Technical Communication Quarterly Apr 2021

“Dude, that Sucks”: Examining Scrum’s Influence on Empathy in Student Teams

Erin Friess University of North Texas ; Chris Lam University of North Texas

Abstract

The role of empathy in student team collaborations in technical and professional communication has been understudied. In this mixed methods study, we assess how Scrum affects both student perceptions of empathy and student use of empathetic strategies. We found that students who used Scrum considered themselves to be no more empathetic than students who did not use Scrum. However, a discourse analysis revealed that students who used Scrum deployed significantly more empathetic strategies than students who did not use Scrum.

Journal
Technical Communication Quarterly
Published
2021-04-03
DOI
10.1080/10572252.2020.1803413
CompPile
Search in CompPile ↗
Open Access
Closed
Topics
discourse analysis professional writing empirical research
Export
BibTeX RIS

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (7)

  1. Hovde et al. (2026)
    Advantages and Challenges of Creating User Documentation in Agile Development C…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  2. Hovde et al. (2025)
    The Nature and Indispensable Roles of Technical Communication in Agile Developm…
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  3. Friess (2025)
    The Second Coder was a Robot: Generative AI Tools in Establishing Intercoder Re…
    Communication Design Quarterly
  4. Fuller et al. (2024)
    Training Empathy Competence in a Professional Communication Program: Course Dev…
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  5. Rea et al. (2024)
    Cultivating Empathic Engineering Design through UX Pedagogy: Challenges and Insights
    Communication Design Quarterly
Show all 7 →
  1. Feuer et al. (2023)
    Planning for Difference: Preparing Students to Create Flexible and Elaborated T…
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  2. Friess (2023)
    Scrum in Classroom Collaborations: A Quasi-Experimental Study
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication

References (86) · 22 in this index

  1. 10.1007/978-3-319-97925-0_21
     ↗
  2. Alliance S. (2017)
    The state of Scrum report 2017 edition
  3. 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00019
     ↗
  4. 10.1177/0021943610369782
     ↗
  5. Barton et al. (2012)
    Process, Product, and Potential: The Archaeological Assessment of Collaborative…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
Show all 86 →
  1. Batova et al. (2017)
    A Systematic Literature Review of Changes in Roles/Skills in Component Content …
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  2. Bekins L. K. (2006)
    Technical Communication
  3. Breuch L. A. K. (2005)
    Online education: Global questions, local answers
  4. Brewer et al. (2016)
    Better Communication = Better Teams: A Communication Exercise to Improve Team P…
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  5. Brumberger E. (2015)
    Technical Communication
  6. 10.1111/j.1440-1800.2009.00482.x
     ↗
  7. 10.1002/smr.523
     ↗
  8. Campbell et al. (2019)
    The Effect of Leader Rapport-Management Feedback on Leader–Member Relationship …
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  9. Clark et al. (2013)
    Is Empathy Effective for Customer Service? Evidence From Call Center Interactions
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  10. Cook (2002)
    Layered Literacies: A Theoretical Frame for Technical Communication Pedagogy
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  11. 10.4018/IJKM.2017070102
     ↗
  12. 10.1109/IPCC.2007.4464058
     ↗
  13. Edwards A. L. (1957)
    The social desirability variable in personality assessment and research
  14. 10.1177/1080569908325860
     ↗
  15. Friess E. (2018)
    Technical Communication
  16. Friess (2019)
    Scrum Language Use in a Software Engineering Firm: An Exploratory Study
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  17. 10.1037/apl0000377
     ↗
  18. 10.1145/1723028.1723101
     ↗
  19. Gentry W. A. (2007)
    Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the Society of Industrial Organizational Psychology
  20. 10.1093/sw/56.2.141
     ↗
  21. 10.1007/s10615-010-0305-2
     ↗
  22. Goldstein I. (2013)
    Scrum shortcuts without cutting corners: Agile tactics, tools, & tips
  23. 10.1108/13527599610126247
     ↗
  24. 10.1177/1469787409355867
     ↗
  25. 10.1007/s10551-011-0951-5
     ↗
  26. 10.24251/HICSS.2018.679
     ↗
  27. 10.1109/HICSS.2014.579
     ↗
  28. Ioannidou F. (2008)
    International Journal of Caring Sciences
  29. Johnson T. (2017)
    Tech docs and Agile: Alternatives to integrating into engineering Scrums (Part 2)
  30. Johnson T. (2017)
    Tech docs and Agile: Problems with integrating tech writers into engineering Scrums (Part 1)
  31. 10.5465/amr.1998.926625
     ↗
  32. Jones (2016)
    Narrative Inquiry in Human-Centered Design: Examining Silence and Voice to Prom…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  33. Jones (2016)
    The Technical Communicator as Advocate: Integrating a Social Justice Approach i…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  34. Jones (2017)
    Modified Immersive Situated Service Learning: A Social Justice Approach to Prof…
    Business and Professional Communication Quarterly
  35. Jones S. L. (2007)
    Technical Communication
  36. 10.5430/ijhe.v6n6p1
     ↗
  37. 10.1016/j.pec.2017.07.022
     ↗
  38. Lam (2013)
    The Efficacy of Text Messaging to Improve Social Connectedness and Team Attitud…
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  39. Lam (2015)
    The Role of Communication and Cohesion in Reducing Social Loafing in Group Projects
    Business and Professional Communication Quarterly
  40. Lam (2016)
    Improving Technical Communication Group Projects: An Experimental Study of Medi…
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  41. Lam (2018)
    More Than a Feeling: Applying a Data-Driven Framework in the Technical and Prof…
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  42. 10.1016/j.ctim.2015.11.001
     ↗
  43. Manifesto for Agile Software Development. (2001). Retrieved from https://agilemanifesto.org/
  44. 10.1007/978-3-319-16262-1
     ↗
  45. 10.1109/TE.2007.901982
     ↗
  46. Paretti et al. (2007)
    Teaching Technical Communication in an Era of Distributed Work: A Case Study of…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  47. 10.1109/IPCC.2015.7235794
     ↗
  48. Petersen (2017)
    Empathetic user design: understanding and living the reality of an audience
    Communication Design Quarterly
  49. 10.1177/0273475302250571
     ↗
  50. 10.1080/87567555.2012.669425
     ↗
  51. Pope-Ruark (2014)
    A Case for Metic Intelligence in Technical and Professional Communication Programs
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  52. Pope-Ruark (2015)
    Introducing Agile Project Management Strategies in Technical and Professional C…
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  53. Pope-Ruark R. (2011)
    Teaching and Learning Together in Higher Education
  54. Pope-Ruark et al. (2019)
    Introduction to Special Issue: Design-Thinking Approaches in Technical and Prof…
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  55. 10.1109/AGILE.2011.34
     ↗
  56. 10.1080/08854726.2014.913876
     ↗
  57. Rainey K. T. (2005)
    Technical Communication
  58. Rose et al. (2018)
    Participatory video methods in UX: sharing power with users to gain insights in…
    Communication Design Quarterly
  59. Royle K. (2016)
    Journal of Education & Social Policy
  60. Rubin K. S. (2012)
    Essential Scrum: A practical guide to the most popular Agile process
  61. Schwaber K. (2017)
    The Scrum guide: The definitive guide to Scrum: The rules of the game
  62. 10.1177/1080569912450312
     ↗
  63. 10.1177/1741143207084060
     ↗
  64. 10.1016/j.iheduc.2010.09.005
     ↗
  65. 10.20429/ijsotl.2014.080107
     ↗
  66. 10.1080/00223890802484381
     ↗
  67. State of Scrum 2017–2018: Scaling and Agile Transformation. (2017). Retrieved from https://www.scrumalliance.…
  68. 10.1080/19378629.2013.814136
     ↗
  69. 10.1109/HICSS.2007.180
     ↗
  70. Takpuie D. (2016)
    Electronic Journal of Information Systems Evaluation
  71. Thomas S. (2007)
    Technical Communication
  72. Thompson (2001)
    Collaboration in technical communication: a qualitative content analysis of jou…
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  73. Tietz V. (2015)
    Facing fake‐to-fake: Lessons learned from distributed Scrum
  74. Watt J. H. (1995)
    Research methods for communication science
  75. White F. (2005)
    Research and Development in Higher Education
  76. Wolfe J. (2017)
    Team writing: A guide to working in groups
  77. Wolfe et al. (2005)
    The Computer Expert in Mixed-Gendered Collaborative Writing Groups
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  78. 10.1109/IPCC.2014.7020346
     ↗
  79. Yost C. A. (2000)
    Delta Pi Epsilon Journal
  80. Young I. (2015)
    Practical empathy: For collaboration and creativity in your work
  81. 10.1111/j.1365-2648.2008.04831.x
     ↗
CrossRef global citation count: 7 View in citation network → Build reading path →

Related Articles

  1. Argumentation Aug 2025
    Informal Formative Assessment in Argumentation-Based Science Education: A Micro-Analytic Investigation of Teachers’ Pedagogical Practices ↗
    Metin Sardag; Gultekin Cakmakci
    discourse analysis writing pedagogy argument assessment professional writing empirical research qualitative research
  2. IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication Jun 2025
    Charting the Course of Stance Construction in Container Shipping: An Empirical Study of COSCO Shipping and Maersk ↗
    Shijie Liu; Minggui Duan; Yan Zhang
    discourse analysis argument professional writing empirical research quantitative research
  3. Journal of Academic Writing Dec 2020
    Collaborating between Writing and STEM: Teaching Disciplinary Genres, Researching Disciplinary Interventions, and Engaging Science Audiences ↗
    Rachel C Riedner; Bill Briscoe; Alexander Van der Horst; Carol Hayes; Gary White
    rhetorical criticism genre theory discourse analysis writing pedagogy advanced composition writing across the curriculum graduate education teacher development collaborative writing professional writing scientific writing empirical research race and writing book reviews
  4. Journal of Business and Technical Communication Jan 1992
    Categorizing Professional Discourse: Engineering, Administrative, and Technical/Professional Writing ↗
    BARBARA COUTURE
    rhetorical criticism discourse analysis writing pedagogy professional writing empirical research
  5. Business and Professional Communication Quarterly May 2026
    Communicating Diversity and Inclusion in LinkedIn Job Advertisements ↗
    Rashid Ashraf; Said Badreddine; Mohamed I. Albeshr; Hamsa Al Ammari; Malik Muhammad Sheheryar Khan; Pranav Naithani
    discourse analysis professional writing race and writing