Exploring Parental Approval and Disapproval for Black and White Interracial Couples

Black and White interracial couples encounter societal and familial assessments that create additional tensions and conflict for their romantic relationship. This study examines parental approval and disapproval messages and their impact on interracial couples. Interdependence Theory and Facework provide the theoretical frameworks guiding this qualitative, interpretive examination. Thirty-eight individuals who represent 19 Black and White romantic pairs were each separately interviewed about their experiences as an interracial couple. Of particular interest is the communication of parental support or disapproval. Data were analyzed using Owen’s (1984) thematic analysis procedures. Results reveal that interracial dyads both experience public disapproval and illustrate that not all couples experience parental disapproval. However, couples with dual parental approval were less bothered by negative outside experiences than were one-sided approval couples. Data also reveal the importance of parental approval messages and highlight the destructive nature of disapproval messages with regards to the interracial couple’s face needs

Grade Distributions in the Basic Public Speaking Course: Exploring the Differences and Pedagogical Implications of Faculty Rank

This study examines differences in grade distributions in the introductory public speaking course at two American universities based on instructor rank. A sample of 442 sections with 11,381 students over a 2-year period was collected and analyzed using analysis of variance and chi-square analysis. We found significant differences in grade distributions, with instructors assigning lower grades overall than graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) and adjunct faculty. Instructors assigned significantly more D’s and F’s than tenure/track faculty, adjuncts, and GTAs. Chi-square analysis also revealed instructors and tenure/track faculty assign fewer A’s, but tenure/track faculty assign more B’s than the other faculty groups. The results point to pedagogic implications of maintaining a high number of adjuncts and GTAs in teaching the basic course. Implications of the study are discussed including ways to develop a more inclusive instructional community and culture for adjuncts through course standardization, mentoring, assessment, and technology use

Shaping Student Activists: Discursive Sensemaking of Activism and Participation Research

As social media becomes a more potent force in society, particularly for younger generations, the role in activism has been contested. This qualitative study examines 35 interviews with students regarding their perceptions of the use of social media in social change, their perceptions of activists, and their level of self-identification as an activist. Data suggest that students use media to engage in offline participation in activist causes, because offline presents a “safe” place to begin their involvement. Findings also point to the unified pejorative connotations of the term “activist”, yet also demonstrate ways that students transform the negative stereotype of activists in a way that creates a more positive image of activists. Most participants in the study were able to see sufficient positive characteristics in behaviors they associated with activism to prompt the students to identify themselves as “activists” or “aspiring activists”. We offer 3 practical recommendations for teachers who seek to increase service learning vis a vis activism in their classrooms

Impact of Optimized Breastfeeding on the Costs of Necrotizing Enterocolitis in Extremely Low Birthweight Infants

To estimate risk of NEC for ELBW infants as a function of preterm formula and maternal milk (MM) intake and calculate the impact of suboptimal feeding on NEC incidence and costs

Embarrassing E-Mails In Organizations: Exploring Online Embarrassment And Identity Management

This study addresses a void in the computer-mediated communication literature by examining how embarrassment is commonly triggered in organizational e-mails. Facework theory is used to examine embarrassment and its implications for professional and organizational image. Twenty-one in-depth interviews were conducted and data referencing embarrassing e-mails were extracted and analyzed for themes. Two types of e-mail faux pas themes were identified: misdirected e-mail and faulty content. Theoretical implications of studying embarrassment in a computer-mediated context are considered. © 2009 Mudra Institute of Communications SAGE Publications

Promoting The Study Of Sentience In Theorizing Culture Shock

This theoretical essay examines the need for greater understanding of the cultural mind of sojourners by examining the role of embodiment and sentience in our theorizing of “culture shock” and cultural adaptation. Theoretical and empirical/experiential bases for treating sensual experiences as a basis and form of human discourse are provided, followed by a brief historical overview of the theorizing of culture shock and cultural adaptation. “Sensual shock” is advanced as sensitizing concept that serves as a corollary to existing theories of adaptation. A brief exemplar from previous research demonstrates the relevance of sensual shock to intercultural sojourns. Finally, the theoretical and practical benefits of this shift toward understanding cultural discourses in theorizing are explored

E-Priming The Listener: Sensitizing Students To Listening For Verbal Aggression

This paper argues that the concept of E-Prime (E′) holds practical benefits to effective listening for students of interpersonal communication. In advancing this argument, the paper includes a concise review of relevant literature on E-Prime, defensiveness, and conflict, with particular emphasis on verbal aggression. The literature demonstrates that traditional imperatives to reduce listener defensiveness need careful consideration. In fact, offering unqualified assertions for listeners to reduce defensiveness may place students at undue risk for harm. This paper reviews pedagogical uses of E-Prime in interpersonal communication courses. © 2009, Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

Texting In Their Pockets : Millennials And Rule Violations In The Hospitality Industry

This article takes a communication perspective to examine rule violations among Millennial employees. Rule violations are treated as a focal concern because they provide insight into how organizations socialize Millennials into their culture and how Millennials make inroads toward transforming the organization. Twenty-five managers in the hospitality industry were interviewed to learn about their perceptions of Millennial employees. Three categories of organizational rules are examined: policies regarding cell phone use, policies regarding requesting time off, and civility. These themes are explored with respect to how normative and code rules coalesce in order promote assimilation and change. The findings also point to the implications that new generational cohorts have for collective assimilation and change for the organizational culture and the concomitant implications for managers

Managers Making Sense Of Millennials: Perceptions Of A Generational Cohort

The study of generational cohorts has seen an increase in popularity in scholarly and popular literature. Millennials comprise the newest cohort to enter the workplace. This study explores how managers use social categorization to make sense of their Millennial-generation employees. Data were collected through interviews conducted with managers in order to learn how they viewed and described Millennials. Twentyfive managers in the hospitality industry were interviewed. Data were analyzed by searching for membership categorization devices (MCDs), then patterns in usage and meaning of the devices were explored. Three patterns were identified in using MCDs to reference Millennials: “kids”, “age group,” and “Millennials”/variations of the term. These findings are examined in reference to how they may inform managerial behavior as well as guide further study of generational cohorts

Expressions Of Dissent In Email: Qualitative Insights Into Uses And Meanings Of Organizational Dissent

This study explores the role of email in organizational dissent expression and employees\u27 perceptions of the rules for using this medium. Twenty-one interviews were conducted with employees who commonly used email in their job to learn about some of the ways email was seen as playing a role in organizational dissent by those who commonly use the technology. Thematic analysis of data produced two rules employees cited for email usage: be careful what is committed to writing (because of loss of message control and fear of being monitored) and maintain an appropriate, professional communication style (free of emotion, sent only to the appropriate people, and used for topics not needing face-to-face interaction). Three additional strategic roles of email in organizational dissent include emails as a means of promoting strategic self-presentation; email as a means of inviting dissent; and email as a means of documenting/archiving potentially problematic interactions. The implications of this study for existing and future studies of dissent are explored. © 2013 by the Association for Business Communication