Problem Solving and Communicative Action: A Situational Theory of Problem Solving

2011 ◽  
Vol 61 (1) ◽  
pp. 120-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeong-Nam Kim ◽  
James E. Grunig
2016 ◽  
Vol 45 (6) ◽  
pp. 1276-1296 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yue Zheng ◽  
Brooke Weberling McKeever

Using a nationwide survey of 1,539 respondents, this study uses variables from the situational theory of problem solving to examine communication related to three of the largest U.S.-based fundraising events benefiting three nonprofit health organizations. The findings extend the situational theory of problem solving by adding health consciousness as an antecedent and provide empirical support for its increased predictive power in explaining communicative action, which may lead to future participation in fundraising events. In addition, by investigating how health-related communicative action varies across demographics and by media use, this study contributes a range of practical implications in terms of how nonprofit and health communication practitioners might better segment publics and utilize different media channels to disseminate health-related information more effectively.


2012 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 144-164 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeong-Nam Kim ◽  
Lan Ni ◽  
Sei-Hill Kim ◽  
Jangyul Robert Kim

2004 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 288-313 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Risse

AbstractThis article discusses arguing and communicative action as a significant tool for non-hierarchical steering modes in global governance. Arguing is based on a logic of action that differs significantly from both the rational choice-based ‘logic of consequentialism’, and from the ‘logic of appropriateness’ theorized by sociological institutionalism. Arguing constitutes a learning mechanism by which actors acquire new information, evaluate their interests in light of new empirical and moral knowledge, and – most importantly – can reflexively and collectively assess the validity claims of norms and standards of appropriate behaviour. As a result, arguing and persuasion constitute tools of ‘soft steering’ that might improve both the legitimacy problems of global governance by providing voice opportunities to various stakeholders and the problem-solving capacity of governance institutions through deliberation.


Author(s):  
Xiaoting Xu ◽  
Honglei Li ◽  
Shan Shan

Online health communities (OHCs) offer users the opportunity to share and seek health information through these platforms, which in turn influence users’ health decisions. Understanding what factors influence people’s health decision-making process is essential for not only the design of the OHC, but also for commercial health business who are promoting their products to patients. Previous studies explored the health decision-making process from many factors, but lacked a comprehensive model with a theoretical model. The aim of this paper is to propose a research model from the situational theory of problem solving in relation to forecasting health behaviors in OHCs. An online questionnaire was developed to collect data from 321 members of online health communities (HPV Tieba and HPV vaccina Tieba) who have not received an HPV vaccination. The partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) method was employed for the data analysis. Findings showed that information selection and acquisition is able to forecast HPV vaccination intentions, perceived seriousness and perceived susceptibility can directly impact HPV vaccination intention and have an indirect impact by information selection and acquisition, and perceived message credibility indirectly affected HPV vaccination intention via information selection. The current paper supports health motivations analysis in OHCs, with potential to assist users’ health-related decision-making.


Author(s):  
E. A. Gryzunova

The research deals with the information system of public administration aimed at decision-making and communication with the society in a crisis. The system’s functionality depends on adequacy of goal-setting and on correspondence of the chosen strategy to a crisis type which differ by social response. The author substantiates traditional model of crisis communications and information management for solving conflict crises, while consensus crises require participative model, and polemic crises are recommended to be managed by negotiation and dialogue facilitation model. The negotiation and dialogue facilitation model for managing polemic crises is aimed at realization of a communicative action concept advocated by J. Habermas. As long as modern complex crises require participation of multiple actors which have different visions of a crisis situation and specific interests, “crisis decision making in such context can be seen as a negotiation process” [16]. On the level of information processing the primary step is to discover both major crisis tendencies in each of the core social systems, and social groups whose opinions and interests should be considered. After that definition of possible crisis triggers, forecasting and crisis planning are realized taking into consideration interests and expert recommendations of different social groups’ representatives. Two basic ways of coordination are suggested: public discussion of issues, or collaborative problem-solving. The first way requires organization of a public dialogue in a form of discussion, citizen jury, or negotiations. Coordination through collaborative problem-solving implies fragmentation of a complex subject which means reducing it into concrete practical questions that require discussion and decision-making. Communication within the framework of the described model is remarkable for the supra-communicative practice of facilitating the interaction of the crisis management participants.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document