Abstract
This article outlines the past, present, and possible future trajectories of organizational communication, emphasizing the shift from modernist approaches toward postmodern alternatives. The field’s history is traced through three eras—preparation, consolidation, and maturity—culminating in recent developments that challenge the dominance of prediction, control, and managerial perspectives. Emerging orientations, including naturalistic and critical approaches, have expanded the scope of inquiry by highlighting social construction, culture, symbolism, and emancipatory goals. Concerns are raised about uncritical pro-management biases, the overuse of psychological models, and the risks of excessive vocationalism that could narrow the discipline’s academic role. In response, the article advocates for interdependent pluralism, social-structural orientations, and positioning organizational communication as part of a liberal education. It concludes by calling for theoretical reintegration across communication subfields to address broader societal needs and strengthen the discipline’s role in higher education.
Recommended Citation
Tompkins, Phillip
(1987)
"The Future of Organizational Communication: An Outline of Postmodernism,"
Association for Communication Administration Bulletin: Vol. 61, Article 21.
Available at:
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/aca/vol61/iss1/21
