Research Plan
Research Question
The research question to be answered in the research project is how language is used in the construction of workplace culture.
Research Site
The research site where the collection of data will be performed is The Brumbies. This is a local company that has operations running over a decade. It specializes in the production, processing and sale of horticultural products.
Ethical Issues
There is a desire to acquire in-depth information to answer the research question satisfactorily. The use of covert research enables the researcher to collect this information uninhibited by the distrust of the subjects and the partial disclosure of information. However, the use of covert research presents ethical issues for the research project. One of the ethical issues is the deception of the subjects. In order to hide one’s identity, there is a need to misrepresent one; something that amounts to deception. The other ethical issue that results from covert research is the failure to administer an informed consent to the subjects before the start of the study (Li, 2008).
There is a consistency in the ability of ethnographic research to yield detailed information compared to overt qualitative studies and consent interviews. Citing the clamor for reduced restrictions for covert research and the value of the information to be collected, the researcher will make deliberate efforts to ensure that the chief executive officer is informed of the aim of the research, the data collection procedures, the use of the data, and also assured of the confidentiality in the use of the data collected. The researcher will also request the chief executive officer to withhold the purpose for his participation in the meetings.
Data Collection Methods
The researcher will use the participant observation data collection method. This method entails taking part in the meetings and observing the interaction between the employees. The use of the participant observation will allow the researcher access to the required information firsthand.
Linguistic Analysis
The researcher will perform a discourse and frame analysis of the information collected. The researcher will also analyze the semantics of the words used in the interaction between the employees to determine their meanings in various contexts. This will help get a more nuanced understanding of the use of language in shaping the culture at The Brumbies.
Project Timeline
There are various terminal activities that are required for the completion of the research project. The first terminal activity for the project is the development of the project plan. The completion of the draft for the project plan will be done by the 19th of May 2016. The second terminal activity is the completion of the research proposal. This terminal activity will be completed three days later on the 22nd of May 2016. The third terminal activity will be reconnaissance and seeking approval at the research site on the 23rd of May. Data collection will be done between the 25th and the 29th of May. The report will be ready on the 31st of May for submission.
Introduction
Language has an important aspect of culture. It is through language that culture is learnt. It is through language that culture is transmitted from one generation to another. While there are other elements that facilitate the transmission of culture from generation to another, language plays a significant role. Language takes several functions at the workplace and in other spheres of life, and through these functions, language influences the workplace culture. One of these functions is the instrumental language. This entails the use of language as an instrument through which to achieve some goals. For instance, when pitching a proposal for consideration, one can used language effectively to communicate the elements of the proposal. Other functions of language include regulatory language, informative language, interactional language, imaginative language, and heuristic language
The research on the influence of language at the workplace has evolved over time. Previously, the focus was on the interaction between the doctor and the patient and the use of language to in shaping the culture in a legal office (Holmes, 2009). However, there is interest in research on other areas in the workplace. For instance, researchers are now considering different institution contexts as well as different types of interaction at the work place (Holmes, 2009). These include the use of humor in workplace conversations, the structuring of talk during negotiations, the construction of culture through language, the use of small talk, and the use of technology in communicating at the workplace (Holmes, 2009).
This paper looks at the use of language in constructing the culture at the workplace. The research project will look for the various functions of language discussed above in the interaction among people at the workplace. Using appropriate methodologies, the researcher will determine how the use of language in a certain way contributes to the definition of culture at the workplace. The researcher will also rely on secondary data to aid in the discussion of the results.
Literature Review
There is recognition of the significance of language in influencing the culture at the workplace. This is shown by the changes in language that have been performed in various workplaces. For instance, criminals are no longer sent to prison, but rather to correctional facilities (Bowman, Ronch & Madjaroff, n.d.). The change in language in this way is meant to embed a human aspect to the prison system, to show that people who are sentenced are not condemned, but instead have a change to reform their behavior. The use of language in this way signifies a change in culture in the correction system to embrace more humane practices and approaches (Bowman, Ronch & Madjaroff, n.d.).
In the same respect, nursing homes have been accused of depersonalizing, infantilizing and distancing the patients under their care. Rather than use the word nursing home, these facilities are not referred to as nursing facilities (Bowman, Ronch & Madjaroff, n.d.). This brings a professional aspect to communicate the duty of the nurses in the facility to care for the patients admitted there. Further reforms in the use of language to influence a new culture include the personalization of patients admitted in the nursing facilities (Bowman, Ronch & Madjaroff, n.d.). Rather than the use of the diagnosis to identify the patients in the different rooms, the nursing personnel are encouraged to identify the patients by their name (Bowman, Ronch & Madjaroff, n.d.).
Humor is one of the aspects of workplace culture that is greatly influenced by language (Holmes and Marra 2002; Schnurr, 2008a). Different teams at the workplace interact in a different way. Usually, these differences are brought about by the peculiarities of the tasks and the team members. Humor plays an important role in the formation of the distinctive culture at the workplace. A study by Plester (2007, 2008) in information technology companies in New Zealand showed that the interaction in the communities of practices in those companies was characterized the use of humor.
The use of humorous language in these companies exhibited a challenging and masculine environment. Boxer (2002) reviewed the interaction in a brokerage firm in Washington DC and found that the interaction in the firm was characterized by bantering through the use of boasting and bragging, engaging in verbal duels, and also the use of witty comments. When the use of language in this way is sustained for extended periods of time, it becomes part of the cultural fabric at the workplace. This is because the humorous language forms part of the interactional mechanisms in the workplace.
The new employees in the workplace have to orient themselves with this aspect of the culture. The review of academic literature and the contexts of research on the influence of language in defining the workplace culture have shown that humorous language is used by leaders in the organization to facilitate the construction of a distinct workplace culture (Marra and Holmes 2007; Schnurr, 2008a). The authors also found that humorous language is used to install a style of leadership that is appropriate for a given organization.
Methodology
The study to determine how language is employed in the workplace to construct culture will be done using the qualitative approach. More precisely, the researcher will employ the participant observation approach to collecting the data and aiding in the analysis. The use of participant observation is advantageous for this study because it offers the researcher an unlimited access to the culture of the organization (Kawulich, 2005). Through this access to the culture, the researcher can obtain detailed information on the intentions behind the use of language in the construction of culture, the situations in which the use of language is employed in the construction of workplace culture, and also the behaviors of the employees in the organization under the new culture (Kawulich, 2005).
The participant observation approach also allows the researcher to participate in the unscheduled events at the organization thereby allowing the researcher to collect firsthand information. This is important because it relates to the quality of data (Kawulich, 2005). The collection of quality data facilitates the accuracy in the interpretation of the data collected, the formulation of new research questions as part of the recommendations for future research, and the development of new hypotheses (Kawulich, 2005). The collection of data will be performed at The Brumbies. The Brumbies is a local company that deals with the production, processing, and marketing of horticultural products.
The Brumbies has been in operation for more than ten years, a period during which the company has increased its employee base and also cemented its position in local folklore. Prior to the collection of the data, the researcher will make contact with the chief executive officer to seek approval for the participant observation in the business premises of the company. The researcher will also explain the modalities of the study and the requirement to take part in one of the meetings of the company, and that the meeting should be unscheduled to ensure that the natural surroundings are not altered (Kawulich, 2005).
Analysis/Discussion
One of the aspects where language was a significant influence in the workplace culture was in the review of performance. After reading of the official results and statements, the members would engage a spirited exchange or ideas, most of which would be done in a humorous was but with a hint of ridicule. The departments that had performed dismally were targeted. Upon further inquisition, I was informed that it was dubbed “good nature ribbing” and it was meant to challenge those who posted a dismal performance to improve in the next assessment cycles.
Even though the participant observation sessions coincided with official meetings, there was the unlimited use of informal language during the meeting. This was uncanny especially because the meetings were a forum to transact official business. The meetings were a forum through which the employees at various hierarchies in the organizational structure exchanged ideas and information regarding various aspects of the company. When I enquired about the uncontrolled use of informal language during the meetings, I was informed that the culture at the organization encouraged the sense of closeness, shared responsibility, and a common approach to meeting the goals. The use of formal language was seen to amplify the boundaries that are established by the job descriptions.
The employees at The Brumbies used language to as a way of communicating and at the same time constructing the workplace culture. This also relates to the identity of the organization (Zemliansky, 2008). When I enquired from the employees how they would describe the company, the prevalent description was the family environment where the employees freely communicated with others, helped others improve their performance, and genuinely cared for each others’ wellbeing. The use of language helps advance this identity (Litosseliti, 2014).
The findings of the participant observation are important for both research and workplace dynamics. On a research perspective, I found that the subjectivity during the collection of data influences the data collection process negatively. This is the case, especially when one’s perceives the use of language in a certain way by the subjects being observed as being demeaning or offensive. This is important for researchers employing the participant observation approaches to data collection.
The findings of the study are also relevant to understand the cultural dynamics, especially in the context of a globalized workplace. The Brumbies is a local company that has gained international reputation for the quality of its products. The company uses employees from the local community. Young people go to school hoping to get employment in the company. This means that the workers have a common culture outside the workplace, which probably facilitates the type of workplace culture. However, in a world where the workers are from cross-cultural settings, organizations have had to reform certain elements of their culture to accommodate others.
The participant observation was faced with several challenges. One of the challenges was the exclusion from the community of practice. This happened when the members used language with which I was unfamiliar. Additionally, the employees at The Brumbies had different but unique sets of language from and to which they changed. It was challenging to keep up with the changes in the language used. However, the facilitation by the chief executive officer helped in the seamless data collection. While I was introduced as a participant in the meetings, the members were not informed of my role. This was important because it forestalled the development of defenses that would otherwise have hampered the quality of data collected. The fact that the meetings were unscheduled also helped in maintaining a natural environment.
Conclusion
Language is the avenue through which culture is communicated. This is achieved whether inadvertently or deliberately. The employees at The Brumbies inadvertently communicate their workplace culture through the use of their language in the meetings. Through a participant observation approach, I participated in unscheduled meetings at the business premises with the permission of the chief executive officer. The collection of data was challenged by the unfamiliarity with some of the unique sets of language. One of the characteristics noted was the unrestricted use of informal language during the meetings and all other spheres of activities at The Brumbies.
This represented the use of language to construct a culture of closeness of the employees as well as to undermine the differences brought about by the position in the company’s organizational structure. The importance of objectivity in the data collection process was also underscored. The study found that language was important in the formation of the workplace culture and identity at Brumbies. The use of informal language is a projection and progression of the culture of closeness and personal responsibility for one’s work. The language communicated this aspect of culture to the new members in the organization. Its continued use helped the evolution of the culture of time.
References
Bowman, C., Ronch, J. and Madjaroff, G. (n.d.). The power of language to create culture. Retrieved from http://pioneernetwork.net/Data/Documents/PowerofLanguage7-9-1.pdf.
Boxer, D. (2002). Applying Sociolinguistics: Domains and Face-to-Face Interaction. Philadelphia: John Benjamins.
Holmes, J. (2009). Discourse in the workplace literature review. Language in the workplace occasional papers, No. 12. Retrieved from http://www.victoria.ac.nz/lals/centres-and- institutes/language-in-the-workplace/docs/ops/OP-12.pdf
Holmes, J. and Marra, M. (2002). Having a laugh at work: How humour contributes to workplace culture. Journal of Pragmatics 34(12), 1683-1710.
Kawulich, B. (2005). Participant observation as a data collection method. Forum: Qualitative Social Research, 16(2):
Li, J. (2008). Ethical Challenges in Participant Observation: A Reflection on Ethnographic Fieldwork. The Qualitative Report, 13(1): 100-115.
Litosseliti, L. (2014). Gender and Language Theory and Practice. London. Routledge.
Marra, M. & Holmes, J. (2007). Humour across cultures: Joking in the multicultural workplace. In Helga Kotthoff and Helen Spencer-Oatey (eds.), Handbook of Intercultural Communication (pp. 153-172). Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
Plester, B. & Janet, S. (2007). 'Taking the piss': Functions of banter in the IT industry. Humor 20(2), 157–187.
Plester, B. and Mark O. (2008). Send in the clowns: The role of the joker in three New Zealand IT companies. Humor, 21(3), 253–281.
Zemliansky, P. (2008). Handbook of research on virtual workplaces and the new nature of business practices. Hershey PA: IGI Global
