the culture of Temple University, explain how its student culture is complicated, emergent, not unitary, and often ambiguous.
A1 Temple University’s culture is reflective of the city it is located in. It is complicated due to the numerous options you have while attending the school. You have the option of taking classes in person or online, at main campus or at a satellite location, you can attend four years and obtain your degree or transfer in after obtaining credits elsewhere, you can finish your degree in four years or take a break and return later in life. One student’s experience will never mirror another student’s experience at Temple.
Q 2. In what ways do critical approaches to organizational communication differ from the other approaches we’ve considered in the text (classical, human relations, human resources, systems and culture). In your answer, be sure to consider both the frame of reference of the theorist and the goals of the theorist.
A2 It appears the approaches differ in the manner they treat their employees but mostly in the assimilation process. The way you “merge” with a company dictates the avenues you take while handling situations within that company. Cox states an unpleasant communication environment can drive employees away; therefore the cultural approach would better suit the needs of the employees in mind. Roth was concerned more about the unspoken over the spoken issues and his approach would probably mirror the Critical approach. The Classical approach creates a typical streamlined process which does not take into consideration the person they hired. The interview process would be more fact finding versus situational and you never truly value the strengths (or weaknesses) of the employee in question. The Human Resource method also includes the opinions of the employees; therefore it also goes in the realm of what Cox states and what Roth states. It appears every theory created after the Classical theory is a direct rebuttal to specific aspects in the original theory.
Q 3. One of the Case in Point articles discusses how the job search has changed in recent years. Describe those changes and how job seekers could use information seeking tactics to assist in a job search in today’s world.
A3 The job search has changed because it has become more competitive and electronic. One of the ways you can use information seeking tactics is but creating a resume that computers can read properly (text resume). You can also use online networking to find and apply for jobs through sites such as linkedin. When it comes down to the interview you can use linkedin to research the company and find out information on your interviewer. You can research the specifics of what they are looking for in the position and prepare accordingly for your interview.
Q 4. Compare and contrast the affective and cognitive models of participative decision making. How do these models differ in their conceptualizations of the links between motivation, productivity, and satisfaction?
A4 The Affective Model of participation is based on the HR theorist and should address the employees higher order needs. If the employees feel as if they have been involved in the process the push back should be minimal. The cognitive method is the belief that the decisions should come from people with the hands on knowledge of the system (from the bottom up) that way the process has been changed using information from experienced employees. The Affective model is based on an illusion that the employees make a difference and in turn since their ego if being taken into consideration their productivity will go up. The Cognitive model takes the experiences of successes and failure from the POV of the hands on employees and creates a system that addresses situations that have happen. Productivity goes up because there is an answer to scenarios that not only CAN happen but has happened.
