OU - Dissertations

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Open Access
Activity, certainty, optimism, and realism: The verbal style in televised presidential campaign commercials.
(1997) Ballotti, R. John, Jr.; Kaid, Lynda Lee,
Presidential campaign commercials have been analyzed to determine their effectiveness with respect to length and style. However, to this point, no study has attempted to count and categorize the words used in the commercials. The current study analyzed 1178 televised presidential campaign commercials in terms of their activity, certainty, optimism, and realism.
Open Access
Adaptation versus fusion theory in the experience of returned LDS missionaries.
(2002) Callahan, Loy Clark.; Kramer, Eric,
This dissertation investigates the outcomes of theory-making, as well as many underlying assumptions surrounding intercultural contact. It does this by examining two competing intercultural theories, Kim's Adaptation Theory and Kramer's Fusion Theory, based on a specific intercultural encounter. This study concentrates on the theoretical descriptions surrounding what happens when individuals return "home" from living in a culture foreign to their own. In this way, determinations of acculturation, deculturation, psychological health, and cultural connection were made and then compared against the theoretical descriptions. Subjects consisted of 55 returned LDS missionaries, individuals spending 18 months to two years immersed in a foreign culture. Each was asked to complete a survey instrument measuring theoretical variables. Responses were then coded with concurrent descriptions of either Adaptation or Fusion Theory, followed by tests of significant difference. Results demonstrated that Fusion Theory was more descriptive of the experience of returned LDS missionaries. Other variables, such as time and co-cultural affiliation, were also identified as important in the intercultural exchange.
Open Access
THE ADDITION OF VALENCE AND NARRATIVE ENDINGS’ INFLUENCE ON THE RISK CONVERGENCE MODEL
(2017-08-01) Lookadoo, Kathryn; Wong, Norman; Bessarabova, Elena; Cionea, Ioana; Meirick, Patrick; Cheney, Marshall
The risk convergence model (RCM) was developed as a theoretical framework to organize research on media effects and narrative persuasion (So & Nabi, 2013). The model identifies social distance to a fictional character as a key mechanism through which narrative engagement variables impact media users’ personal risk perceptions. However, the model has only been tested twice (So & Nabi, 2013; So & Shen, 2015). This dissertation expands the RCM by adding parasocial relationship (PSR) with the character to the model. Additionally, the study tests the effects of character valence and affective disposition on social distance with an at-risk character. This dissertation also explores the influence of narrative ending types on risk perceptions. Finally, the study examines the duration of effects for personal risk perceptions. An experiment was conducted in which participants (N = 272) were randomly assigned to a character valence condition (positive or negative) and a narrative ending condition (uncertain, denial, or apology). Results indicated that a reduction in social distance to an at-risk character led to risk convergence. The study supported the addition of PSR with the character to the RCM because social distance mediated the relationship between PSR and character- and self-risk discrepancy. Character valence did not work with the narrative engagement variables, whereas results for affective disposition indicated a future role it could play in the RCM. Finally, narrative ending types did not significantly affect risk perceptions. Overall, this study’s results offer support for the RCM and offer new components to consider when testing the model in the future.
Open Access
An adjustment process and communication dilemma of people with disabilities in Japan.
(2002) Iwakuma, Miho.; Kramer, Eric,
Throughout their lives, people make various kinds of adjustments. Most people are capable of making adjustments in order to survive challenging experiences. This fact is especially true for newly disabled individuals whose lives have been turned upside down. An adjustment to a severe disability is accompanied by significant psychological (lowered self-esteem), physical (restricted mobility), and social (changed social identity, "disabled") changes, and such sudden changes also require short-term (physical) and long-term (psychological and social) adjustments. In other words, the investigation of adjustment to a disability gives social scientists a unique opportunity to study various facets of human adjustment strategies and processes. This research focuses on how people with disabilities in Japan have changed their worlds after acquiring a disability. The researcher used ethnography and an interview method to follow the participants' disability transformations for three years. Several themes emerged, such as information pooling places for the disabled, interacting with others with disability and adjustment to the disability, negotiation with the non-disabled, an early going-out as a prologue to the disability adjustment, changed perceptions toward the wheelchair, and changed communication with others, just name few. Moreover, based on these themes, this researcher generated three binary oppositions. They are integration-separation, defying disability-accepting disability, and independence-dependence. In the end, it was concluded that communication was the main vehicle for the disability adjustment. The researcher summed up that communication with others facilitated the participants' disability transformations, and in return, they adjusted their communication as they adjusted to their disability.
Open Access
Adolescents and communication regarding safer sex behavior.
(2004) Parker, Kimberly Ann.; Pfau, Michael W.,
As adolescent pregnancy, childbearing and STD transmission has continued to be a pervasive problem in American society, it has become more and more critical to understand the nuances of teen sexual behavior. Policy makers, parents, teachers, and community advocates are actively searching and advocating for interventions that will assist young people in reducing the risk associated with sexual involvement. Understanding the antecedents that predict adolescent sexual behavior has become an important part of developing interventions aimed at reducing risky sexual behavior among adolescents. Thus, this research focused on understanding the antecedents that predict adolescents' communication behaviors regarding sexual activity and contraceptive use.
Unknown
ADOPTING AND RESISTING EVIDENCE-BASED CALLS FOR CHANGE: DISCURSIVE RESOURCES IN ORGANIZATIONAL RESPONSES TO INSTITUTIONAL PRESSURES
(2019-05-10) Watson, Josh; Kramer, Michael; Bisel, Ryan; Oluwofote, James; Meirick, Pat; Jenkins-Smith, Hank
Institutional forces often pressure organizations to conform and behave in similar manners even when those actions go against an organization’s best interests. One particular U.S. football organization, known as the team that never punts, provided an excellent case study of the organizational communication practices of an outlier that rejects institutional forces. The organization adopted evidence-based management built on statistics in place of institutional traditions for calling plays. This case study identified organizational communication practices used to both resist and acquiesce to institutional pressures. The discursive resources used by the coach, who was an institutional resistance leader, and the members included legitimacy communication, aspects of appreciative inquiry and dialogic public relations, public relations framing, and leadership framing. The power of legitimation communication and framing can help leaders and members co-construct reality, preferred organizational identities, and hopeful anticipations of the future. Though some evidence (such as concussion data) may present such a threat to organizational identity that it will be rejected, confidence built on statistical certainty can persuade members to achieve organizational outcomes that outsiders consider impossible.
Open Access
Advice giving and the management of uncertainty for cancer survivors: An exploratory study.
(2005) Thompson, Sharlene R.; O'Hair, Dan,
Previous research on advice in supportive interactions has focused exclusively on facework, advice content, and receptivity to advice and has not systematically considered the effects of uncertainty management processes, information sensitivity and advice optimism. Further, this research examines advice and uncertainty management in the context of cancer survivorship. The current study examines the relative influence of target receptiveness, information sensitivity, advice content and advice optimism on uncertainty management processes, emotion coping processes, problem coping processes and advice evaluation. Participants (N=161) completed a questionnaire (online or paper) reporting on informal advice received after diagnosis. Results indicated that target receptiveness and advice optimism were positively related to problem coping processes. Target receptiveness, advice optimism and absence of limitations were positively related to emotion coping processes. Limitations of the study are offered and implications for future research are advanced in the area of cancer survivorship.
Open Access
Aging with Disney: Depiction of gender and age in seven Disney animated fairy tales.
(1997) Hannon, Carole J.
Walt Disney Productions is considered by conventional wisdom to be synonymous with wholesome family entertainment in the global marketplace. Parents and well meaning adults may use what they consider to be Disney's wholesome entertainment as a harmless baby sitter. This means very young children are bombarded with images and ideas that may influence their entire lives by a multinational conglomerate that has something to sell. This research utilizes a triangulation of methods to include critical, historical, content, and comparative analyses to systematically test the conventional assumptions concerning age and gender depiction in seven recent Disney videos based on anecdotal and fragmentary evidence that Disney products are mainly wholesome family entertainment, safely enjoyable by children of all ages. The study is significant because research on full-length animated films developed for the child's audience is almost nonexistent. The major findings of the content analysis are: (a) males appear in major roles more than twice as often as females; (b) major males are depicted as older (mostly in the 18-24 age category) than the major females (mostly in the 12-17 age category); (c) no birth mother is depicted for a major female character and only one birth mother is represented in the seven Disney videos (the mother of Simba, the lion prince), and she is cast in a non-speaking role; (d) males are most often perpetrators of violence (if young, to win the hand of the fair maiden; if older, for wealth or greed) with the exception of older females who are depicted as evil; and (e) major females in Disney are all romantically involved. The major results of the comparative analysis which includes both textual and contextual comparisons of Disney versus a "popular" fairy tale script posit that: (1) Disney alters ages and actions of major and minor characters to fit the "formula", (2) Disney creates "sidekick" animals to bear the brunt of violence and abuse and to dehumanize the consequences of dire actions, (3) Disney deletes most all women from the original fairy tale texts with the exception of the protagonist (good and young) and the antagonist (old and evil), and (4) these alterations are made for both ideological and commercial reasons to sell the Disney product (videos, dolls, games, etc.) to anyone who will buy. Global marketing and conglomerate control of media entertainment is, therefore, creating a pervasive "invisible crisis" in the world. A new, active, citizens' approach is suggested and recommended in the form of the Cultural Environment Movement (CEM). CEM's goal is to dissolve international boundaries and to build a coalition of citizens and organizations committed to joint action for the creation of a liberating alternative to free the cultural environment from the current proliferation of conglomerate control. The Disney conglomerate will alter their texts for profitability but have no incentive to alter the "megabillion" formula that works so well for them until informed parents and caring citizens shift their attention to creating action-based alternatives to the very real crisis within our media-dominated cultural environment.
Open Access
AN EXPLORATORY ANALYSIS: THE ROLE OF NETWORK STRUCTURES AND BOUNDARY SPANNER BEHAVIORS AS RELATED TO COLLABORATION IN INTER-ORGANIZATIONAL NETWORKS
(2011) Adkins, Gabriel L.; Kramer, Eric M
Using data collected as part of a grant project funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF# 0538924), an exploratory analysis of the latent organizational structures and boundary spanner behaviors that impact perceived levels of inter-organizational collaboration among organizational employees is conducted. The importance of inter-organizational networking and collaboration is illustrated, and gaps in existing knowledge are identified. Structural and communication factors that may have a significant impact on collaborative success are explored; specifically position in organizational hierarchy, levels of communication activity, channels utilized for communication, and directional communication flow. The analysis indicates that managerialism has a significant impact on inter-organizational networking, with those in the managerial class of employees having more inter-organizational connections, networks of increased structural integrity, and higher levels of network performance than non-managerial employees. Additionally, it was found that communication behaviors and channels for communication also play a significant role in the structural and performance aspects of inter-organizational networks. The implications of these relationships are discussed, and limitations of this study are addressed in terms of the study's population, instrumentation, and potential generalization. The study concludes with a discussion of possible future directions for research, specifically focusing on research opportunities within the contexts of crisis communication and emergency management communications.
Open Access
AN EXPLORATORY INVESTIGATION OF THE EFFECTS OF STUDENT-TO-STUDENT BENCHMARKING COMMUNICATION
(2011) Welch, Nakia Shawn; Johnson, Amy J||Bisel, Ryan S
Almost certainly, students communicate with each other about course-related material, particularly about exam performance. However, what is less well understood is how often student-to-student communication occurs, when it occurs, and the effects these interactions may have. There were three goals of this study: to (a) collect descriptive data concerning student to student communication behaviors, (b) study the effects of student benchmarking communication behaviors on student motivation and state self-esteem, and (c) study if and how grade discussion results in deception. College students (N = 539) completed questionnaires about student-to-student communication behaviors, followed by an experiment that positioned students in a hypothetical first-person narrative scenario where they received a grade of A, C, or F on an exam in a class in their major; after class, the student engaged in a discussion about grade performance with three other peers from the class who were either close friends or schoolmates and who all reported scoring either A's, C's, or F's on the exam. Student motivation to prepare for a future exam and state self-esteem were measured to determine the effects of this grade communication. Finally, students were asked what grade they would report when prompted by their peers, which indicated whether or not students would lie. Results indicated students most frequently communicate with acquaintances and close friends about course material during and immediately prior to class. This communication about course-related material occurs more often with those who the student feels close to, such as a friend, and less often with those who the student feels distant from, such as a stranger. Students also reported the purpose of communicating with others about course-related topics was to share information with others about class, either as an information seeker or information sharer. Ninety five percent of students confirmed grade discussion was a topic of student-student communication. Two factorial ANOVAs indicated main effects for student grade on motivation and state self-esteem. However, this experiment was unable to support the notion that peer discussion of grades affects student motivation or state self-esteem. Another factorial ANOVA indicated interaction effects and main effects of student grade on deception. This study partially confirmed that grade and grade discussion has an effect on deception. Major contributions of this research are (a) verification through systematic research that students communicate with other students concerning course-related topics, including grades, (b) the grade a student receives affects his/her motivation and state self-esteem, and (c) the grade and peer communication about grades affects the likelihood a student attempts to deceive others about his/her grades. Thus, results provide a picture of student-student benchmarking communication as common, complex, and sometimes deceitful. Student-student grade discussions are complicated social situations that can impact individual students both personally and academically and affect relationships between and among students.
Open Access
An analysis of Japanese TV commercials that feature foreign celebrities: A content analytic and interview approach.
(2005) Yamada, Michiko.; Kramer, Eric M.,
Overall, though Japan and the US are almost the same economically, the information flow is almost always one-way, from the US to Japan. In Japan, Western celebrities, Hollywood movies, and other American television programs, music, and magazines have all penetrated into Japanese society. On the other hand, the American audience does not know much about Japanese culture, except for some cartoons and animated characters. There are almost no Japanese celebrities seen in American television commercials, and few Japanese movies are available in theaters. Therefore, the US is a rather closed country in terms of media, though it is an open country in terms of interpersonal acceptance. On the other hand, Japan is a closed country in terms of interpersonal acceptance, but a rather open country in terms of media.
Open Access
An analysis of political bias in evening network news during the 1996 presidential campaigns.
(1998) Murphy, Janet Louise.; Kaid, Lynda Lee,
This study consisted of two phases. The first phase submitted the data set to content analysis. Coders' analyses included visual and verbal content and overall media bias. The coders coded bias on a five-point scale from "highly favorable" to "highly unfavorable." The second phase involved only those stories coded in phase one as highly favorable or highly unfavorable. Its purpose was to assess verbal and visual content in biased stories. The second phase utilized focus groups to identify interactions between both verbal and visual content. The conclusions provided exploratory data that may direct future research.
Open Access
An analytical and descriptive comparison of international communication systems in the United States and the Soviet Union as adapted for use in Saudi Arabia.
(1982) Al-jasir, Abdullah Saleh,
The study also includes an historical analysis of the domestic development of the mass media within the Kingdom. This information is required since any development of an international communication system will be based on existing domestic capabilities and technologies with appropriate expansion. In addition, there is a review of the structure of the Ministry of Information, a survey of the international communication department, and a review of the activities of the Higher Council of Information.
Open Access
An Ancient Practice in the Modern Age: An Examination of the Camino de Santiago and the Impact of Technology on Modern Pilgrimage
(2017-12-15) Jackson-Kerr, Roni; Kramer, Eric; Cionea, Ioana; Hsieh, Elaine; Marshall, Kimberly; O'Neill, Sean
For more than twelve hundred years, sojourners have been walking the pilgrim routes of El Camino de Santiago de Compostela, also known as The Way of Saint James, in northern Spain. With a long and varied history, the Camino de Santiago is a fascinating phenomenon. In modern decades, pilgrimage has become a popular area of study, and the Camino is no exception. Nancy Frey’s famous text, Pilgrim Stories, stands among the seminal anthropological works on the topic. However, much has changed in the two decades since Frey’s work was originally published. The most notable change relates to technological advancement. From online forums to wi-fi access in albergues [pilgrim hostels], the modern Camino varies greatly from even its modern historic iterations. The impact of such rapid technological advancement can scarcely be overstated. This dissertation seeks to explore the far-reaching impact of technology on the ancient pilgrimage, and the perceptions of pilgrims of the impact of technology along The Way. The Internet has changed everything for those who live within its far-reaching grasp, and the Camino is no exception. From the manner in which pilgrims gather information before embarking on their journey to the ways in which pilgrims stay in touch after returning home and every step in between, technological advancements have impacted the entire experience from start to finish. On the road, technology pervades the experience. While the Camino was once seen as an escape from modernism and a return to ancient ways of being, online pilgrim forums today are flooded with questions regarding the best “apps” [mobile applications] to download before starting the Camino, how to charge Smartphones and tablets while on the road, and what methods are available for electronically mapping the route. Pilgrims are documenting their journeys online through online blogs and social networking sites such as Facebook and Instagram. They are maintaining close contact with friends and loved ones while on the road with the aid of communication technology, and wi-fi can be found in most modern albergues and in cafes along the trail. This work seeks to understand the inevitable tensions and varying perspectives regarding the Camino in the modern age, the ways in which technology is affecting pilgrim interactions, as well as the reflective nature of pilgrimage in the age of personal broadcasting. Most importantly, this work will seek to explore the discursive and experiential elements of the Camino and the implications of modern technology on both discourse on pilgrimage and the experience of pilgrimage itself.
Open Access
Applying the ecological perspective to stereotypes: An investigation of older adult stereotypes as a function of interaction and context.
(1997) Folwell, Annette Leigh.
Findings from this dissertation support all hypotheses. A significant difference was detected in younger adults' perceptions of attitudes associated with older adults. Older adults in an interactive context were rated more positively than older adults in noninteraction and neutral contexts; also, older adults in noninteractive contexts were rated more positively that older adults in a neutral context. Further, a significant difference was found between younger adults' perceptions of attitudes associated with female older adults and male older adults; females were rated more positively than males. Finally, a significant difference was discovered in how younger adults perceive older adult language abilities across contexts; older adults in an interactive context were evaluated as having better language abilities than older adults in a neutral context.
Open Access
Argumentativeness, verbal aggressiveness, communication apprehension and their relationship to acceptance and support of decisions made in small groups.
(1999) Boam, Thomas Lee.; O'hair, H. Dan,
For analysis of the data, individual predisposition measures were the scores from the ARG, VA and CA questionnaire, and the behavior scores were tabulated from the coded group activity for each person. The "acceptance" criterion variable was measured by calculating the absolute difference between individual scores and the group score on the proposal rankings (Delta-Rank). "Support" was measured by the score on the individual exit questionnaire (IEQ). Using ANCOVA, a comparison was made of the resulting 12 relationships (three traits and three behaviors, compared with two outcome measures). The model also included demographic data from each of the participants to determine if age, gender, residence outside of the US, or length of employment had any impact on the results.
Open Access
The ATM approach ("ask 'em, tell 'em, make 'em"): Compliance-seeking at the security checkpoints of a federal government site.
(2003) Wray, Teresa Kelley.; Wieder, D. Lawrence,
Recent terrorist attacks in the United States have increased public concern with security screeners, yet research does not exist of communication at security checkpoints. The goals of this study are: (1) to initiate social science study of private police communication; (2) to add to the sparse naturalistic studies of policing from the communication perspective; (3) to examine compliance-seeking at the security check; and (4) conduct a discursive analysis of the everyday activities of officers during the security check at a federal government multi-building site in the Northeast U.S. The first four chapters are: (1) a short history of public and private policing; (2) instances of compliance-like exchanges extracted from 1960s/1970s policing ethnographies, one private police account, and news stories of security and SAS encounters at airports; (3) method of several months' observation, audio-taping, recording detailed field notes, and interviews of officers; (4) narrative account of typical work days at Government Buildings for both a public and private police officer. I follow Goffman's (1961) conceptualization of encounters; Hymes' (1974) ethnography of communication; Searle's (1969) speech act theory; Etizioni's (1961) concepts of normative, and social power; and Philipsen's (1975) concept of counter incidents all inform my analysis of preferred communication modes: politeness and acknowledgement, face needs and verbal immediacy after directives and reproaches; politeness as the normative power use through respectful address; speech acts and repetition; officer local knowledge and tacit knowledge. In sum the officer who subscribes to "being the bigger person" at Government Buildings employs, language that is generally polite (acknowledgements), treats others with respect (politeness) when possible and teaches (reproaches) when necessary, is warm but professionally distant (immediacy), and completes the job with efficiency (directives). I found a range of compliance (derived from on-site interactions or as-told-to examples): compliance that is complete, limited, limited with objection, passive-resistant, eventual with protest, non-compliance or avoidance, over- or distracted. Future research should be based in actual interaction, consider specific relationships within the larger organizational and cultural contexts, examine emotion management of self and others, look at the whole picture of nonverbal/verbal social influence, and study humor in compliance-seeking.
Open Access
Being an Indian among Indians /
(The University of Oklahoma., 1985) Pratt, Steven Bryan,
In order to address the phenomenon of Indianness a qualitative-ethnographic methodology was employed which involved participant observation. This entails a heavy dependence on inductive procedures which contrast with an a priori specification of the categories of analysis. With this method, the study permitted the subjects to specify what constitutes Indianness, rather than relying upon a preconceived conception of what Indianness is. The communicative practices identified are not exhaustive of the criteria utilized by community members to identify a true and competent member. Instead, the study is an exploration into the question, "What exactly constitutes a true and competent member of the American Indian community?"
Open Access
The Brain Trust Model: A proposed change to modern change management.
(2006) Epperson, Brian R.; VanGundy, Arthur,
The study of change management and innovation is a perplexing and challenging undertaking. A review of the literature revealed that change management practices and methodological frameworks are currently insufficient to counteract the challenges associated with leading and driving change within organizations. This exploratory study endeavored to ascertain the viability of a new, alternative organizational change and innovation model, the Brain Trust Model (BTM). The BTM combines the benefits of reliable NPD (New Product Development) processes, creative problem solving processes, and organizational change management principles to provide a robust and prescriptive methodological approach to change management. A three round Delphi study was conducted with leaders and experts within the profit, non-profit, non-secular, government and educational sectors to not only assess the practical utility of the model, but to realize improvements based on their expert participant feedback. Findings indicated that the BTM was considered a viable alternative to the traditional change management methodologies and could help mitigate the common obstacles to leading change. Finally, the study forwarded recommendations on steps to further augment the model and assess its applicability in varying organizational contexts.
Open Access
Building Resistance to Front Group Stealth: A Theoretical Merger Between Inoculation Theory and the Heuristic Systematic Processing Model
(2013) Harrison, Kylie Jeanine; Dunbar, Norah E
This experimental research tested two motivational factors drawn from the heuristic processing model (Chaiken, 1980) to understand the role of message processing in the success of deceptive front groups. This research extended a series of applications of inoculation theory as a strategy to confer resistance to deceptive front group messages. Pfau et al. (2007) found inoculation produced resistance to front group attacks; however Robertson et al (2010) did not. Front groups often shift responsibility away from politicians or corporations, use vague arguments, and hide behind deceptive names. This research explored whether a standard inoculation message is sufficient to generate resistance to front groups' messages or if an improved inoculation treatment called RAN (responsibility/arguments/names) inoculation is necessary. Potential differences in information-seeking behaviors between the standard, RAN, and control group using Camtasia software were explored. Finally, it was anticipated that individuals who receive inoculation treatments are more accurate at classifying front groups than controls. Participants were 226 students from the Communication research pool at the University of Oklahoma. MANOVA, multiple regression, and Chi-Square tests were employed to test the research hypotheses. There were no differences between groups on the motivational variables or message processing, however the RAN treatments were superior to the standard inoculation treatments in that they produced more focused information-seeking behaviors. Overall, those in both inoculation conditions were more accurate at identifying front groups than controls.