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Communication technologies at work : organizational cultures and employee narratives
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Barnes, Sally-Anne (2002) Communication technologies at work : organizational cultures and employee narratives. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.
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Official URL: http://webcat.warwick.ac.uk/record=b1665431~S1
Abstract
This thesis provides an extensive analysis of new communication technologies
(NCTs), which includes email technology, the Internet, intranets, NetMeeting,
video-conferencing and audio-conferencing, within an organisational context.
These technologies have become ubiquitous in organisational life and work. The
implementation, integration and application of NCTs in this setting have both
innovative possibilities and negative consequences. Consequently, we need to
understand the implications of these technologies on organisational cultures and
structures. This is achieved throughout this thesis by focusing upon the context of
technology implementation, the transformation of communication and information
lines through and within the organisation, and the changing social networks and
interactions.
'Communication Technologies at Work' will explain and critically explore the
effects of NCTs whilst developing an understanding of the implications for its
employment in the work and the training settings of an organisation. It is based
upon the ethnographic study of a hi-tech organisation and draws upon the
narratives of the organisational members collected through in-depth interviewing.
Further data was collected utilising observational and survey methods. The
research methodology of this study is distinctive because NCTs were used as
methodological tools for carrying out the observations and distributing the
surveys.
Although a traditional methodological stance was adopted the study will further
develop this tradition. It will analyse the relationship between NCTs and
organisational cultural responses, by studying and interpreting the personal
narratives of organisational employees. This study offers an original
understanding of NCTs through the narratives of the organisational members and
this forms the basis for its substantive contribution to existing research in this
subject area. The importance of the narrated experiences of organisational
employees negotiating the introduction of NCTs will be emphasised throughout
and will be used to create the framework for the analysis.
This thesis will conclude that organisational cultures have been 'technologised'
through the application of NCTs. This is characterised by 'the ethos of technology
enthusiasts' and 'the ethos of technology sceptics'. These positive and sceptical
subcultures are embedded in the dominant organisational culture. Furthermore,
this study will demonstrate that organisational communication and information
flows have been altered, extended and interrupted with the advent of NCTs in the
work setting. Finally, the discussion of the role of these technologies in the work
and training settings of the case study organisation suggest that the consequences
of their implementation and use vary in these different contexts.
Item Type: | Thesis (PhD) | ||||
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Subjects: | H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor H Social Sciences > HM Sociology |
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Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | Technology -- Information services, Telecommunication systems, Communication in organizations , Organizational change , Corporate culture , Organizational behavior | ||||
Official Date: | December 2002 | ||||
Dates: |
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Institution: | University of Warwick | ||||
Theses Department: | Department of Sociology | ||||
Thesis Type: | PhD | ||||
Publication Status: | Unpublished | ||||
Sponsors: | Economic and Social Research Council (Great Britain) (ESRC) | ||||
Extent: | viii, 388 leaves | ||||
Language: | eng |
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