Do You Know What I Know? A Shared Understandings Perspective on Text‐Based Communication |
| |
Authors: | Michael H Dickey Molly McLure Wasko Katherine M Chudoba Jason Bennett Thatcher |
| |
Affiliation: | Department of Computer Science and Engineering Technology Northern New Mexico College; Department of Management Information Systems, College of Business Florida State University; Department of Management, College of Business Clemson University |
| |
Abstract: | This article illustrates how the hermeneutic analysis of text illuminates how shared understandings affect our interpretations of lean communication in distributed work environments. It is proposed that in contrast to the pessimistic conclusions of media richness theory that lean communication channels cannot support complex or equivocal work tasks, miscommunications are not the result of technology, but rather occur due to a lack of shared understandings among the individuals communicating. An illustrative case study based on fieldwork in franchise organizations is presented to demonstrate the possibilities for how the hermeneutic analysis of coherence, invention, intention, and reference can be used to discover how workers create and recreate shared understandings through text. |
| |
Keywords: | |
|
|