Examines city government managers' metaphorical language, documenting differences in number, type, intensity, and imagery of metaphors used. Identifies several organizational metaphor categories. Suggests that members of an organization share metaphorical meanings, and that there is an association between managers' metaphor use and subordinates'…

Describes a training program evaluation instrument--the Training Impact Questionnaire--which assesses the application of a specific skill to work tasks. Suggests ways of using the questionnaire in communication training programs. (MM)

Recounts a tale of sleuthing through a labyrinth of organizational culture as a hired consultant. Deals with ethical dilemmas, organizational politics, and marketplace machiavellianism. (SR)

Examines whether information lost or altered in a communication chain can be reversed. Concludes that within the boundary conditions of this experiment, information loss is reversible; that some losses are more reversible than others; and that people reconstruct orderly parts and omit details that confuse connections among the parts. (JAD)

Suggests that crisis communication should be a part of the larger issues of communication policy and strategy. Builds a case for the need to consider crisis communication in a larger context. Proposes a model of crisis communication content that may serve as a framework for research into the efficacy of communication during crisis episodes. (RS)

Argues the need to modify contemporary scholarly conventions that news firms expect open conflict between reporters and their superiors on policy issues. Notes that interviews at two newspapers and "Time" magazine suggest that journalists investigating their own organizations draw away from confronting key professional conflicts.…

Offers an analysis of how various feminist approaches to organizational communication can provide insights into the consequences of traditional gender interactions in everyday organizing processes. Advocates change toward feminist values in theory and practice of organizational communications study. (HB)

States that although crisis management has evolved rapidly in the past decade, the symbolic aspect of crisis management has been ignored. Indicates little research has been done to examine the effects of crisis-response strategies to see how they shape public opinion. Presents a list of guidelines for appropriate use of a given strategy (based on…

Explains that the battle to protect a corporation's image is critical during a crisis. Examines Toshiba's decision to sell weapons technology to the Soviet Union. Relates how the concept of "apologia" was used for insight into Toshiba's handling of the crisis. Argues that public relations in an image crisis is a battle for…

Explores how narratives reveal values, and describes a study of an organization's culture in which values were accessed through narratives. Illustrates how, through narratives, the expressed values enhanced understanding of points of harmony and conflict within an organization. (SR)

Describes a class activity to help students gain insights into the collaborative process and to launch them into a collaborative report. (SR)

Shows that self-assessments of leader performance were more favorable than assessments by team members for 12 of 13 measured dimensions of leader behavior. Finds agreement of leader strengths and weaknesses, but less agreement of the effect of specific leader behaviors on team performance. (SR)

Suggests the existence of a third major organizational role for public relations: "communication executive," composed mainly of corporate senior vice presidents of public relations and communication who report directly to CEOs. Reports on a survey of those in this role, and shows that communications methods used five years ago to…

States that one challenge to public relations practitioners is the need to foster communication between sources of industrial risk and persons who work and live in communities where this risk is located. Provides results of a survey of industrial hygienists and describes communication networks that the hygienists use. (PA)

Posits that narrative can provide a basis for a pedagogy of social action--one that enables students to understand the workings of power and cultural reproduction in professional settings and that fosters reflection, critique, and dialogue. Reviews narrative theory that supports this claim. Concludes by discussing the concerns about and the…