No abstract

Although many have argued that listening is particularly important in organizations, few studies have examined listening and listening skills in this context. This study examined relationships between listening, communication related abilities, employee level in an insurance company, and upward mobility. The results indicated significant positive relationships between listening and other social cognitive and communicative abilities. While findings suggested that nonsupervisors tended to possess better listening abilities than supervisors, there was some evidence that better listeners were in higher levels of the organization and were more upwardly mobile. ven though listening plays an important part in the communication

Because of the importance of symbolism in religion, this study analyzes language use and storytelling in congregations of two religious denominations -Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee) and the Southern Baptist Convention -in Southern Appalachia. Interest centers uponrecurrent themes, stories, and metaphors in church leader talk. Attention is given to the role such language plays in symbolizing organizational values. While study findings showmany similarities between the two denominations, fundamental differences in church values are illustrated through both qualitative and quantitative methods. This study emphasizes the importance of stories andmetaphors in understanding religious lifeand the usefulness of discourse analysis in research on religious organizations.Although some research has pointed to the importance of storytelling in organizations (Martin, 1982) and even in churches (McGuire, 1982;Darrand and Shupe, 1983), sociologists of religion have paid little systematic attention to this methodological tool. The purpose of this study is to examine two forms of symbolic discourse, stories and metaphors, in congregations of two Southern Appalachian religious organizations, the Church of God of Cleveland, Tennessee, and the Southern Baptist Convention. The data gathered for the study illustrate the significance of storytelling for understanding organizational experience within churches.

This study investigates the relation between indexes of the development of interpersonal construct systems and the qualities of messages generated in response to persuasive tasks within the context of an urban police force. Hypotheses assuming that length of sem'ce as a line officer would predict less &eloped construct systems, and that more developed construct systems would predict message strategies that acknowledge the unique qualities of receivers found general support. In addition, the possibility of further relations between length of service and message variables was explored, but no substantial atidence was found for such effects. These results show the importance of environmental influences on construct development, and suggest that interpersonal perception and message behavior functionally adapt to the needs of organizntional participation.Within the field of communication, constructivist theory (Applegate, 1989;Burleson, 1987;Delia, O'Keefe, & O'Keefe, 1982) focuses on the cognitive and strategic processes that serve as the foundation for human interaction. This position views communication as based upon a system of social cognitive schema (Kelly, 1955) which guide our understanding of people and situations and thereby influence our communicative behavior. Within the constructivist framework these cognitive systems are seen as developing along two conceptually discrete axes: first, the sheer number of constructs available for social perception is thought to increase with development (referred to as "differentiation"); second, the quality of interpersonal constructs is considered to develop from relatively concrete evaluative constructs (tdlshorf) to abstract constructs more reflective of individual dispositions and motivations (securelinsecure). Constructivist research has been directed toward understanding developmental differences in construct systems and their influence on communicative behavior.

No abstract