Keywords

Millennials, social constructionism, membership categorization devices, category bound activities, communication rules, organizational assimilation

Abstract

Millennials are the newest generation to enter the workforce. When Millennials enter organizations, managers construct perceptions about Millennials’ communication behaviors, including their characteristics and adherence to organizational rules. These perceptions help managers decide Millennials’ organizational fit. A review of literature revealed a scarcity of empirical research in this area with little empirical research from communication scholars who apply communication frameworks, theories, and concepts. This research used the lens of social constructionism to understand the membership categorization devices and category-bound activities managers use to characterize Millennials. In order to better understand how Millennials conform to and change organizational culture, data were reviewed for those normative and code rules managers described Millennials violating. In this qualitative, exploratory study, 25 managers who were 31 years of age or older that worked in the hospitality industry and managed Millennial (18 to 30 years old) employees were interviewed through a snowball convenience sample. Interviews were transcribed and patterns were identified. Data analysis indicated that “kids,” “age group,” and “Millennials” and variations of the Millennial term were used to categorize Millennials. Analysis of category-bound activities showed patterns in Millennials’ desire for learning and training, mixed preference for teamwork often affected by their liking for peers, and needs for frequent, clear, personalized feedback. With respect to rule violations, data showed that some organizations were adapting their cell phone policies in response to Millennial rules resistance. However, organizations were not willing to accommodate Millennials’ rule violations in either the area of time-off requests or uncivil behavior due to organizational codes. iv Keywords: Millennials, social constructionism, membership-categorization devices, categorybound activities, communication rules, organizational assimilation

Notes

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Graduation Date

2013

Semester

Spring

Advisor

Hastings, Sally

Degree

Master of Arts (M.A.)

College

College of Sciences

Department

Communication

Degree Program

Communication; Interpersonal Communications

Format

application/pdf

Identifier

CFE0004649

URL

http://purl.fcla.edu/fcla/etd/CFE0004649

Language

English

Release Date

May 2013

Length of Campus-only Access

None

Access Status

Masters Thesis (Open Access)

Subjects

Dissertations, Academic -- Sciences, Sciences -- Dissertations, Academic

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