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Title: DEVELOPING TECHNICAL COMMUNICATION PEDAGOGY FOR NONNATIVE TECHNICAL GRADUATE STUDENTS.
Creator: Sepulveda, David, Applen, JD, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This thesis seeks to develop a pedagogy for teaching academic writing to nonnative graduate students of technical disciplines in order to give them the skills they need to write papers that they can submit to academic journals and conferences, thereby advancing their careers and gaining recognition for their academic institutions. The work draws on research from the fields of technical communication and second-language acquisition in order to develop pedagogical principles for a class in...
Show moreThis thesis seeks to develop a pedagogy for teaching academic writing to nonnative graduate students of technical disciplines in order to give them the skills they need to write papers that they can submit to academic journals and conferences, thereby advancing their careers and gaining recognition for their academic institutions. The work draws on research from the fields of technical communication and second-language acquisition in order to develop pedagogical principles for a class in which nonnative technical graduate students write an academic paper that they can submit for publication. The thesis proposes an approach that incorporates content-based instruction, certain plain language principles, and guided drafting, and then discusses some specifics of a potential class based on those conclusions.
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Date Issued: 2005
Identifier: CFE0000822, ucf:46686
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0000822

Title: Technical Communicators in Marketing: Switching Roles and Changing Ethical Perspectives When Working With Content Marketing.
Creator: Alvarez, Nicole, Dombrowski, Paul, Jones, Dan, Zemliansky, Pavel, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This thesis presents an alternate career path for technical communicators in the area of content marketing and expands on the ethical and goal-related issues associated with a career change to a marketing-focused role. Many of the skills necessary for technical communication are transferable to marketing communication roles; however, a successful career change requires that technical communicators understand how the ethical values and goals of marketing professionals can differ from those of...
Show moreThis thesis presents an alternate career path for technical communicators in the area of content marketing and expands on the ethical and goal-related issues associated with a career change to a marketing-focused role. Many of the skills necessary for technical communication are transferable to marketing communication roles; however, a successful career change requires that technical communicators understand how the ethical values and goals of marketing professionals can differ from those of technical communicators. Through a detailed literature review and autoethnographic study, this thesis discusses the performance goals of marketing professionals to determine how these clash with those of technical communicators. This study also discusses the ethical values of technical communicators and marketing professionals, and how these values are shaped by their unique job functions. The overall goal is to determine how this affects the technical communicator working with content marketing. After combining the data available in the literature and the data gathered from the autoethnographic study, this study suggests that due to the differing job functions and training received by technical communicators and marketing professionals, ethically charged situations and ethically questionable practices are likely to be viewed under different perspectives by each professional. This can lead to vastly different perspectives on a particular situation and result in the two groups having vastly different ideas in regard to how ethical-decision making should proceed.
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Date Issued: 2014
Identifier: CFE0005570, ucf:50280
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005570

Title: Technical Illustration: The Changes and Challenges Presented by Advancements in Technology.
Creator: Caudill, Cindy, Jones, Daniel, Flammia, Madelyn, Young, Beth, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This thesis investigates the changes and challenges technology has created in the field of technical illustration. Technical illustration includes the fields of technical drawing as well as scientific and medical illustration. Previously, technical illustrators learned and used traditional illustration methods, without the aid of computers. However, technology has rapidly entered the field and has changed the education, work environment, skills, and role of the technical illustrator. I note...
Show moreThis thesis investigates the changes and challenges technology has created in the field of technical illustration. Technical illustration includes the fields of technical drawing as well as scientific and medical illustration. Previously, technical illustrators learned and used traditional illustration methods, without the aid of computers. However, technology has rapidly entered the field and has changed the education, work environment, skills, and role of the technical illustrator. I note both the benefits and disadvantages that current technical illustrators are facing in their work. I explore both sides of the digital media and traditional art debate while focusing on the technical illustrator's role, tools and methods used in the illustration process, education, idea-generation, and the future of technical illustration. By emphasizing the issues associated with the incorporation of digital media into traditional methods, I hope to bring awareness to the transformation of technical illustration and the future of this discipline.
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Date Issued: 2014
Identifier: CFE0005145, ucf:50681
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005145

Title: A RHETORIC OF TECHNOLOGY: THE DISCOURSE IN U.S. ARMY HANDBOOKS AND MANUALS.
Creator: Steward, Sherry Ann, Jones, Dan, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This dissertation examines the historical technical publications of the United States Army from 1775-2004. Historical research in Army technical communication reveals the persuasive characteristics of its technical publications. Elements of narrative, storytelling, and anthropomorphism are techniques writers used to help deliver information to readers. Research also reveals the design techniques writers adopted to unite the situated literacies of the troops. Analyses of print, comic, and...
Show moreThis dissertation examines the historical technical publications of the United States Army from 1775-2004. Historical research in Army technical communication reveals the persuasive characteristics of its technical publications. Elements of narrative, storytelling, and anthropomorphism are techniques writers used to help deliver information to readers. Research also reveals the design techniques writers adopted to unite the situated literacies of the troops. Analyses of print, comic, and digital media expose the increasing visualization of information since the eighteenth century. The results of such historical research can be applied to new media designs. Automating processes captured in paper-based technical manuals and adding intelligent functionality to these designs are two of many possible design options. Research also dispels a myth concerning the history of modern technical communication and illustrates the development of many genres and subgenres. Modern technical communication was not born of World War II as many scholars suggest, but was a legitimate field in eighteenth-century America. Finally, historical research in Army technical communication shows the systematic progression of a technological society and our increasing dependence on machine intelligence.
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Date Issued: 2004
Identifier: CFE0000060, ucf:46088
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0000060

Title: IMPLEMENTING PLAIN LANGUAGE INTO LEGAL DOCUMENTS: THE TECHNICAL COMMUNICATOR'S ROLE.
Creator: Bivins, Peggy, Flammia, Madelyn, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This thesis discusses the benefits of using plain language in legal documents and the role technical communicators can play to help implement plain language. Although many definitions for plain language exist, it is best described as reader-focused communication that presents information in a manner that makes it easy for a reader to find, understand, and use the information. Plain language facilitates comprehension by using shorter, less complex sentences; active voice; and common words. All...
Show moreThis thesis discusses the benefits of using plain language in legal documents and the role technical communicators can play to help implement plain language. Although many definitions for plain language exist, it is best described as reader-focused communication that presents information in a manner that makes it easy for a reader to find, understand, and use the information. Plain language facilitates comprehension by using shorter, less complex sentences; active voice; and common words. All these elements aid in processing and understanding information, especially unfamiliar concepts. Laypeople, unversed in the law, frequently have difficulty understanding traditional legal writing. The complex sentences, wordiness, and redundancy that characterize traditional legal writing often inhibit comprehension and become barriers to understanding. To demonstrate how plain language can improve legal writing, this thesis reviews before-and-after versions of documents that were revised to incorporate plain language as well as common documents that laypeople might encounter. The studies and research discussed in this thesis demonstrate that readers achieve greater comprehension with plain language documents. Technical communicators, the language experts, can work with legal professionals, the content experts, to help encourage plain language use in legal writing. By emphasizing plain language use in legal formbooks, law school courses, and continuing legal education courses, plain language will become more dominant. Technical communicators can work with governments and law firms to develop and run in-house writing programs. When organizations realize how plain language can benefit them, both economically as well as in improved consumer relations, they will be motivated to adopt plain language into their legal writing.
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Date Issued: 2008
Identifier: CFE0002022, ucf:47608
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002022

Title: On Copyright Law: What Technical Communicators Need to Know.
Creator: Chao, Mariana, Jones, Daniel, Cavanagh, Thomas, Flammia, Madelyn, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Copyright law, in general, is a multi-faceted and sometimes difficult to understand process. Although it is law, it is often not straight-forward and cannot be applied universally. While the concepts of copyright infringement and plagiarism may sometimes overlap, many confuse one for the other or think they are the same offense. This thesis is intended to serve as a primer to some basic aspects of copyright law for technical communicators, including issues surrounding public domain works, the...
Show moreCopyright law, in general, is a multi-faceted and sometimes difficult to understand process. Although it is law, it is often not straight-forward and cannot be applied universally. While the concepts of copyright infringement and plagiarism may sometimes overlap, many confuse one for the other or think they are the same offense. This thesis is intended to serve as a primer to some basic aspects of copyright law for technical communicators, including issues surrounding public domain works, the fair use doctrine, the copyright clearance process, as well as why we should be concerned about our current copyright laws.Over the past few decades, Congress has increased the number of copyright extensions, and these extensions are pushing out works that were to expire into the public domain. This thesis provides details about the growing copyright reform movement to explore the possibilities of making our culture more egalitarian and democratic when it comes to the exchange of ideas and information. Those who support copyright reform believe current copyright laws increasingly favor corporations and special interest groups rather than the public, and insist on a balance in copyright laws to loosen some of the restrictions.This thesis illustrates the importance of the knowledge of copyright and its associated laws for technical communicators especially in these current times. With the growth of the Internet within the last 20 years, some of the core concepts of how copyright works for the analog age present some challenges when translated into our digital age. Young professionals (-) particularly those working in web-based media (-) are faced with some contradicting ideas on copyright, sharing, and piracy, especially when surrounded by peers who perpetuate incorrect notions about these topics. Technical communicators also need to be aware of the risks they run if they choose to ignore the law (or choose to remain ignorant of it), but, on a deeper level, they also need be prepared to deal with the philosophical and ethical inquiries that tie into the concept of copyright. This thesis also provides practical applications of the knowledge of copyright laws for technical communicators.
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Date Issued: 2014
Identifier: CFE0005147, ucf:50700
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005147

Title: The Relevance of Benjamin Franklin's and Thomas Jefferson's Technical Writing for Modern Communicators.
Creator: Fecko, Kristin, Jones, Dan, Cavanagh, Thomas, Flammia, Madelyn, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Today's technical communicators enjoy an increasingly broader role and influence in the workplace, and are often given latitude to use engaging rhetoric and personal touches in many kinds of communications. Historical documents, particularly those that are substantially removed from our own era, can offer fresh approaches and insight into the enduring elements of successful communication. This study explores the technical writings of Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson and considers their...
Show moreToday's technical communicators enjoy an increasingly broader role and influence in the workplace, and are often given latitude to use engaging rhetoric and personal touches in many kinds of communications. Historical documents, particularly those that are substantially removed from our own era, can offer fresh approaches and insight into the enduring elements of successful communication. This study explores the technical writings of Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson and considers their usefulness to professionals today.Although the political writing of Franklin and Jefferson is more familiar, both men frequently wrote about scientific and technical subjects and were well-known in their day for these documents. Franklin created a captivating persona and arguments which carried emotional and logical appeal. Jefferson was a student of ancient rhetoric and applied classical principles of arrangement to guide readers. His fondness for statistical records led to a skill in presenting numerical data and other types of information in creative, efficient ways. By using tone, language, and description, both Franklin and Jefferson created technical narratives that are equally informative and aesthetically pleasing.The contemporary era of technical communication has been shaped by positivism, the plain language movement, and humanism, among other significant trends. Franklin's and Jefferson's approaches to technical communication both support and challenge the guiding philosophies of these movements. Their styles are reviewed in this study against the context of modern approaches. Opportunities for further historical study are also offered, including additional writings of our Founding Fathers and technical writing from the turn of the twentieth century.
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Date Issued: 2014
Identifier: CFE0005329, ucf:50526
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005329

Title: DEFINING WORKPLACE INFORMATION FLUENCY SKILLS FOR TECHNICAL COMMUNICATION STUDENTS.
Creator: Zhang, Yuejiao, Dombrowski, Paul, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Information fluency refers to the ability to recognize information needs and to gather, evaluate, and communicate information appropriately. In this study, I treat "information fluency" as both an overall competency and as a collection of knowledge and skills. The purpose of this study is to explore the specific workplace information fluency skills valued by employers of technical communicators, to find out how instructors perceive and teach these skills, and to suggest how these findings can...
Show moreInformation fluency refers to the ability to recognize information needs and to gather, evaluate, and communicate information appropriately. In this study, I treat "information fluency" as both an overall competency and as a collection of knowledge and skills. The purpose of this study is to explore the specific workplace information fluency skills valued by employers of technical communicators, to find out how instructors perceive and teach these skills, and to suggest how these findings can inform our teaching practices. Within the framework of qualitative methodology, this study employs two data-collection instruments, including a content analysis of online job recruitment postings and a survey of technical communication instructors across the United States. The study discovers that when hiring technical communicators, employers require candidates to have skills in information processing, information technology, and critical thinking. Candidates must be able to identify their information needs, and must know how to use specified tools to gather, evaluate, and communicate information. It also reveals that although "information fluency" is a new terminology to a majority of instructors, the skill sets that constitute information fluency already existed in their knowledge. The study's last finding suggests that the opportunity for an internship is perceived as the most helpful in students' acquisition of information fluency skills. This dissertation concludes with a list of specific employer-valued information fluency skills, recommendations for program administrators and instructors for implementing information fluency, as well as recommendations for future researches on this subject.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: CFE0003170, ucf:48604
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0003170

Title: Technical Communicators and Writing Consultants: Identity and Expertise.
Creator: Cepero, Nichole, Young, Beth, Jones, Daniel, Marinara, Martha, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This paper examines the roles of technical communicators and writing center consultants in regards to their identities and the expertise that they bring to what they do. Both fields have struggled with alack of understanding surrounding what their positions entail and more importantly how they perform in their roles. With this in mind, the goal of this paper is to analyze how the growth of each field andthe variations of each position contribute to the issue of identity. Furthermore, as a...
Show moreThis paper examines the roles of technical communicators and writing center consultants in regards to their identities and the expertise that they bring to what they do. Both fields have struggled with alack of understanding surrounding what their positions entail and more importantly how they perform in their roles. With this in mind, the goal of this paper is to analyze how the growth of each field andthe variations of each position contribute to the issue of identity. Furthermore, as a result of the identity problem that faces each position, I suggest using the theory of liminality, communication theory, and genre theory to examine more closely how technical communicators and writing center consultants approach the work they do.Technical communicators and writing center consultants perform very similar roles in their respective fields. Both positions have the ability to contribute to various fields through the work that they do. Technical communicators have the ability to communicate in multiple areas without necessarily being subject matter experts in the areas they participate in. The same holds true forwriting center consultants who may, in one day, assist students in multiple subjects without necessarily having specific disciplinary knowledge of each area addressed. Outsiders do not understand how technical communicators and writing consultants can communicate within anunfamiliar field, which creates a main area of controversy for both roles. Using the three theories mentioned above, I make an argument for just how it is possible for them to perform in this capacity.By focusing on how technical communicators and writing center consultants perform in their roles instead of on their writing, their identity and expertise becomes clear and confusion surrounding each field can be banished. Although technical communicators and writing consultants both face similarchallenges, their responsibilities differ in ways that affect how these theories apply. Still, all three theories illuminate how rhetoric provides the basis for expertise in both technical communication and writing centers.
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Date Issued: 2014
Identifier: CFE0005146, ucf:50706
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005146

Title: The Gender Gap in Technical Communication: How Women Challenge the Predominant Objectivist Paradigm.
Creator: Bower, Nathan, Jones, Daniel, Jones, Anna, Flammia, Madelyn, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Women are currently underrepresented in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields. The purpose of this thesis is to explore how this underrepresentation translates to a gender gap in the field of technical communication and how this gap causes women to challenge the predominant objectivist paradigm in the field. Through an investigation of peer-reviewed journal articles, periodicals, critical theory, and articles published in online magazines such as Slate, I...
Show moreWomen are currently underrepresented in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields. The purpose of this thesis is to explore how this underrepresentation translates to a gender gap in the field of technical communication and how this gap causes women to challenge the predominant objectivist paradigm in the field. Through an investigation of peer-reviewed journal articles, periodicals, critical theory, and articles published in online magazines such as Slate, I identify the gendered nature of modern technology and discuss to what extent a shift in the predominant paradigm has occurred in the professional arena. In looking at several theoretical approaches and contemporary examples, I conclude that a significant paradigm shift has not in fact occurred due to an underlying, culturally promoted sexism. Additionally, I conclude that neither new approaches in the technical communication classroom, nor attempts to increasingly include women in the technological fields will result in a significant paradigm change by themselves. I also point to a need for further meaningful research in how sexism influences the professional world as well as a more thorough conversation regarding a fundamental shift in workplace relations between the genders.
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Date Issued: 2012
Identifier: CFE0004523, ucf:52878
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004523

Title: Grace Hopper and the Marvelous Machine: Lessons for Modern Technical Communicators from the Mark I ASCC Manual.
Creator: Meyr, Jessica, Jones, Dan, Dombrowski, Paul, Applen, John, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Women's technical writing achievements often go unrecognized, both due to the invisibility of technical writing professionals in general, and a lack of famous technical communication role models in particular. The purpose of this thesis is to analyze and present an early major work in the technical writing of Rear Admiral (")Amazing(") Grace Hopper, inventor of the compiler and an important figure in computer science history. Although Hopper is arguably best known for popularizing the idea of...
Show moreWomen's technical writing achievements often go unrecognized, both due to the invisibility of technical writing professionals in general, and a lack of famous technical communication role models in particular. The purpose of this thesis is to analyze and present an early major work in the technical writing of Rear Admiral (")Amazing(") Grace Hopper, inventor of the compiler and an important figure in computer science history. Although Hopper is arguably best known for popularizing the idea of the (")computer bug,(") her achievements in computer science extend from invention of the software compiler to tireless promotion of the programming language COBOL. Her work A Manual of Operation for the Automatic Sequence Controlled Calculator, written for the first digital computer in America, is analyzed here according to Mike Markel's eight criteria of excellent technical writing: honesty, clarity, accuracy, comprehensiveness, accessibility, conciseness, professional appearance, and correctness. I also cover other specific strengths of Grace's approach, including how she establishes sufficient context, highlights multiple uses for information, and provides numerous well-chosen examples for audience needs. However, I also discuss how modern research principles for improving technical writing, including task-orientation, attention to cognitive load, and minimalism, help explain the manual's shortcomings. I conclude my study with a discussion of Hopper's later work, (")The Education of a Computer,(") to demonstrate her growth as a writer. The conclusion also highlights areas awaiting further research and cements my recommendation that study of Grace Hopper's work be incorporated into our historical understanding of the discipline. Hopper's technical writing deserves to be more widely understood and appreciated as a vital contribution to early software documentation.
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Date Issued: 2017
Identifier: CFE0006625, ucf:51263
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006625

Title: FROM TEXTBOOKS TO SAFETY BRIEFINGS: HELPING TECHNICAL WRITERS NEGOTIATE COMPLEX RHETORICAL SITUATIONS.
Creator: Blackburne, Brian, Bowdon, Melody, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: In this dissertation, I analyze the organizational and political constraints that technical writers encounter when dealing with complex rhetorical situations, particularly within risk-management discourse. I ground my research in case studies of safety briefings that airlines provide to their passengers because these important documents have long been regarded as ineffective, yet they've gone largely unchanged in the last 20 years. Airlines are required to produce these safety briefings,...
Show moreIn this dissertation, I analyze the organizational and political constraints that technical writers encounter when dealing with complex rhetorical situations, particularly within risk-management discourse. I ground my research in case studies of safety briefings that airlines provide to their passengers because these important documents have long been regarded as ineffective, yet they've gone largely unchanged in the last 20 years. Airlines are required to produce these safety briefings, which must satisfy multiple audiences, such as corporate executives, federal safety inspectors, flight attendants, and passengers. Because space and time are limited when presenting safety information to passengers, the technical writers must negotiate constraints related to issues such as format, budget, audience education and language, passenger perceptions/fears, reproducibility, and corporate image/branding – to name a few. The writers have to negotiate these constraints while presenting important (and potentially alarming) information in a way that's as informative, realistic, and tasteful as possible. But such constraints aren't unique to the airline industry. Once they enter the profession, many writing students will experience complex rhetorical situations that constrain their abilities to produce effective documentation; therefore, I am looking at the theories and skills that we're teaching our future technical communicators for coping with such situations. By applying writing-style and visual-cultural analyses to a set of documents, I demonstrate a methodology for analyzing complex rhetorical situations. I conclude by proposing a pedagogy that teachers of technical communication can employ for helping students assess and work within complex rhetorical situations, and I offer suggestions for implementing such practices in the classroom.
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Date Issued: 2008
Identifier: CFE0002465, ucf:47729
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002465

Title: Intercultural Communication in the Global Age: Lessons Learned from French Technical Communicators.
Creator: Tallman, Nicole, Flammia, Madelyn, Bowdon, Melody, Jones, Daniel, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This thesis explores the cultural considerations American technical communicators must address when working with French colleagues and when creating technical documentation for French audiences. A review of the literature on intercultural communication theory was conducted, along with a review of the limited research on technical communication in France and the needs of French audiences. A qualitative online survey of French technical communicators was also conducted. Through this survey,...
Show moreThis thesis explores the cultural considerations American technical communicators must address when working with French colleagues and when creating technical documentation for French audiences. A review of the literature on intercultural communication theory was conducted, along with a review of the limited research on technical communication in France and the needs of French audiences. A qualitative online survey of French technical communicators was also conducted. Through this survey, French technical communicators reported on their intercultural beliefs, experiences, and practices, and information, language, and cultural needs.Survey responses were analyzed using inductive thematic analysis. Two main themes were developed as a result of this analysis: the importance of adapting content to French audiences, and the cultural differences between French and American information needs and communication styles. Survey findings were combined with theoretical and practical literature to offer American technical communicators guidance for successful intercultural interactions. This thesis concludes with suggestions for future practice and research in intercultural technical communication.
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Date Issued: 2013
Identifier: CFE0004944, ucf:49604
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004944

Title: The Role of Occupational Branding in the Professionalization of Technical Communication.
Creator: Thomas, Chelsea, Jones, Dan, Flammia, Madelyn, Bell, Kathleen, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This study investigates the relationship between professional identity and professional status by exploring the quest for professionalization within technical communication. An established professional identity is crucial to an occupation's professionalization process, as it enables members of a given field to create a common sense of being and facilitates a recognizable personal and collective identity. Such recognition is vital to an occupation's rise to professional status, as it creates a...
Show moreThis study investigates the relationship between professional identity and professional status by exploring the quest for professionalization within technical communication. An established professional identity is crucial to an occupation's professionalization process, as it enables members of a given field to create a common sense of being and facilitates a recognizable personal and collective identity. Such recognition is vital to an occupation's rise to professional status, as it creates a distilled image of the ideal practitioner for outsiders and forms the basis upon which claims of expertise may be made. By constructing the meaning surrounding their profession, members are able to portray an image which designates their knowledge as a scarce expertise and their profession as the appropriate source for the services they provide.A lack of professional identity constitutes the primary factor hindering technical communication from realizing the professionalization process, as it prevents the formation of practitioners' common sense of being, promotes the absence of identifiability and precludes the possibility of recognition by larger society. Without an established professional identity, the field cannot formulate a culturally-relevant perception of its role, claim professional expertise or jurisdiction over their work, or achieve the social and cultural legitimacy necessary in order to increase its professional status. By implementing processes of occupational branding within the professional project, efforts involving the construction of collective professional identity will increase professional status by enabling a group's management of professional meaning, facilitating the creation of an occupational brand and assisting in value production.
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Date Issued: 2016
Identifier: CFE0006189, ucf:51137
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006189

Title: DESIGNING FOR A JAPANESE HIGH-CONTEXT CULTURE: CULTURE'S INFLUENCE ON THE TECHNICAL WRITER'S VISUAL RHETORIC.
Creator: Carpenter, Russell, Flammia, Madelyn, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This thesis analyzes the challenges technical writers face when designing documents for high-context cultures, such as the Japanese. When developing documents intended to cross cultural gulfs, technical writers must take into consideration cultural expectations, preferences, and practices in document design and communication. High-context cultures, such as Japan, design documents using drastically different design strategies than those used in the United States. Japanese communication habits...
Show moreThis thesis analyzes the challenges technical writers face when designing documents for high-context cultures, such as the Japanese. When developing documents intended to cross cultural gulfs, technical writers must take into consideration cultural expectations, preferences, and practices in document design and communication. High-context cultures, such as Japan, design documents using drastically different design strategies than those used in the United States. Japanese communication habits are more ambiguous than communication in the United States. Thus, the Japanese often use visuals for their aesthetic appeal, not for their ability to complement the text that surrounds the visual. The ambiguous nature of high-context culture communication habits often pose problems when Americans try to communicate--whether through written or oral communication--with a high-context audience. Without careful analysis and research into these cultural implications, the technical writer risks developing unsuccessful documents that do not accomplish the goals of the communication. It takes years of research to understand cultural differences, especially in the case of Japanese communication habits. With the research presented in this thesis, technical writers will understand better how to address document design issues when designing for high-context cultures in general and the Japanese culture specifically. In order to effectively analyze document design strategies across cultures, I have collected documents from two cultures--from the United States and from Japan. These two cultures represent a low-context culture, the United States, and a high-context culture, Japan. The United States and Japan are opposite each other on Edward T. Hall's cultural continuum, providing ideal subjects for a cross-cultural document design analysis. Using previous research in document design and cultural studies, I have established a grid for analyzing visual elements in the documents I have collected--full color automobile sales booklets. I analyze both high- and low-context documents against this grid. The various document design grids allow for visual representation of document design decisions in both cultures. American international technical communicators can use these grids as a starting point for addressing the cultural implications of document design for high-context audiences. The research presented in this thesis shows that high- and low-context cultures use visuals much differently. Readers, in both cultures, are persuaded differently by visual elements. By exploring and analyzing the use of visuals such as photos, diagrams, line drawings, and the way both cultures use visuals to approach their audiences, this thesis attempts to present an explanation of visuals in high-context cultures that will aid American technical writers who design documents for international audiences. This thesis uses Japanese cultural analysis and Japanese design theories to explain high-context design decisions applied to Japanese documents.
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Date Issued: 2005
Identifier: CFE0000372, ucf:46336
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0000372

Title: The State of the Anti-Union Address: A Rhetorical Critique of Select Service Worker Training Methods.
Creator: Ries, Richard, Dombrowski, Paul, Hirumi, Atsusi, Jones, Dan, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This is an interdisciplinary master's level thesis that explores links among technical writing, training manuals, surveillance, and anti-union rhetoric used with service workers in select American chains and franchises. Brief histories are provided, including those of technical writing, the rise of unions in America, and how technical writing became inextricably linked with labor. A major shift occurred in the 20th century when workers began interacting less with products and more with the...
Show moreThis is an interdisciplinary master's level thesis that explores links among technical writing, training manuals, surveillance, and anti-union rhetoric used with service workers in select American chains and franchises. Brief histories are provided, including those of technical writing, the rise of unions in America, and how technical writing became inextricably linked with labor. A major shift occurred in the 20th century when workers began interacting less with products and more with the public. The research focuses on training manuals, techniques, and rehearsed dialogues of McDonald's, Wal-Mart, Starbucks, Whole Foods, Panera, and Publix, though similar organizations are referenced. Service worker language, uniforms, and store decorum are sometimes analyzed for their rhetorical content. The idea of a single, technically written training manual in the service sector is a misnomer; training is delivered through a pastiche of manuals, videos, computers, apps, flipcharts, and on the job training. Unions are avoided through franchising (and therefore eat outlet not possessing enough workers to organize), creating conditions of high turnover rates, rhetoric, and use of euphemism. Global corporations are likened to "superfiefdoms," with service workers equated to modern serfs. If the world has evolved into supercorporations, it is argued then that the Publix employee-owned model may be the best approach and the most dignified of all. The technical writing and instruction in state-sponsored and federalized school pedagogies, which emphasize drills and compliance, may be culturally linked to the training found in these entry-level service jobs, and more academic study exploring these links is called for.
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Date Issued: 2014
Identifier: CFE0005700, ucf:50134
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005700

technical writing (8)	+ -
technical communication (6)	+ -
Technical Communication (2)	+ -
Technical Writing (2)	+ -
Technical communication (2)	+ -

Technical writing (2)	+ -
plain language (2)	+ -
technical manuals (2)	+ -
Academic writing (1)	+ -
Airline (1)	+ -
Army technical communication (1)	+ -
Communication & gender (1)	+ -
Communication & technology (1)	+ -
Communication Theory (1)	+ -
Communication of technical information (1)	+ -
Critical Thinking (1)	+ -
Cultural studies (1)	+ -
Expertise (1)	+ -
French perspective on technical writing (1)	+ -
Gender role in the work environment (1)	+ -
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