COMMUNICATION PATTERNS AND EFFECTIVENESS OF PROFESSIONALS PERFORMING LINKING ROLES IN A RESEARCH DISSEMINATION ORGANIZATION
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Date
1970
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UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES GKVK, BANGALORE
Abstract
The present dissertation consists of two parts: (1) a conceptual
framework for studying communication patterns of linkers involved in
the process of research dissemination and utilization, and (2) an empirical
study of the relationship between communication patterns and
effectiveness of some professionals performing Unking roles within a
research dissemination organization, an organization designed to facilitate
the dissemination and utilization of research results.
The Conceptual Framework
The main objective of the framework suggested in the present
dissertation was to provide a perspective or frame of reference that
could facilitate both theoretical and empirical analysis of communication
patterns of linkers involved in the process of research utilization.
Research utilization is the process by which research results are communicated
to, and adopted by, the clients. The three social systems
involved in the process of research utilization are research system,
Unking system, and client system. The term communication pattern is used to include those communication behaviors of an Individual, dyad,
group, or social system that are systematic or exhibit some form of
regularity (as opposed to randomness). The two useful levels of analysis
for studying communication patterns are the individual level and the
dyadic level.
At the individual level of analysis, nine categories of communication
patterns are formulated. At the dyadic level, the framework suggests
six different categories of communication patterns. The categories
of communication patterns relevant for studying the communication behavior
of linkers are: communication patterns dealing with (1) information
Input behavior of linkers, (2) Information-processing behavior of
linkers, (3) Information output behavior of linkers, (4) communication
between linkers and researchers, (5) communication between linkers and
clients, and (6) communication among linkers. The framework concludes
with some examples of concepts and research questions (underlying each
of the six categories of communication patterns) that are relevant for
studying communication patterns of linkers.
T h e Empirical Study
The empirical study reported in the present dissertation was
designed to test eight hypotheses about the relationship between the communication
patterns and peer-evaluated effectiveness of linkers working
in a research dissemination organization, the Michigan Cooperative E x tension
Service. Eight communication pattern variables hypothesized to be positively related with the c o m m o n dependent variable of peerevaluated
effectiveness are: (1) Information Input amount, (2) information
Input diversity, (3) peer-communication amount, (4) peercommunlcatlon
diversity, (5) linker network centrality, (6) opinion
leadership, (7) Information output amount, and (8) information output
diversity.
The field survey design was used In the present study. The
sample consisted of fifty specialized linkers (or Extension Specialists)
selected from seven academic departments of the Michigan State University.
Most of the data was collected from Individual specialists by
personal Interviews supplemented with s ome pretested and structured
Interview schedules and self-administered instruments. The data
about the biographical Information and the Information output activities
of the specialists were collected from organizational records. Partial
correlation technique was used to control statistically the effect of four
variables—age, organizational status, professional experience, and
project leadership, on the hypothesized relationships.
Of the eight hypotheses in the study, four were supported by our
data. The communication pattern variables positively correlated with
the peer-evaluated effectiveness of linkers (at the .05 level of significance)
are (1) peer-communication diversity, (2) linker network
centrality, (3) opinion leadership, and (4) Information output diversity.
The other four communication pattern variables, Information input amount, information input diversity, peer-communication amount, and
Information output amount, vere not found to be significantly related
to the peer-evaluated effectiveness of linkers. One general observation
from our findings is that the communication pattern variables dealing
with the ’diversity" aspect of linkers' communication behavior tend to
be more often correlated with the effectiveness of linkers than are the
variables dealing with the "amount" aspect of linkers1 communication
behavior.
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