The SAGE Handbook of Organizational Discourse

Citation

Bullock, J. (2006), "The SAGE Handbook of Organizational Discourse", Leadership & Organization Development Journal, Vol. 27 No. 6, pp. 524-525. https://doi.org/10.1108/01437730610687782

Organizational discourse entails the study of an organization with particular emphasis on the analysis and deconstruction of language – spoken and written – used to enable interaction, create meaning, and construct a social framework. Discourse analysis allows a researcher to better understand the conditions, cognitions, and perceptions inherent in an organizational situation or setting. “This Handbook shows how the everyday attitudes and behaviour of an organization's members, along with their perceptions of what they believe to be reality, are shaped and influenced by the discursive practices in which they engage and to which they are exposed or subjected.” A post‐modern avenue of qualitative inquiry, discourse analysis is generally exploratory in nature and can be used to frame problems that are later studied using qualitative and/or quantitative research methods. Although discourse analysis is not routinely employed by consultants or business analysts to assess organizations, this research method is gaining popularity among those interested in the study of organizations and management. Multidisciplinary, theoretical, and complex, the absence of comprehensive, easy‐to‐understand resources had previously limited access to the exploration of discourse in organizational studies. These limitations have been abated with the publication of The SAGE Handbook of Organizational Discourse. This book is a valuable reference compendium for experienced researchers as well as those new to the study of organizational discourse.

A collaboration of prominent experts and authors, the Handbook received the 2004 Outstanding Book Award from the Organizational Communication Division of the National Communication Association. It has also received the praise and recognition of noted professors and scholars for the significant contribution made to the field of organizational studies through concise, relevant, and timely information on the literature, methodologies, and application of discursive analysis to organizational issues. The Handbook is organized into four parts, the first three addressing the domains, methods and perspectives, and discourses and organizing presented in 17 cogent chapters, while the fourth presents reflections on the utilisation of organizational discourse. Part I explores the domains or forms of discourse including dialogue, narratives, stories, texts, rhetoric, and tropes. Part II presents methodological approaches and epistemological perspectives including interaction analysis, conversation analysis, interpretivist approaches, multi‐level and multi‐method approaches, and deconstruction. Part III explores a wide‐ranging array of issues such as gender, power, culture, technology, media, and globalization “to show how discursive activity produces and mediates different organizational phenomena”. Poignant, reflective commentaries on organizational discourse written by experts in the field of organizational studies bring closure by challenging readers to consider the relevance of discourse analysis in organizational studies and to contemplate future avenues of research, but most of all, to “get real” about the value of organizational discourse to the field of organizational studies.

The SAGE Handbook of Organizational Discourse is ideally suited as a resource for scholars and researchers and is equally suitable for students and professionals interested in organizational studies. Well‐researched and logically organized, each chapter provides in‐depth information designed to support the reader while making a case for the relevance of discourse to the study of organizations. Solid content based on contemporary literature and research is presented in an easy‐to‐access format complete with structured tables and figures summarizing key concepts, notes, and references to allow readers to delve deeper into specific areas of interest. Key issues and debates are openly discussed – negotiation of meaning, intertextuality, cognitive approaches to organizational discourse, and reflexivity – to explain their role in evaluating the merits and contributions of organizational discourse to the study of organizations, as well as to provide guidance for future research.

Collectively, individuals within organizations employ language in the construction of social reality and to negotiate meaning. “Discourse analytic approaches therefore allow the researcher to identify and analyse the key organizational discourses by which ideas are formulated and articulated and to show how, via a variety of discursive interactions and practices, these go on to shape and influence the attitudes and behavior of an organization's members.” Organizational discourse offers the means to glean valuable insights into performance and productivity, organizational culture, identify, power, technology, and globalization in order to maintaining competitive advantage and successfully achieve an organization's mission. Practical, hands‐on guidance in the application of organizational discourse methodologies to address the needs of management is provided, supported by a wealth of information on forms of qualitative inquiry and methods of analysis derived from the literature and contemporary research.

The SAGE Handbook of Organizational Discourse is an interesting and informative reference that will be appreciated by scholars, students, consultants, and managers who seek to better understand the role of discourse in organizations. Given the centrality of language to the social construction of the fabric of organizations, the importance of discourse analysis in organizational studies is gaining greater recognition and emerging as a means of understanding organizational phenomena. The Handbook will serve as a guidebook to better understanding and a road map for navigation of this exciting avenue of inquiry.