Extracting Meaning and Relevance from Work The Potential Connection Between the Listening Environment and Employee’s Organizational Identification and Commitment

• Published in: International journal of business communication (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) Vol. 53; no. 3; pp. 326 - 342
• Main Authors: Reed, Kendra, Goolsby, Jerry R., Johnston, Michelle K.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01.07.2016
• Subjects: listening environment; organizational commitment; shared meaning; organizational identification; communication climate
• ISSN: 2329-4884; 2329-4892
• DOI: 10.1177/2329488414525465

This manuscript explores an organization’s listening environment as a mechanism used by employees to interpret organizational information and translate signals into meaning and relevance, culminating in identification with and commitment to the organization. Firmly grounded in theory and research from diverse academic literatures and research traditions, especially Social Learning Theory from Social Psychology, hypotheses are developed and then tested in a carefully designed study. Data collected from employees in a high-performing manufacturing organization offer an ideal setting for testing hypotheses, while holding other contextual variables constant. Statistical findings imply that employees who perceive work environments as being facilitative of interactive communication between and among employees respond with heightened attachments to organizations. The study’s results admonish scholars to include listening in future studies of business communication and organizational behavior, while managers are encouraged to assess the mechanisms their organizations use to facilitate an organizational listening climate at work.