STUDY GRANT PROPOSAL

 

The Stories of Our Lives:  How Sensemaking, Narrative Theory and Structuration Interact

Diana Sage (Speech Communication

 

(1)   Rationale 

         On August 1, 2005, a religious gathering in Iraq erupted in panic.  In the subsequent stampede, 965 people were killed.  According to CNN.com and other sources, the panic began when a rumor started circulating that there was a suicide bomber in the crowd.  The rumor was false, but the outcome was virtually the same as it would have been if there had been an actual bomber. 

         The above example illustrates the connection between communication, perception, and reality.  The study I am proposing would explore this connection by focusing on three theories:  Sensemaking, Narrative Theory, and Structuration, and how they relate to each other.  I chose this line of study for two reasons.  First, I am fascinated by the relationship between communication, perception, and reality.  Second, understanding this relationship can be beneficial on a practical level.  Instead of using communication to create chaos and suspicion, we can use it to build understanding and tolerance. 

         I have a background in communication studies, which gives me a foundation that will allow me to comprehend and apply the material.  It is important to note, however, that these readings come from different fields:  psychology, sociology, anthropology, and philosophy.  These fields relate to communication studies, but for the most part, I would be exploring ground that I havenÕt covered before.  The challenge of studying fields outside my normal comfort zone, coupled with the wider perspective I would gain, would help me grow as a scholar. 

 

(2)   Topics and Questions to be Explored

á          Sensemaking

Proposed by Karl Weick, Sensemaking suggests that when we are faced with chaotic reality, we try to impose order on the chaos.  Attempts to make sense of the world often occur through interaction with others. 

 

á          Narrative Theory

Proposed by Walter Fisher, Narrative Theory suggests that human beings are natural storytellers, and that, in fact, our perception of reality is framed through storytelling.

 

á          Structuration

Proposed by Anthony Giddens, Structuration suggests that as human beings interact with their environment, two things happen:  they change their environment, and their environment changes them.  This becomes a recursive cycle. 

 

á          How the Theories Relate to Each Other

To what extent to does the increasing uncertainty of the environment increase the sensemaking urge?  What role does narrative play in sensemaking? As we create new narratives, how does our communal understanding of the world change?  In what specific ways does structuration apply to the human experience?  What kinds of narratives influence perception?  What changes in perception are likely to result in changes in behavior?  How do changes in behavior result in alterations in our environment?  These are the kinds of questions the study would address. 

 

á          Plan

1.  Read the foundational works explaining each of the three theories.

2.  Read texts on the social construction of reality and applied narrative theory.

3.  Consolidate the information and theory in such a way as to gain a better understanding of the theories themselves, and, beyond that, to connect the theories and identify ways in which they interact with each other.  

 

 (3)  Weekly Work Plan and List of Works to be Consulted

Weeks 1-4:  Sensemaking

 

á          Weick, Karl E.  The Social Psychology of Organizing (Topics in Social Psychology Series)

á          Weick, Karl E.  Making Sense of the Organization

á          Weick, Karl E.  Managing the Unexpected: Assuring High Performance in an Age of Complexity

á          Selected news stories that relate to Sensemaking

 

(Justification:  Karl Weick is the theorist who first suggested Sensemaking Theory.  I discovered his work in graduate school, and have always wanted to delve deeper into it.  The study grant program looks like an ideal way to jump start a program of self study.  WeickÕs writings provide the best, most fundamental explorations and examples of how the theory works.  My hope is to find news stories that relate to the topic, so I can apply the theory in a practical context.)

 

Weeks 5-8:  Narrative Theory

 

á          Fisher, Walter R.  Human Communication As Narration: Toward a Philosophy of Reason, Value and Action (Studies in Rhetoric/Communication)

á          Ricoeur, Paul.  Time and Narrative, Volume 3 (Time & Narrative)

á          Ricoeur, Paul.  Memory, History, Forgetting

á          Selected news stories that relate to Narrative Theory

 

(Justification:  Again, these theories were touched on briefly in my graduate studies, as information that was peripheral to the primary topics we were examining.  Walter Fisher is the theorist who first framed Narrative Theory as a type of Communication Theory.  His book provides the basic explanation of his theory.  Paul Ricoeur looks at narrative from a more generalized standpoint, allowing us to place FisherÕs theory in a larger context.  News stories that relate to the topic will help frame the idea of narrative theory in more practical terms.  In fact, such stories could provide narratives for further analysis.)

 

Weeks 9-12:  Structuration

 

á          Giddens, Anthony.  The Constitution of Society: Outline of the Theory of Structuration

á          Giddens, Anthony.  Runaway World: How Globalization is Reshaping Our Lives

á          Bryant, Christopher G. A. and Jary, David.  The Contemporary Giddens: Social Theory in a Globalizing Age

á          Selected recent news stories that relate to Structuration

 

(Justification:  Anthony Giddens is the theorist who first came up with Structuration Theory.  The theory has since become a well-known theory in the field of sociology.  Christopher Bryant and David JaryÕs book looks like it will make the theory more accessible to general readers who donÕt have a background in sociology.  News stories that relate to the topic will help me examine the idea of structuration in an applied context.)   

 

Weeks 13-16:  How the Theories Relate to Each Other

 

á          Berger, Peter L.  The Social Construction of Reality: A Treatise in the Sociology of Knowledge

á          Freedman, Jill and Combs, Gene.  Narrative Therapy: The Social Construction of Preferred Realities

á          Geertz, Clifford.  Interpretation of Cultures  

á          Selected recent news stories that relate to the social construction of reality

 

(Justification:  Peter Berger and Clifford Geertz are prolific authors in the fields of sociology and anthropology, respectively.  The books by these authors that I have listed here focus on how knowledge influences behavior, and how perception influences our understanding of culture.  These topics are exactly what I want to explore in terms of how these three theories relate to each other.  Jill Freedman and Gene Comps provide a more practical perspective, linking Narrative Theory and Sensemaking in the therapeutic realm.  Finding news stories that relate to this topic will clarify the ways in which the theories relate to each other, in theory and in practice.)   

 

(4)  Scholarly and Practical Benefits

         One of the best things about the field of communication studies is that it relates to so many other fields of study.  This research project would introduce me to a variety of perspectives.  It would probably cause me to question assumptions that IÕve been taking for granted.  Sometimes, teaching a particular topic for many years, even taking care to keep up with new developments, one falls into a familiar way of thinking.  Every now and then, it is important to step out of the comfort zone and look at things in completely different ways.  This project would accomplish that, shaking things up and causing me to grow as a scholar. 

 

Ways in which results might be brought to other audiences: 

1.  Special Presentations at the different Collin College Campuses

2.  Presentation at All-College Day

3.  Discussion on the Collin College television station

4.  Presentations at local high schools, other colleges, and other community groups. 


 

Reading List

1.         Berger, Peter L.  The Social Construction of Reality: A Treatise in the Sociology of Knowledge

2.         Bryant, Christopher G. A. and Jary, David.  The Contemporary Giddens: Social Theory in a Globalizing Age

3.         Fisher, Walter R.  Human Communication As Narration: Toward a Philosophy of Reason, Value and Action (Studies in Rhetoric/Communication)

4.         Freedman, Jill and Combs, Gene.  Narrative Therapy: The Social Construction of Preferred Realities

5.         Geertz, Clifford.  Interpretation of Cultures  

6.         Giddens, Anthony.  Runaway World: How Globalization is Reshaping Our Lives

7.         Giddens, Anthony.  The Constitution of Society: Outline of the Theory of Structuration

8.         Ricoeur, Paul.  Memory, History, Forgetting

9.         Ricoeur, Paul.  Time and Narrative, Volume 3 (Time & Narrative)

10.     Weick, Karl E.  Making Sense of the Organization

11.     Weick, Karl E.  Managing the Unexpected: Assuring High Performance in an Age of Complexity

12.     Weick, Karl E.  The Social Psychology of Organizing

13.     *Other:  Applicable news stories