La polyphonie des valeurs et la valeur de la polyphonie

While human communication is inherently symbolic and thus potentially vague, ambiguous and polyphonic, there is a growing emphasis on certainty, accuracy and consistency in everything contemporary organizations say and do. Organizational messages about corporate values, in particular, are expected t...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inESSACHESS Vol. VIII; no. 1; pp. 9 - 25
Main Authors Christensen, Lars Thoger, Thyssen, Ole, Morsing, Mette
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published ESSACHESS 2015
Subjects
Social Sciences
symbolic communication
aspirations
change
polyphony
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Summary:While human communication is inherently symbolic and thus potentially vague, ambiguous and polyphonic, there is a growing emphasis on certainty, accuracy and consistency in everything contemporary organizations say and do. Organizational messages about corporate values, in particular, are expected to accurately and unambiguously depict the organizational sender "behind" the words. Current communication principles, in other words, seek to reduce or eliminate the polyphonic potential of symbolic communication. In this paper we challenge this trend, arguing that the polyphony of corporate values is valuable because it facilitates change by inviting alternative interpretations and stimulating participation and critique. Lack of accuracy in organizational messages - including inconsistencies between what organizations say and what they do - may be an important driver of organizational and social change, because such differences have potential to raise expectations and apply pressure on organizational actors to improve their practices.
ISSN:2066-5083
1775-352X