Comparing leaders across contexts, culture, and time: Computerized content analysis of leader–follower communications

Bligh, Michelle C.; Kohles, Jeffrey C.

doi:10.1177/1742715011434109

Cited by 11 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 58 publications

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“…It has to be admitted that DICTION has not been widely used in the accounting literature (Cho et al , 2010). Nonetheless, the software has been applied by many researchers in the fields of communication (Ober et al , 1999; Allison et al , 2013; Laskin and Samoilenko, 2014), linguistics (Bordbar, 2010; Barkemeyer et al , 2016) and political science (Ballotti and Kaid, 2000; Bligh et al , 2004,2010; Bligh and Kohles, 2014; Crew and Lewis, 2011). However, the use of this software in conducting content analyses of accounting reports has indeed started gaining prominence among accounting researchers.…”

Section: Methods and Empirical Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Verbal tones in sustainability assurance statements

Hassan¹

2019

SAMPJ

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Purpose This paper aims to examine, through the lens of language expectancy theory (LET), how sustainability assurors use optimism and certainty in possible persuasion attempts. The paper also explores a number of explanatory variables that could offer insights into the use of these verbal tones in sustainability assurance reports. Design/methodology/approach First, the paper relies on DICTION standard normalised optimism and certainty ranges in conjunction with descriptive statistics to analyse how sustainability assurors use optimism and certainty. Second, the paper uses quantile regression with robust standard errors to investigate the association between the measures of verbal tone used in this study and several possible explanatory variables. Findings Consistent with LET, the study documents that sustainability assurors exercise caution in using both certainty and optimism in persuasion attempts. The paper also finds that possible explanatory variables significantly associated with optimism include praise, assurance level, legal system and report location. However, reference to sustainability management control (SMC), status of assurance providers, praise, legal system and financial performance appear to explain the use of certainty. Research limitations/implications The paper does not, at this stage, claim causality between the two measures of verbal tone, on the one hand, and the possible explanatory variables explored, on the other hand. It rather reports their possible associations. Furthermore, the study only measures reference to management control system and not reliance on it. Practical implications The main findings of this study imply that the use of optimism and certainty exhibits likely cautious practice by assurors. Nevertheless, assurors are more likely to use certainty more flexibly and appear more discreet when using optimism. Social implications The findings of this paper also indicate how societal expectations play an important role in ensuring cautious persuasive behaviour by sustainability assurors in using verbal tones within sustainability assurance statements. This suggests that stakeholders may place reliance on attestations expressed in these statements. Originality/value The paper represents the first attempt to test LET in sustainability accounting by analysing verbal tones used by sustainability assurance providers. It contributes to the sustainability assurance literature in that it empirically demonstrates how sustainability assurors, as expert communicators, use optimistic tone and verbal certainty in careful persuasion attempts.

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Section: Methods and Empirical Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Verbal tones in sustainability assurance statements

Hassan¹

2019

SAMPJ

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“…Many empirical studies have applied the seven propositions to examine the charismatic level of speeches delivered by political and business leaders. These endeavors focused on developing dictionary-based constructs to analyze speech content (e.g., Bligh et al, 2004 ; Bligh & Kohles, 2014 ; Davis & Gardner, 2012 ). However, rather than deciphering a single leader’s one-time oral speech, the current study aimed to connect followers’ reactions with the level of charismatic rhetoric adopted by executive leaders during organizational change.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Navigating change in the era of COVID-19: The role of top leaders’ charismatic rhetoric and employees’ organizational identification

Yue

2021

Public Relations Review

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The Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has had tremendous and swift effects on organizational change. This study examined how organizations can leverage leadership and employee resources to facilitate positive change outcomes. Drawing from the self-concept based motivational theory of charismatic leadership and substitutes for leadership theory, the current study proposed a theoretical model connecting top leaders’ charismatic rhetoric, employees’ affective commitment to change, and employees’ turnover intention. Furthermore, the study investigated contingencies that may modify the relationship between leadership communication and followers’ outcomes. Results from an online panel of 417 U.S. employees showed that top leaders’ use of charismatic rhetoric during change led to followers’ affective commitment to change, which decreased their turnover intention. Furthermore, employees’ organizational identification moderated this relationship. When employees have low identification with their organizations, top leaders’ charismatic rhetoric to address the immediate change is more needed.

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“…While human coding has been widely used in the content analysis research, it is often constrained by time or the financial resources available for the study (e.g. Bligh and Kohles, 2014). Subsequently, computerized coding for content analysis was developed to automate the coding process using computers (e.g.…”

Section: Sentiment Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Top management's communication in economic crisis and the firm's subsequent performance: sentiment analysis approach

Pengnate

Lehmberg

Tangpong

2020

CCIJ

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PurposeIn economic crisis, where tensions create anxiety and test the emotions of the firms' shareholders, communication from top management is very crucial as it provides the reflection of the managers' interpretation of the firms' situation and potential strategies. The goal of this paper is to investigate the relationships between sentiment, as an aspect of emotions extracted from the letters to shareholders, managerial discretion and the firms' subsequent performance and performance trajectory during crisis.Design/methodology/approachA sentiment analysis was conducted to extract the sentiment from the letters to shareholders, which were collected from firms in two countries with different levels of managerial discretion (US vs. Japan). Hypotheses were developed and tested using a series of regression analysis.FindingsThe primary findings indicate that (1) managerial sentiment identified in letters to shareholders can potentially be related to the firm's subsequent performance in the economic crisis, and (2) managerial discretion moderates the relationship between managerial sentiment and subsequent firm performance.Practical implicationsWhen the managerial discretion is high, firms' shareholders can use the sentiment in top management communications to gauge whether the firms' situation would be improving in the near future.Originality/valueThis study expands the current research on sentiment analysis and firm performance to the context of economic crisis by suggesting that managerial sentiment can be substantially provoked as firms are facing with stressful economic conditions. The study also highlights the moderating role of managerial discretion on the firms' subsequent performance.

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Comparing leaders across contexts, culture, and time: Computerized content analysis of leader–follower communications

Cited by 11 publications

References 58 publications

Verbal tones in sustainability assurance statements

Verbal tones in sustainability assurance statements

Navigating change in the era of COVID-19: The role of top leaders’ charismatic rhetoric and employees’ organizational identification

Top management's communication in economic crisis and the firm's subsequent performance: sentiment analysis approach

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