Svenja Widdershoven, Mark Pluymaekers, Haithem Zourrig, Paul Sinclair, Josée M. M. Bloemer
{"title":"Calming the Storm: How Non-Negative Messages From Fellow Consumers Can Dispel Negativity in a Social Media Firestorm","authors":"Svenja Widdershoven, Mark Pluymaekers, Haithem Zourrig, Paul Sinclair, Josée M. M. Bloemer","doi":"10.1177/23294884231200244","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/23294884231200244","url":null,"abstract":"This research explores the potential of non-negative consumer messages to counteract negativity in social media firestorms through emotional contagion. 1,186 tweets were examined in response to a McDonald’s Japan service issue, revealing that non-negative messages tend to align emotionally with preceding messages. This suggests a temporary mitigation of negativity. Investigating emotional contagion within social media firestorms challenged the prevailing notion of negativity bias, indicating a focus on maintaining a positive affective state. Practical implications suggest organizations should monitor and acknowledge non-negative messages during crises to identify advocates and gain insights into subnetwork impact. Incorporating elements from contagious non-negative posts in responses can help mitigate reputational damage. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of emotional contagion dynamics in social media firestorms, aiding organizations in managing their online reputation during crises.","PeriodicalId":45593,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Business Communication","volume":"34 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136314460","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"“Doesn’t Really Answer My Question . . .”: Exploring Customer Service Interactions on Twitter","authors":"Ursula Lutzky","doi":"10.1177/23294884231200247","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/23294884231200247","url":null,"abstract":"This article explores customer service interactions between the Irish airline Ryanair and its passengers on the social networking platform Twitter. Using a corpus linguistic methodology, it investigates a 1-million-word corpus of Twitter threads comprising tweets addressed to and posted by Ryanair between August 2018 and July 2019. Studying the communicative strategies used in the corpus reveals customers’ main concerns and causes for complaint, and how the airline addresses these in their response tweets offering assistance to passengers. In addition, the analysis of customer response tweets to these corporate replies allows insights into customers’ reactions to and perception of the (often generic) answers they receive. The aim of this case study is to gain further understanding of the linguistic and communicative features that characterize customer service interactions online, and the attitudes customers voice toward them, with a view to streamlining customer communication and improving levels of customer satisfaction.","PeriodicalId":45593,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Business Communication","volume":"28 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136314647","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Expression of Customer (Dis)satisfaction in Online Restaurant Reviews: The Relationship Between Adversative Connective Constructions and Star Ratings","authors":"Matthew J. Baker, Brett Hashimoto","doi":"10.1177/23294884231200245","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/23294884231200245","url":null,"abstract":"Online restaurant reviews contain expressions of customer expectations in prose as well as in star ratings that indicate overall customer satisfaction. In prose, one way customers communicate that expectations are or are not met is through a grammatical construction called adversative connectives (ACs) (i.e., constituents such as but, although, however, and even though). In the present study, we examine the relationship between star ratings and customers’ use of ACs by employing a combination of content analysis, mixed-effects models, and thematic analysis in a corpus of nearly 35,000 online reviews for restaurants located in the United States. The results reveal an important way customers communicate their (dis)satisfaction online. Specifically, the statistical modeling indicates that the ACs used and the content they emphasize have a significant relationship with star ratings. Restaurant owners can use these findings to focus on the most important information in customer reviews, especially when they are sifting through many reviews or through reviews for which no summative rating is provided.","PeriodicalId":45593,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Business Communication","volume":"9 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136314449","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Cultural Value Adaptation in Advertising is Effective, But Not Dependable: A Meta-Analysis of 25 Years of Experimental Research","authors":"Jos Hornikx, Anne Janssen, Daniel J. O’Keefe","doi":"10.1177/23294884231199088","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/23294884231199088","url":null,"abstract":"Advertisers sometimes use value appeals that are adapted to their specific cultural audience. After a meta-analysis in 2009 showing cultural value adaptation to be effective, new studies have been published and the advertising landscape has rapidly changed. The current meta-analysis involving about 120 comparisons of adapted versus unadapted value appeals on persuasion and ad liking presents three results. First, cultural value adaptation effects in advertising exist (persuasion: mean r = .049; ad liking: mean r = .055). Second, these adaptation effects have diminished over time (correlations between year of publication and persuasion effects: r = −.152; between year of publication and ad liking: r = −.185). Third, the adaptation effects do not allow for dependable advice for practitioners. We discuss these results in the context of globalization and the standardization-adaptation debate.","PeriodicalId":45593,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Business Communication","volume":"37 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135307127","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Expressing and Responding to Customer (Dis)satisfaction Online: New Insights From Discourse and Linguistic Approaches","authors":"Nicolas Ruytenbeek, Sofie Decock","doi":"10.1177/23294884231199740","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/23294884231199740","url":null,"abstract":"In the current era of digitalization, customers are routinely invited to express their (dis)satisfaction with a product or a service and to provide recommendations for other prospective customers by writing reviews on a variety of online social media platforms. Such forms of electronic word-of-mouth have been found to strongly influence other consumers’ purchase decisions. In the case of negative reviews, the negativity expressed in a particular comment can spread to the whole community, which can damage a company’s reputation and profits. In an attempt to take consumer feedback into account, companies engage in “webcare.” This type of online service encounter has been defined by van Noort and Willemsen as “the act of engaging in online interactions with (complaining) consumers, by actively searching the web to address consumer feedback (e.g., questions, concerns, and complaints).” Following-up on these developments, scholars have started to research the communicative strategies used by companies to address consumer feedback and those used by (dis)satisfied customers to voice their (dis)satisfaction from the perspective of discourse analysis and linguistic pragmatics, paying attention to their linguistic realizations and their interactional dynamics. The aim of this Special Issue is to further expand our knowledge on the discourse-pragmatic strategies used in the interaction of (dis)satisfied customers and companies online, and on how these different strategies influence other prospective customers’ perceptions, ultimately impacting their purchase decisions. In doing so, it positions itself at the crossroads of linguistics, communication, and business studies.","PeriodicalId":45593,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Business Communication","volume":"10 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"134912155","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Words Matter: Measuring the Co-Operative Identity Crisis","authors":"Marc-Andre Pigeon, Daphne Rixon","doi":"10.1177/23294884231196893","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/23294884231196893","url":null,"abstract":"Identity is at the core of a rich body of business communications research, spanning studies on organizational identity, branding, and corporate social responsibility. This work has, however, neglected the question of corporate identity from the perspective of co-operatives—democratically-controlled businesses owned and controlled by their users—and the existential challenge posed by an operating environment often hostile to the business model. At the same time, the question of identity permeates the scholarly organizational and co-operative literature, shaping studies into co-operative identity crises, isomorphism, and from a transactions-cost economics perspective, the co-operative lifecycle. Bridging these literatures, we develop a first-ever conceptual dictionary of terms that we associate with co-operative and investor-owned firms (IOFs). Using text-as-data techniques, we apply the dictionary to a 15-year sample of credit union (a type of co-operative) and bank (IOFs) annual report texts. The resulting model ranks credit unions and banks on a co-op versus IOF firm scale and identifies credit unions that may be at risk of losing their identity because of their use of IOF language. To validate our results, we employ a variety of strategies, including novel machine learning models. Generally, these strategies support the findings from our dictionary model but also suggest the model may not be picking up on some creeping isomorphic pressures on credit unions to conform to IOF language. We conclude by noting that identity questions have important real-world implications, noting potential legal and public policy implications (e.g., loss of preferential tax measures) and pointing to literature that associates co-operative “identity crises” with business failures and demutualizations which, in turn, can lead to higher consumer prices.","PeriodicalId":45593,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Business Communication","volume":"8 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135452280","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
J. F. Willett, Danielle LaGree, Haejung Shin, J. Houston, Margaret Duffy
{"title":"The Role of Leader Communication in Fostering Respectful Workplace Culture and Increasing Employee Engagement and Well-Being","authors":"J. F. Willett, Danielle LaGree, Haejung Shin, J. Houston, Margaret Duffy","doi":"10.1177/23294884231195614","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/23294884231195614","url":null,"abstract":"Although communication is commonly recognized as an indispensable element of leadership, less is known about how leadership communication interacts with workplace respect to affect employee outcomes. We surveyed 1,512 U.S. working adults to test a model that examines the relationship of leadership communication, two types of workplace respect, and occupational resilience with employee engagement and well-being. We found that leadership communication was not associated with employee engagement and well-being; however, it was positively related to respectful engagement (generalized respect extended to employees because they are part of the organization) and autonomous respect (individualized respect that recognizes specific achievements). Leadership communication was negatively associated with occupational resilience, while employee engagement and well-being were positively associated with occupational resilience, respectful engagement, and autonomous respect. Our findings indicate that leadership communication contributes to a respectful workplace culture that then positively affects employee engagement and well-being.","PeriodicalId":45593,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Business Communication","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2023-08-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48216091","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Notes From the Editors: 60 Years Young and a Work in Progress","authors":"Jacqueline Mayfield, Milton Mayfield","doi":"10.1177/23294884231189909","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/23294884231189909","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":45593,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Business Communication","volume":"122 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-08-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135817580","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"How Avoidant Leadership Style Turns Employees Into Adversaries: The Impact of Laissez-Faire Leadership on Employee-Organization Relationships and Employee Communicative Behavior","authors":"Jie Jin, L. Men","doi":"10.1177/23294884231190397","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/23294884231190397","url":null,"abstract":"The study aimed to establish linkages among laissez-faire leadership, perceived organizational justice, employee-organization relationships, and employees’ negative megaphoning behavior. Through an online survey of 397 employees working in large and medium corporations in the United States and the structural equation modeling analysis of the data, this study revealed the following findings. Results showed that laissez-faire leadership and employees’ engagement in negative megaphoning behavior were positively related. There was also a strong and positive association between perceived organizational justice and employee-organization relationships. Employees’ relationships with the organization were negatively related to employees’ engagement in negative megaphoning behavior. Perceived organizational justice was revealed as a mediator in the relationship among laissez-faire leadership, employee-organization relationships, and employees’ engagement in negative megaphoning behavior. These results show how laissez-faire leadership relates to negative outcomes of organizational relationships and reputation, and provide insight into the potential mechanisms at play.","PeriodicalId":45593,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Business Communication","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2023-08-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42834497","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Y. Qin, Marcia W. DiStaso, A. Fitzsimmons, Eve R. Heffron
{"title":"Communicating the Big Picture With Employees: The Impacts of CEO Vision Communication on Employee Engagement","authors":"Y. Qin, Marcia W. DiStaso, A. Fitzsimmons, Eve R. Heffron","doi":"10.1177/23294884231190387","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/23294884231190387","url":null,"abstract":"Communicating an organizational vision with employees can be critical to help employees internalize the vision, which might in turn increase their willingness to get engaged with the work and subsequently achieve higher goals. The aim of this study is to examine whether and how CEO vision communication could influence employee engagement. This study also proposed employees’ perceptions of work meaningfulness and organizational identification as the potential underlying mechanism that mediates the relationship between CEO vision communication and employee engagement. An online survey was conducted with employees across various industries in the U.S.","PeriodicalId":45593,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Business Communication","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2023-07-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45355816","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}