Abstract
Motivation and persuasion are at the heart of most organizational communication. In fact, many business communication theories are linked to rhetoric, a key theory in this category. Simply stated, motivational and persuasive messages guide how we get things done in organizations. Just as important, these same messages impact the well-being of organizational stakeholders—employees, and customers included of course. Yet there are different paths to modeling these processes within business communication theory, and this chapter captures some major approaches. We also touch upon some compelling issues for scholars and managers here. Have we fully considered and taken action about relevant ethical implications? And, have we effectively partnered theories in this category with pertinent ones from cultural characteristics and organizational structures to better explore organizational communication behaviors and their meaningful outcomes?
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Mayfield, M., Mayfield, J., Walker, R. (2020). Motivation and Persuasion. In: Fundamental Theories of Business Communication. New Perspectives in Organizational Communication. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-57741-4_9
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