Robert D Mcphee
Biographic Data
| ID | 84746 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Robert D Mcphee |
| GIVEN NAMES | Robert D |
| FAMILY NAME | Mcphee |
| SIGNATURE | MCPHEE R D |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-4624-9007 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 24 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 114 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 24 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1979 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 6 |
Intellectual autonomy as the aim of critical thinking
Critical thinking is often nominated as a graduate attribute, a learning outcome, and is even offered as a discrete subject in schools and universities. Therefore, it is important to gain clarity about the fundamental goal or purpose of critical thinking education. What should instructors be aiming at when they seek to instil critical thinking in their students? In this paper, we argue that the aim of critical thinking is the achievement and main…
Models of Communication
Communication models, some famous and widely influential, have represented and guided communication theories and their application since the field's early days. Topics covered here include the definition of models as translations of conceptions or theories into systemic forms that are representative of a focal real domain, in some way and for some purpose ; the nature, construction, and evaluation of models; and the three main types of models: mo…
Structuration Theory
Structuration theory is a general social theory that enjoys significant influence across disciplines. It has guided theorizing and research in communication, especially in organizational and group communication. The theory is distinctive in its devotion to overcoming clashes among empiricist, interpretive, and critical perspectives, and between micro‐ and macro‐oriented scholarship. Its perspective emphasizes concepts of practice, agency, and tim…
The Three Schools of CCO Thinking
The idea of the communicative constitution of organizations (CCO) has gained considerable attention in organizational communication studies. This rather heterogeneous theoretical endeavor is driven by three main schools of thought: the Montreal School of Organizational Communication, the Four-Flows Model (based on Giddens’s Structuration Theory), and Luhmann’s Theory of Social Systems. In this article, we let proponents of all three schools direc…
Structuration Theory
Influences on Member Assimilation in Workgroups in High-Reliability Organizations
Journal Article Influences on Member Assimilation in Workgroups in High-Reliability Organizations: A Multilevel Analysis Get access Karen Kroman Myers, Karen Kroman Myers 1Department of Communication, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106-4020 1Karen Kroman Myers; Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Robert D. McPhee Robert D. McPhee 2Hugh Downs School of Human Communication, Arizona State Universit…
Text, Agency, and Organization in the Light of Structuration Theory
This article argues for three linked conceptions. First is a conception of ‘a text’ as characterized by three features: a text is symbolic; it is inscribed as symbols on a relatively permanent, ‘readable’ medium such as paper or CD; and it has a coherent enough structure to be dealt with by interpretive processes or technologies such as financial processing. The second conception is that of an organization as a stable relational system grounded i…
Studying Complex Discursive Systems
Scholars increasingly theorize about the power of communication to organize and structure social collectives. However, two factors threaten to impede research on these theories: limitations in the scope and range of existing methods for studying complex systems of communication and the large volume of communication produced by even small collectives. Centering resonance analysis (CRA) is a new text analysis method that has broad scope and range a…
Organizational Theory, Organizational Communication, Organizational Knowledge, and Problematic Integration
In this paper we argue that 3 traditions of theory about organizational communication have special relevance to the ideas of problematic integration theory. In the rational structure tradition, organizations are described as mechanisms for suppressing or overcoming integration problems, as rationally designed communication processes achieve a system-level resolution that may ignore or override any individually experienced integration problems. In…
Organizational Theory, Organizational Communication, Organizational Knowledge, and Problematic Integration
In this paper we argue that 3 traditions of theory about organizational communication have special relevance to the ideas of problematic integration theory. In the rational structure tradition, organizations are described as mechanisms for suppressing or overcoming integration problems, as rationally designed communication processes achieve a system-level resolution that may ignore or override any individually experienced integration problems. In…
A study and extended theory of the structuration of climate
In this paper we report on a longitudinal case study of an administrative unit of a large nonfederal government following the election of a new Chief Elective Official. In this case, the changing climate becomes a dominant characteristic of the emerging situation. Poole and McPhee's (1983) extension of Giddens' Structuration Theory is employed as an analytic framework, tracing through the evolution and transformation of climate themes in the case…
An activity‐based theory of communication networks in organizations, applied to the case of a local church
This article applies Feld's (1981) focus theory to build the argument that the activities of a local church are organized by a latent hierarchy of activation. Because communication occurs in the context of practices that attend these activities, hypotheses about the number and kinds of links in members' personal networks are advanced. Stochastic analysis based on Lazarsfeld's (1950) latent distance model was applied to data on members' participat…
Response to Hoffman and Kleinman
Journal Article Response to Hoffman and Kleinman Get access Robert D. McPhee Robert D. McPhee 1University of Wisconsin—Milwaukee Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Human Communication Research, Volume 21, Issue 1, September 1994, Pages 60–63, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2958.1994.tb00339.x Published: 17 March 2006
Cultural-Ideological Modes of Control
(1993). Cultural-Ideological Modes of Control: An Examination of Concept Formation. Annals of the International Communication Association: Vol. 16, Communication Yearbook 16, pp. 43-43
Causal modeling in communication research
The logic and procedures of causal modeling can help researchers avoid errors arising in more traditional analyses in a number of commonly occurring cases. A table of cases requiring causal modeling, or an equivalent technique, is presented. Nine years of published research in communication journals are reviewed to assess the adequacy of analysis in these situations. Standards for the conduct and reporting of causal modeling are also offered alon…
A model of social network development in organizations
(1986). A model of social network development in organizations. Central States Speech Journal: Vol. 37, No. 1, pp. 8-18
Group decision‐making as a structurational process
This essay presents a theory of group decision‐making. Utilizing recent advances in structuration theory, which focuses on the production and reproduction of social systems through the application of generative rules and resources, the new conceptualization is presented and its advantages over previous formulations are explored. Results from an ongoing research program are summarized as partial substantiation of the perspective
A comparison of normative and interactional explanations of group decision‐making
Research on group decision‐making in speech communication has assumed interaction processes are important determinants of group decisions. However, major psychological theories of group decision‐making challenge this assumption. This study tested a prominent social psychological theory, Davis's Social Decision Scheme Model, against an interaction‐based model of group decision‐making, the Valence Distribution Model recently developed by McPhee, Po…
Message-Attitude-Behavior Relationship
For many years, there has been a need in the social and behavioral sciences for a single volume providing a precise and careful treatment of axiomatic, causal processes, and sets-of-laws approaches to theory construction. In this volume, we have brought together applications of stochastic, path analytic, and multidimensional scaling research methodologies to advance understanding of one of the behavioral sciences' most troublesome problems: the d…
Mathematical Modeling in Communication Research
(1981). Mathematical Modeling in Communication Research: An Overview. Annals of the International Communication Association: Vol. 5, Communication Yearbook 5, pp. 159-191
The Valence Model Unveiled
Attitudes, Behaviors, and Messages
A new analysis of Daly's “assessment of social‐communicative anxiety via self reports
(1980). A new analysis of Daly's “assessment of social‐communicative anxiety via self reports: A comparison of measures”. Communication Monographs: Vol. 47, No. 2, pp. 149-152
Commonality Analysis
Commonality analysis is a procedure for decomposing R2 in multiple regression analyses into the percent of variance in the dependent variable associated with each independent variable uniquely, and the proportion of explained variance associated with the common effects of predictors. Commonality analysis thus sheds additional light on the magnitude of an obtained multivariate relationship by identifying the relative importance of all independent …
Group decision‐making as a structurational process
This essay presents a theory of group decision‐making. Utilizing recent advances in structuration theory, which focuses on the production and reproduction of social systems through the application of generative rules and resources, the new conceptualization is presented and its advantages over previous formulations are explored. Results from an ongoing research program are summarized as partial substantiation of the perspective
A comparison of normative and interactional explanations of group decision‐making
Research on group decision‐making in speech communication has assumed interaction processes are important determinants of group decisions. However, major psychological theories of group decision‐making challenge this assumption. This study tested a prominent social psychological theory, Davis's Social Decision Scheme Model, against an interaction‐based model of group decision‐making, the Valence Distribution Model recently developed by McPhee, Po…
Commonality Analysis
Commonality analysis is a procedure for decomposing R2 in multiple regression analyses into the percent of variance in the dependent variable associated with each independent variable uniquely, and the proportion of explained variance associated with the common effects of predictors. Commonality analysis thus sheds additional light on the magnitude of an obtained multivariate relationship by identifying the relative importance of all independent …
Influences on Member Assimilation in Workgroups in High-Reliability Organizations
Journal Article Influences on Member Assimilation in Workgroups in High-Reliability Organizations: A Multilevel Analysis Get access Karen Kroman Myers, Karen Kroman Myers 1Department of Communication, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106-4020 1Karen Kroman Myers; Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Robert D. McPhee Robert D. McPhee 2Hugh Downs School of Human Communication, Arizona State Universit…
An activity‐based theory of communication networks in organizations, applied to the case of a local church
This article applies Feld's (1981) focus theory to build the argument that the activities of a local church are organized by a latent hierarchy of activation. Because communication occurs in the context of practices that attend these activities, hypotheses about the number and kinds of links in members' personal networks are advanced. Stochastic analysis based on Lazarsfeld's (1950) latent distance model was applied to data on members' participat…
The Valence Model Unveiled
Causal modeling in communication research
The logic and procedures of causal modeling can help researchers avoid errors arising in more traditional analyses in a number of commonly occurring cases. A table of cases requiring causal modeling, or an equivalent technique, is presented. Nine years of published research in communication journals are reviewed to assess the adequacy of analysis in these situations. Standards for the conduct and reporting of causal modeling are also offered alon…
A study and extended theory of the structuration of climate
In this paper we report on a longitudinal case study of an administrative unit of a large nonfederal government following the election of a new Chief Elective Official. In this case, the changing climate becomes a dominant characteristic of the emerging situation. Poole and McPhee's (1983) extension of Giddens' Structuration Theory is employed as an analytic framework, tracing through the evolution and transformation of climate themes in the case…
Response to Hoffman and Kleinman
Journal Article Response to Hoffman and Kleinman Get access Robert D. McPhee Robert D. McPhee 1University of Wisconsin—Milwaukee Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Human Communication Research, Volume 21, Issue 1, September 1994, Pages 60–63, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2958.1994.tb00339.x Published: 17 March 2006
A new analysis of Daly's “assessment of social‐communicative anxiety via self reports
(1980). A new analysis of Daly's “assessment of social‐communicative anxiety via self reports: A comparison of measures”. Communication Monographs: Vol. 47, No. 2, pp. 149-152
Commonality Analysis
Commonality analysis is a procedure for decomposing R2 in multiple regression analyses into the percent of variance in the dependent variable associated with each independent variable uniquely, and the proportion of explained variance associated with the common effects of predictors. Commonality analysis thus sheds additional light on the magnitude of an obtained multivariate relationship by identifying the relative importance of all independent …
Attitudes, Behaviors, and Messages
A new analysis of Daly's “assessment of social‐communicative anxiety via self reports
(1980). A new analysis of Daly's “assessment of social‐communicative anxiety via self reports: A comparison of measures”. Communication Monographs: Vol. 47, No. 2, pp. 149-152
Message-Attitude-Behavior Relationship
For many years, there has been a need in the social and behavioral sciences for a single volume providing a precise and careful treatment of axiomatic, causal processes, and sets-of-laws approaches to theory construction. In this volume, we have brought together applications of stochastic, path analytic, and multidimensional scaling research methodologies to advance understanding of one of the behavioral sciences' most troublesome problems: the d…
Mathematical Modeling in Communication Research
(1981). Mathematical Modeling in Communication Research: An Overview. Annals of the International Communication Association: Vol. 5, Communication Yearbook 5, pp. 159-191
The Valence Model Unveiled
A comparison of normative and interactional explanations of group decision‐making
Research on group decision‐making in speech communication has assumed interaction processes are important determinants of group decisions. However, major psychological theories of group decision‐making challenge this assumption. This study tested a prominent social psychological theory, Davis's Social Decision Scheme Model, against an interaction‐based model of group decision‐making, the Valence Distribution Model recently developed by McPhee, Po…
Group decision‐making as a structurational process
This essay presents a theory of group decision‐making. Utilizing recent advances in structuration theory, which focuses on the production and reproduction of social systems through the application of generative rules and resources, the new conceptualization is presented and its advantages over previous formulations are explored. Results from an ongoing research program are summarized as partial substantiation of the perspective
A model of social network development in organizations
(1986). A model of social network development in organizations. Central States Speech Journal: Vol. 37, No. 1, pp. 8-18
Causal modeling in communication research
The logic and procedures of causal modeling can help researchers avoid errors arising in more traditional analyses in a number of commonly occurring cases. A table of cases requiring causal modeling, or an equivalent technique, is presented. Nine years of published research in communication journals are reviewed to assess the adequacy of analysis in these situations. Standards for the conduct and reporting of causal modeling are also offered alon…
Cultural-Ideological Modes of Control
(1993). Cultural-Ideological Modes of Control: An Examination of Concept Formation. Annals of the International Communication Association: Vol. 16, Communication Yearbook 16, pp. 43-43
Response to Hoffman and Kleinman
Journal Article Response to Hoffman and Kleinman Get access Robert D. McPhee Robert D. McPhee 1University of Wisconsin—Milwaukee Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Human Communication Research, Volume 21, Issue 1, September 1994, Pages 60–63, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2958.1994.tb00339.x Published: 17 March 2006
A study and extended theory of the structuration of climate
In this paper we report on a longitudinal case study of an administrative unit of a large nonfederal government following the election of a new Chief Elective Official. In this case, the changing climate becomes a dominant characteristic of the emerging situation. Poole and McPhee's (1983) extension of Giddens' Structuration Theory is employed as an analytic framework, tracing through the evolution and transformation of climate themes in the case…
An activity‐based theory of communication networks in organizations, applied to the case of a local church
This article applies Feld's (1981) focus theory to build the argument that the activities of a local church are organized by a latent hierarchy of activation. Because communication occurs in the context of practices that attend these activities, hypotheses about the number and kinds of links in members' personal networks are advanced. Stochastic analysis based on Lazarsfeld's (1950) latent distance model was applied to data on members' participat…
Organizational Theory, Organizational Communication, Organizational Knowledge, and Problematic Integration
In this paper we argue that 3 traditions of theory about organizational communication have special relevance to the ideas of problematic integration theory. In the rational structure tradition, organizations are described as mechanisms for suppressing or overcoming integration problems, as rationally designed communication processes achieve a system-level resolution that may ignore or override any individually experienced integration problems. In…
Organizational Theory, Organizational Communication, Organizational Knowledge, and Problematic Integration
In this paper we argue that 3 traditions of theory about organizational communication have special relevance to the ideas of problematic integration theory. In the rational structure tradition, organizations are described as mechanisms for suppressing or overcoming integration problems, as rationally designed communication processes achieve a system-level resolution that may ignore or override any individually experienced integration problems. In…
Studying Complex Discursive Systems
Scholars increasingly theorize about the power of communication to organize and structure social collectives. However, two factors threaten to impede research on these theories: limitations in the scope and range of existing methods for studying complex systems of communication and the large volume of communication produced by even small collectives. Centering resonance analysis (CRA) is a new text analysis method that has broad scope and range a…
Text, Agency, and Organization in the Light of Structuration Theory
This article argues for three linked conceptions. First is a conception of ‘a text’ as characterized by three features: a text is symbolic; it is inscribed as symbols on a relatively permanent, ‘readable’ medium such as paper or CD; and it has a coherent enough structure to be dealt with by interpretive processes or technologies such as financial processing. The second conception is that of an organization as a stable relational system grounded i…
Influences on Member Assimilation in Workgroups in High-Reliability Organizations
Journal Article Influences on Member Assimilation in Workgroups in High-Reliability Organizations: A Multilevel Analysis Get access Karen Kroman Myers, Karen Kroman Myers 1Department of Communication, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106-4020 1Karen Kroman Myers; Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Robert D. McPhee Robert D. McPhee 2Hugh Downs School of Human Communication, Arizona State Universit…
Structuration Theory
The Three Schools of CCO Thinking
The idea of the communicative constitution of organizations (CCO) has gained considerable attention in organizational communication studies. This rather heterogeneous theoretical endeavor is driven by three main schools of thought: the Montreal School of Organizational Communication, the Four-Flows Model (based on Giddens’s Structuration Theory), and Luhmann’s Theory of Social Systems. In this article, we let proponents of all three schools direc…
Models of Communication
Communication models, some famous and widely influential, have represented and guided communication theories and their application since the field's early days. Topics covered here include the definition of models as translations of conceptions or theories into systemic forms that are representative of a focal real domain, in some way and for some purpose ; the nature, construction, and evaluation of models; and the three main types of models: mo…
Structuration Theory
Structuration theory is a general social theory that enjoys significant influence across disciplines. It has guided theorizing and research in communication, especially in organizational and group communication. The theory is distinctive in its devotion to overcoming clashes among empiricist, interpretive, and critical perspectives, and between micro‐ and macro‐oriented scholarship. Its perspective emphasizes concepts of practice, agency, and tim…
Intellectual autonomy as the aim of critical thinking
Critical thinking is often nominated as a graduate attribute, a learning outcome, and is even offered as a discrete subject in schools and universities. Therefore, it is important to gain clarity about the fundamental goal or purpose of critical thinking education. What should instructors be aiming at when they seek to instil critical thinking in their students? In this paper, we argue that the aim of critical thinking is the achievement and main…
Sociology (15 works) · Computer Science (14 works) · Psychology (14 works) · Epistemology (12 works) · Political science (8 works) · Social Psychology (8 works) · Philosophy (7 works) · Complex Systems and Decision Making (6 works) · Opinion Dynamics and Social Influence (6 works) · Social Psychology (6 works)