BIG TROUBLE FOR THE BIG THREE: AN AUDIENCE PERSPECTIVE OF THE APPROPRIATENESS AND EFFECTIVENESS OF THE BIG THREE AUTOMAKERS’ IMAGE REPAIR STRATEGIES Lindsey B. Anderson Submitted to the faculty of the University Graduate School in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts in the Department of Communication Studies, Indiana University May 2010 Accepted by the Faculty of Indiana University, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts. John Parrish-Sprowl, Ph.D., Chair Kristina Horn Sheeler, Ph.D. Master’s Thesis Committee Ronald Sandwina, Ph.D. ii DEDICATION To Robert for always believing in me. You have inspired me to become a better person and I cannot thank you enough for the encouragement and love that you have provided. To my mother and father for supporting me through all of my dreams and continually emphasizing the importance of an education. Finally, to Kate for listening to my frustrations and always helping me put my priorities into perspective. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my thesis chair, Dr. John Parrish-Sprowl, for his support and encouragement throughout graduate school and especially during the thesis process. I would also like to thank Dr. Kristina Horn Sheeler for introducing me to image repair strategies and providing the foundation for my final thesis topic. Finally, I would like to thank Dr. Ronald Sandwina for agreeing to be on my committee and providing invaluable advice throughout the process. In addition, I would like to thank Rachel, Emily and Jon for being the best cohort ever. Your friendship helped to make my graduate experience enjoyable and your advice helped to shape my thesis. I would also like to thank the focus group participants for taking the time to talk to me about their perceptions of the Big Three Automakers and their attempts at apologia. Finally, I need to thank Ashley for editing my thesis. You helped to make this the best document possible. iv ABSTRACT Lindsey B. Anderson BIG TROUBLE FOR THE BIG THREE: AN AUDIENCE PERSPECTIVE OF THE APPROPRIATENESS AND EFFECTIVENESS OF THE BIG THREE AUTOMAKERS’ IMAGE REPAIR STRATEGIES The importance of image management has created the need to for organizations to continually work in order to improve their image or defend it against perceived threats. Since organizations engage in a constant struggle to preserve their reputation, it is important to understand the persuasive discourse associated with image repair strategies. In addition, a successful rhetor must also acknowledge the importance of perception of the appropriateness and effectiveness of the apologetic discourse from the perspective of an audience. Focus groups were conducted and analyzed in order to better understand the perceived appropriateness and effectiveness of the image repair strategies employed by the Big Three Automakers as perceived by the audience. The findings of this study complement the original findings of Benoit and Drew’s quantitative study assessing the appropriateness and effectiveness of image repair strategies in an interpersonal setting. However, there were observable differences between the studies in terms of the perception of both the appropriateness and effectiveness of bolstering and the effectiveness of differentiation. The implications of these differences can be important in developing a better understanding of the utilization of image repair strategies in the apologetic discourse of organizations. Specifically, the results demonstrate how the v audience determines the appropriateness and effectiveness of the strategies and how rhetors are able to successfully use different strategies based in context. John Parrish-Sprowl, Ph.D., Chair vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1 Purpose of Study ..................................................................................................... 1 Persuasion ............................................................................................................... 2 Audience ................................................................................................................. 3 Image Repair ........................................................................................................... 4 Literature Review................................................................................................................ 6 Rhetorical Criticism and Apologia ......................................................................... 6 Burke’s Theory of Purification ............................................................................... 8 Ryan’s Concept of Kategoria-Apologia ................................................................ 10 Current State of Image Repair Strategies .............................................................. 12 Benoit and Image Repair ...................................................................................... 12 Image and Crisis Management.............................................................................. 16 Corporate............................................................................................................... 19 Celebrity ................................................................................................................ 20 Political ................................................................................................................. 22 Religious ............................................................................................................... 24 Criticism of Image Repair Strategies .................................................................... 26 Conclusion ............................................................................................................ 29 Research Questions ............................................................................................... 30 Big Three Automakers ...................................................................................................... 31 Background ........................................................................................................... 31 General Motors ..................................................................................................... 35 Chrysler ................................................................................................................. 36 Ford ....................................................................................................................... 37 Overview ............................................................................................................... 38 Methodology ..................................................................................................................... 40 Artifacts................................................................................................................. 40 Participants ............................................................................................................ 41 Procedures ............................................................................................................. 42 Data Analysis ........................................................................................................ 44 Results ............................................................................................................................... 48 Analysis of Artifacts ............................................................................................. 48 Research Question One ......................................................................................... 55 Research Question Two ........................................................................................ 56 Research Question Three ...................................................................................... 59 Mortification ............................................................................................. 60 Corrective Action ...................................................................................... 61 Bolstering .................................................................................................. 62 Research Question Four ........................................................................................ 63 Mortification ............................................................................................. 63 Corrective Action ...................................................................................... 64 vii Bolstering .................................................................................................. 65 Differentiation ........................................................................................... 66 Naming ...................................................................................................... 67 Discussion ......................................................................................................................... 68 Implications of Results ......................................................................................... 68 Research Question One ............................................................................. 68 Research Question Two ............................................................................ 68 Research Question Three .......................................................................... 69 Research Question