COMMUNICATION AND SENSEMAKING DURING THE EXIT PHASE OF SOCIALIZATION A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School University of Missouri—Columbia In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy By STEPHANIE R. KLATZKE Dr. Michael W. Kramer, Dissertation Supervisor MAY 2008 The undersigned, appointed by the dean of the Graduate School, have examined the dissertation entitled COMMUNICATION AND SENSEMAKING DURING THE EXIT PHASE OF SOCIALIZATION Presented by Stephanie R. Klatzke A candidate for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, And hereby certify that, in their opinion, it is worthy of acceptance. ________________________________________________ Dr. Michael W. Kramer ________________________________________________ Dr. Debbie S. Dougherty ________________________________________________ Dr. Jon A. Hess ________________________________________________ Dr. Mitchell S. McKinney ________________________________________________ Dr. Tom W. Dougherty ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS To begin, there are not enough words to thank the many people who have impacted my academic journey. I hope they each realize how much I have valued their time, support, advice, and encouragement. I am indebted to them. I am proud to have been a part of the Department of Communication at the University of Missouri— Columbia. Heartfelt thanks go first to the members of my committee. Each of my committee members has made an important contribution to this paper and to my education. Dr. Debbie Dougherty has a passion for her research that is unmatched and inspiring. She has pushed me to become a better researcher and writer. It was a joy to learn from Dr. Jon Hess. He taught me to always approach my students with a positive attitude and enthusiasm. I also want to thank Dr. Hess for asking “so what?” That lesson will always stay with me; I just hope I can always come up with good answers. Though I never had the opportunity to take his classes, Dr. Tom Dougherty offered an outside perspective that pushed me to make my work practical and relevant beyond my discipline. Dr. Mitchell McKinney pushed me to figure out where I stood as a communication scholar, a frustrating yet worthwhile task. Our theory class discussions were some of my favorite from my entire graduate experience. Last, yet most important, my advisor Dr. Michael Kramer has been an incredible mentor. He guided me through each phase of my degree, always making sure I was prepared and on track. Throughout the dissertation process he offered meaningful critique and feedback, acted as a sounding board for ideas, guided me through trouble spots and was always encouraging. I have learned to be a better student, ii writer, teacher, and faculty member from him and I am grateful to have had him as my advisor. There are several other people deserving of thanks. I would never have pursued graduate school without the encouragement of Dr. Michael Bokeno and Dr. Gail Fairhurst. They were advisors and mentors and they gave me the confidence to move forward. I also owe a great deal of thanks to the nearly two hundred people who, through interviews and surveys, took the time to share their exit experiences with me. I am grateful to each of them. Along with the faculty, my friends and colleagues made my experience at Mizzou one I will never forget. I miss having them to talk to and lean on every day. My family was instrumental to the completion of this project. I want to thank my parents for their unconditional love and support thought my life and especially the past few years. Dissertation or no dissertation, they have always been behind me. Lastly, I thank my husband Gary, who never let a day pass without asking how my dissertation was going. There were many days when I didn’t want to work and didn’t care about finishing. He was always there to push me when I got stuck and to congratulate me when I met a goal. This dissertation has been as much a part of his life as mine. His support has meant more to me than he could know. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS……………………………………………………………….ii LIST OF TABLES………………………………………………………………………..vi ABSTRACT………………………………………………………………………….….vii Chapter 1. Introduction…………………………………………………………………………..1 2. Literature Review………………………………………………………….………....8 Research Questions……………………………………………………………….62 3. Methods………………………………………………………………..…..………..66 4. Results..………………………………………………………………………..........92 5. Discussion…………………………………………………………………............152 NOTES………………………………………………………………………………….189 APPENDIX A. Interview Guide….………………………………………………………..........190 B. Interview Consent Form…………………………………………………..........191 C. Communication Cue Scale………………………………………………..........192 D. Cue Targets Scale…………………………………………………………........193 E. Reasons for Leaving Scale………………………………………………….......194 F. Open Ended Account Questions…………………………………………..........195 G. Account Motivations Scale………………………………………………..........196 H. Demographic Questions…………………………………………………….......197 I. Questionnaire Consent Form……………………………………………….......198 J. Complete Questionnaire…………………………………………………..........199 iv REFERENCES…………………………………………………………………………209 VITA…………………………………………………………………………………....218 v LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. Factor Analysis of Communication Cues..............................................................76 2. Alpha Levels for Cue Targets................................................................................78 3. Factor Analysis for Reason for Leaving ...............................................................80 4. Factor Analysis for Account Motivation...............................................................82 5. Factor Loadings for Account Motivations for each Target Group........................83 6. Communication Cue Definitions ..........................................................................95 7. Cue Type Repeated Measures ANOVA Post Hoc Significance Levels..............106 8. Cue Target Repeated Measures ANOVA Post Hoc Significance Levels............108 9. Work Dissatisfaction Repeated Measures ANOVA Post Hoc Test Results........110 10. Advice Repeated Measures ANOVA Post Hoc Test Results..............................111 11. Personal Conflicts Repeated Measures ANOVA Post Hoc Test Results............113 12. Openness Repeated Measures ANOVA Post Hoc Test Results..........................114 13. Justification Sub-Categories................................................................................121 14. Changes in Accounts by Justification Sub-Category...........................................126 15. Communicative Changes in Exit Accounts.........................................................128 16. Account Motivation Factors Repeated Measures ANOVA Post Hoc ................137 17. Spouse/Family Post Hoc Significance Levels.....................................................138 18. Coworkers Post Hoc Significance Levels............................................................139 19. Boss/Supervisor Post Hoc Significance Levels...................................................140 20. Customers/Clients Post Hoc Significance Levels................................................141 21. Friends Post Hoc Significance Levels.................................................................142 22. Potential Employers Post Hoc Significance Levels.............................................143 vi ABSTRACT This study examined communication during the three phases of exit: preannouncement, announcement/actual exit, and post-exit. Data from both interviews and questionnaires were collected from employees who had voluntarily left jobs. Results showed that during preannouncement, potential leavers communicate about a number of topics and employ specific communicative strategies; these may act as signals or cues of the impending exit. Leavers discuss exit with family, friends, potential employers, bosses, coworkers and customers. Leavers make sense of their decision throughout the preannouncement period, which is triggered by their initial decision to leave. Through sensemaking, people create accounts for why they leaving. These accounts are presented to others during the announcement process of exit. Leavers announce their exit in phases, telling their inner circle first, then providing the formal announcement, followed by a period of spreading the word that can extend well past a person’s physical exit from the organization. Leavers are motivated to provide accounts by the desire to save face, justify their exit, and explain the reasons for their exit. Leavers use a variety of strategies to amend their accounts, vary accounts based on the target, and consider account plausibility more important than accuracy. Finally, communication during the post-exit period is characterized by a reduction in frequency and a general shift to more personal oriented topics. vii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION According to data complied by the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics, over three percent of workers were separated from their jobs every month during 2007 (U.S. Department of Labor, 2007). Of those three percent, roughly 4,500,000, nearly half were voluntary separations, or quits. So, generally speaking, over two million people quit their jobs every month of 2007. Schein (1971) has noted that the process of exit and the post-exit period are two of the most basic periods of a persons’ career. For communication researchers, then, there is both ample opportunity and reason to study communication during exit. Looking at exit as a part of the overall socialization,