The purpose of this article is to present and revisit the role of rhetoric and narratives in management research and practice.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this article is to present and revisit the role of rhetoric and narratives in management research and practice.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors revisit the insights from previous work on the role of rhetoric and narratives in management research and introduce new perspectives based on the original contributions included in this special issue.
Findings
There is an ongoing need to stress the importance of narrative and rhetorical perspectives in management research, specifically for exploring the managing of meanings, the coaching of virtues and the mediating of rhetoric.
Originality/value
The paper revisits and provides new insights on the role of rhetoric and narratives in management research and emphasizes the interrelationship between both, specifically by focusing on the conceptual framework of Kenneth Burke, whose work can be situated at the intersection of rhetoric and narrative.
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Keywords
Ronald Soetaert and Kris Rutten
In previous research on rhetoric and narrative in management research, cultural narratives have been studied as tools to reflect on rhetorical situations from the perspective of…
Abstract
Purpose
In previous research on rhetoric and narrative in management research, cultural narratives have been studied as tools to reflect on rhetorical situations from the perspective of management. The purpose of this paper is to present a similar exploration of rhetoric while focusing on a modern example from popular culture: the television series Mad Men.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper first discusses rhetorical concepts from the work of Kenneth Burke and Richard Lanham as inspirational guides, thereafter, these concepts are used to analyze the case of Mad Men. Specifically, the main character Don Draper is analyzed as a homo rhetoricus in an attention economy.
Findings
Don Draper becomes a case study of what it means to introduce a rhetorical perspective in advertising and management. It is argued that Don Draper’s reflections in the series can be described as a “perspective on perspectives” or as a “toggling” between different rhetorical perspectives.
Originality/value
Previous research discussed the emergence of spinning and the appearance of the “spin doctor” as a major figure in society in general and fiction in particular. In this article, it is argued that the same is also true for advertising. Mad Men is introduced as a case study about the revival of rhetoric as a major skill and an important perspective in and for our personal, professional and social lives.
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Kris Rutten, Helena Calleeuw, Griet Roets and Angelo Van Gorp
In Flanders, the subventions in the cultural sector are mainly divided and decided upon within the framework of the Arts Decree. Within this policy framework, art organizations…
Abstract
Purpose
In Flanders, the subventions in the cultural sector are mainly divided and decided upon within the framework of the Arts Decree. Within this policy framework, art organizations may choose in their funding applications for “participation” as one of the five possible functions to describe their artistic and cultural practices. However, questions need to be raised about the different interpretations of the notion of participation within this policy framework. The growing trend of evidence-based policy-making implies that participation risks to become a “target” that needs to be achieved instrumentally, which paradoxically ignores the fact that participatory practices within culture and the arts are very often diverse, multi-layered and context-specific practices. Starting from this paradox, the purpose of this paper is to explore how the current policy framework is translated into different “participatory” art practices by art organizations and specifically how cultural practitioners themselves conceptualize it.
Design/methodology/approach
In this paper, the authors discuss the results of a qualitative research based on semi-structured interviews with cultural practitioners about how they grapple with the notion of participation within their organizations and practices.
Findings
The results clearly show that practitioners use micro-politics of resistance to deal with different, and often conflicting, conceptualizations of participation in relation to this cultural policy framework.
Research limitations/implications
The implications of the findings are vital for the discussion about cultural policy. These micro-politics of resistance do not only have an impact on the development of individual participatory art practices but also on the broader participatory arts landscape and on how the function of participation is perceived within the renewed policy framework.
Originality/value
The original contribution of this paper is to explore the perspective of practitioners in cultural organizations about the function of participation in the Arts Decree in Flanders and specifically how the notion of participation is operationalized in their practices in relation to this cultural policy framework.
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Keywords
Ronald Soetaert and Kris Rutten
The purpose of this paper is to present a theoretical background for studying rhetoric and narratives as equipment for living. Analyzing a case study on spinning and the spin…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present a theoretical background for studying rhetoric and narratives as equipment for living. Analyzing a case study on spinning and the spin doctor in recent narratives with a major focus on the Danish TV-series Borgen. Arguing that narratives can be equipment for teaching.
Design/methodology/approach
Introducing rhetorical concepts as tools for an analysis of narratives (based on the work of Kenneth Burke).
Findings
The authors argue for the importance of rhetoric and narrative as tools for meaning-making, illustrate how spinning has become a major topic in recent fiction (and the TV-series Borgen in particular), and focus on how Borgen can be equipment for living from different “terministic screens.”
Originality/value
The authors analyze how a popular narrative as Borgen can be read as equipment for living, focussing on how the spin doctor has become a major character in fiction, and illustrate what the authors can learn from narratives about rhetoric and spinning.
Charunee Thiabpho, Supranee Changbumrung, Ngamphol Soonthornworasiri, Bencha Yoddumnern-Attig, Patcharaporn Thaboot, Pattharawan Nissayan and Karunee Kwanbunjan
The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of the intensive lifestyle modification program on weight and metabolic syndrome risk reduction in rural obese women who have no…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of the intensive lifestyle modification program on weight and metabolic syndrome risk reduction in rural obese women who have no underlying non-communicable diseases in Thailand.
Design/methodology/approach
A randomized controlled trial was conducted. In total, 60 healthy obese women aged 30-50 years were recruited and randomly assigned to either the intervention (n=30) or control (n=30) group after health screening. Tailored nutritional counseling, health education and exercise training were included in the lifestyle modification program. Behavioral modification techniques were also incorporated. The intervention was conducted weekly for the first eight weeks, then biweekly until week 16.
Findings
The student’s t-test was used to compare mean difference between groups. The total weight loss in the intervention group (n=29) was significantly higher, 7.6±2.9 kg, compared with the control group (n=30) who lost 0.7±1.4 kg (p<0.001). The intervention group lost weight 10.2 percent from baseline which was significantly higher than that in the control group (p<0.001). Systolic and diastolic blood pressures, fasting blood sugar, and waist circumference were significantly improved. Triglyceride levels slightly improved while high density lipoprotein cholesterol was slightly lowered. The intervention group showed a statistical reduction in abnormal components of metabolic syndrome compared with the control group, with the relative risk=0.24, 95% confidence interval=0.072-0.791, and p=0.018.
Originality/value
Compatibility of the program activities conducted by a health professional who had achieved healthy weight loss and accepted as a role model was a key to achieving effective weight loss and metabolic syndrome risk reduction in obese women in rural areas. The program should be integrated into the conventional practice of health care centers.