CCTP-752 Communication Theory and Frameworks Meng Li Structuration Theory CCTP-752 Communication Theory and Frameworks Meng Li

Background Developed by Anthony Giddens Originated outside the field of Communication Adopted by Organizational Communication scholars Applied into understandings of Organizational Communication

Core Concepts The Duality of Structure Dialectic of Control Actions produce/reproduce social structure Social structure enable/constrain actions Social structures eventually become social systems and institutions Dialectic of Control Reflexive agents always have the power to change the social structure

Metatheoretical Commitments Ontology Social Constructionist “Reciprocal and ongoing relationships with each other” Epistemology Subjectivist “If structures are not mobilized in practice, they’ll no longer exist.” Axiology Value-Supportive “Theorists work as change agents to support the value.”

Key Concepts Agency and Reflexivity Structures and systems Social world is generated through active agency. Agents rely on but are not dictated by resources. Agents are able to apply past experiences into current situations (Reflexivity). Structures and systems Structure refers to non-physical rules& resources. Rules: How to get things done routinely Resources: Things agents rely on to get things done Allocative resources: material objects Authoritative resources: non-material factors

Applications in Organizational Communication Organization Structure/Climate Genres of Communication Identification and Control within Organization

Example The movie trailer---The Box (2009) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVK-hVGqCpo The interactions between actions and social structures

Further Readings Peters, Gassenheimer, and Wesley J. Johnston, “Marketing and the Structuration of Organizational Learning” Christian Fuchs, “Structuration Theory and Self-Organization”