Predicated on the knowledge that effective communication among medical personnel and patients is fundamental to the achievement of successful health care delivery, this paper addresses the practice of chaplain intervention on behalf of the patient in primary care to enhance physician-patient interaction. First the paper defines culture (in the…

A study was done of the communication and attitudes of college deans, chairpersons, and faculty in college music departments towards teaching, research, publication, community service, and institutional support. The study surveyed a representative sample of deans, chairs, and faculty from various disciplines at 453 institutions. The final sample…

This paper examines the change process that occurred in four elementary schools that implemented a participatory mode of school organization, the Accelerated Schools model. Methodology included document analysis and a total of 35 interviews with teachers, administrators, social workers, and parents. Findings indicate that: (1) the principal's…

A study highlighted the extent to which TV news directors and subordinates perceived negative reinforcement to be used to help establish working climate in their newsrooms, and examined the differences in their perceptions that working climate affects personal ability to do "best" work on the job. Twenty news directors and 40…

Ways in which humor is used as an administrative technique are explored in this paper, with a focus on its impact on school culture. Case study methodology is based on interviews with two principals and five staff members at a Tennessee high school. Following a review of transcript excerpts, the principal's use of humor is viewed through four…

The concept of superintendent "vision" as a key element of effective leadership is discussed in this paper, which develops a framework for understanding the creation of vision, its implementation and articulation, and organizational impact. Vision differs from strategy in that it represents a set of beliefs about the school district's aspiring…

Josephine County School District (Oregon) provided the Applied Communications modules to vocationally oriented students at its three high schools. The project's goal was to improve the communication skills of high school graduates. Each high school presented the program in a different manner; all offered English credit. Hidden Valley High School…

A study, the first comprehensive survey of its kind in Australia, gathered information on the state of Communication Studies in tertiary institutions in Australia. Conducted in May-June 1990, the study received 48 responses from 33 institutions (a 72% return rate). Extensive results included that: (1) of approximately 600 full-time staff teaching…

Focused on top managers working within administrative systems, this book identifies the major principles governing these managers' behavior. Since the organization's business and the manager's own career interests determine what occurs in an administrative system, the signals managers send out to underscore their own competence are also…

Organizational cultures are systems of publicly and collectively accepted meanings, beliefs, values, and assumptions that a staff uses to guide its actions and interpret its surroundings. In an effort to suggest concrete ways a principal can change or maintain a culture, three important elements of a school culture are discussed: content, symbols,…

The Administrative Medicine Program of the University of Wisconsin-Madison has developed a course entitled "Medicine and the Media" for clinician-executives and health care professionals who may assume administrative responsibilities. The course is designed to help students (1) understand the respective roles and demands of both the…

A report of an attempt to institute alternative systems of communication in a reading center in order to restructure and personalize student- teacher and staff-staff relationships. The objectives, rationale, results, and procedures involved in the design and operation of the support system are described, along with suggestions for future research.…

This monograph analyzes the philosophical foundations of research into the administration of educational organizations. The first part reviews past debates about the philosophical foundations of research in educational administration, focusing on three contending schools of thought: the empiricists, the phenomenologists, and the critical…

A study examined the role of emotion in organizational life (specifically, in a corrections organization) to determine the communicative circumstances and effects associated with emotional communication events. A detailed questionnaire administered to 105 employees of a state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation provided data on the nature…

A study examined organizational culture change to determine the effectiveness of a communication based intervention program to increase productivity and motivation. The cultural change was measured through a triangulation approach combining questionnaires, interview data and direct observation. Pre- and post-intervention data were obtained in the…