Strategic Ambiguities

Eric M. Eisenberg (Ph.D. & M.A., Michigan State University; B.A., Rutgers University) is co-author of the best-selling introductory organizational communication textbook (Eisenberg/Goodall, Organizational Communication: Balancing Creativity and Restraint, 4/e, Bedford/St. Martin's (c)2005) and is consid-ered one of the top organizational communication scholars and researchers in the field. A recipient of numerous grants and academic and teaching awards, Eisenberg also serves as associate editor to the fol-lowing journals: Communication Monographs; Communication Research; Management Communication Quarterly; Journal of Applied Communication Research.

Introduction: Laying Down a Path in Walking PART I. EMBRACING AMBIGUITY 1. Ambiguity as Strategy in Organizational Communication 2. Meaning and Interpretation in Organizations 3. Conflict at Disneyland: A Root-Metaphor Analysis 4. Reconsidering Openness in Organizational Communication - Eric M. Eisenberg and Marsha G. Witten PART II. TRANSCENDENCE AND TRANSFORMATION 5. Jamming: Transcendence Through Organizing 6. Miscommunication in Organizations - Eric M. Eisenberg and Steven R. Phillips 7. Dialogue as Democratic Discourse 8. A Communication Perspective on Interorganizational Cooperation and Inner-City Education 9. From Anxiety to Possibility: Poems 1987-1997 10. Openness and Decision Making in the Search for a University Provost 11.Transforming Organizations Through Communication - Eric M. Eisenberg, Linda Andrews, Alexandra Murphy, and Linda Laine-Timmerman 12. Flirting With Meaning PART III. A NEW COMMUNICATION AESTHETIC 13. The Kindness of Strangers: Hospitality in Organizational Communication Scholarship 14. Building a Mystery: Communication and the Development of Identity 15. Creating Clearings for Communication 16. Karl Weick and the Aesthetics of Contingency Conclusion

"This collection of essays is insightful, thought-provoking, and forward-looking. Erick Eisenberg takes on challenging positions, writes in a cogent and accessible manner, and always stimulates new scholarship . . . This work will be an important teaching tool, not just for the innovative content of the writing, but also for the historical narrative of organizational communication embedded in it . . . This collection of essays represents a body of work that provides the foundation for our emerging understanding of the relationship between communication, organization, and identity. Its legacy should prompt us to rethink the opportunities and challenges of communication in our increasingly complex world. The world that Eric Eisenberg envisions- and that he has encouraged us to create- is one that draws on ambiguity as a means to support both personal and social transformation. He gives us communication tools for living in a world that calls forth self-reflection, respect, contingency, dialogue, and peace." -- Steve May "Strategic Ambiguities: Essays on Communication, Organization, and Identity is a collection of essays perfect for college-level courses in either linguistics or business. It details the historical development of communications theories and comes from an internationally recognized leader in the theory and applications of organization communication. Chapters consider the basics of communication perspectives within business and the community environments alike, drawing many important links between the two. An important college-level discourse perfect for holdings strong in linguistics and business." -- The Bookwatch "Eisenberg's book is refreshing, in addition to its theoretical merits, for the presence of a distinctive human voice, unafraid to express passion, anger and hope. Readers will benefit enormously from the substance of his book, but also from its form." -HUMAN RELATIONS -- Dennis Tourish "Eisenberg's book is refreshing, in addition to its theoretical merits, for the presence of a distinctive human voice, unafraid to express passion, anger and hope. Readers will benefit enormously from the substance of his book, but also from its form. Many may also wonder: why is this kind of academic writing so rare?" -- Dennis Tourish * Human Relations * "This book attempts to not just reflect the evolution of the authors' work on strategic ambiguity, but also to analyze the subjects of attachment and the broader existential role of the individual in terms of identity construction and meaning-making." -- International Journal of Communication