Journal of Business and Technical Communication Oct 2011

Losing by Expanding

Clay Spinuzzi The University of Texas at Austin

Abstract

Third-generation activity theory (3GAT) has become a popular theoretical and methodological framework for writing studies, particularly in technical communication. 3GAT involves identifying an object, a material or problem that is cyclically transformed by collective activity. The object is the linchpin of analysis in the empirical case. Yet the notion of object has expanded methodologically and theoretically over time, making it difficult to reliably bound an empirical case. In response, this article outlines the expansion of the object, diagnoses this expansion, and proposes an alternate approach that constrains the object for case-study research in writing studies.

Journal
Journal of Business and Technical Communication
Published
2011-10-01
DOI
10.1177/1050651911411040
Open Access
Closed
Topics
genre theory technical communication

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (14)

  1. Hart-Davidson et al. (2025)
    Revisiting Four Conversations in Technical and Professional Writing Scholarship…
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  2. Pellegrini (2024)
    ’F---- Shark Tank:’ Rethinking the Centrality of the Business Pitch in Microent…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  3. Spinuzzi (2023)
    What Is a Workplace? Principles for Bounding Case Studies of Genres, Processes,…
    Written Communication
  4. Pihlaja (2022)
    Everyday Ethics at the Border: Normative Ethics for the 21st Century
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  5. Fisher (2021)
    The Fact of the Text: Exploring Misalignment in Undergraduate Lab Reports
    Research in the Teaching of English
Show all 14 →
  1. Sánchez (2020)
    Examining Methectic Technical Communication in an Urban Planning Comic Book
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  2. McNely (2017)
    Moments and Metagenres
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  3. Fraiberg (2017)
    Start-Up Nation
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  4. Rivers et al. (2016)
    Speculative Usability
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  5. Charney (2015)
    Getting to “How Do You Know?” Rather Than “So What?” From “What's New?”
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  6. Spinuzzi (2015)
    Toward a Typology of Activities
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  7. Wickman (2015)
    Locating the Semiotic Power of Writing in Science
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  8. Spinuzzi (2014)
    How Nonemployer Firms Stage-Manage Ad Hoc Collaboration: An Activity Theory Analysis
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  9. Spinuzzi (2012)
    Working Alone Together
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication

Cites in this index (19)

  1. Spinuzzi (2010)
    Secret Sauce and Snake Oil: Writing Monthly Reports in a Highly Contingent Envi…
    Written Communication
  2. Gygi et al. (2010)
    Productive Tensions and the Regulatory Work of Genres in the Development of an …
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  3. McNair et al. (2010)
    Activity Theory, Speech Acts, and the ‘‘Doctrine of Infelicity’’: Connecting La…
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  4. Walsh (2010)
    Constructive Interference: Wikis And Service Learning In The Technical Communic…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  5. Propen et al. (2010)
    Understanding Genre through the Lens of Advocacy: The Rhetorical Work of the Vi…
    Written Communication
Show all 19 →
  1. Sherlock (2009)
    Genre, Activity, and Collaborative Work and Play in World of Warcraft
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  2. Pickering (2009)
    Student Ethos in the Online Technical Communication Classroom: Diverse Voices
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  3. Karlsson (2009)
    Positioned by Reading and Writing
    Written Communication
  4. Artemeva (2008)
    Toward a Unified Social Theory of Genre Learning
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  5. Ding (2008)
    The Use of Cognitive and Social Apprenticeship to Teach a Disciplinary Genre
    Written Communication
  6. Paretti et al. (2007)
    Teaching Technical Communication in an Era of Distributed Work: A Case Study of…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  7. Spinuzzi (2007)
    Guest Editor's Introduction: Technical Communication in the Age of Distributed Work
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  8. Sun (2006)
    The Triumph of Users: Achieving Cultural Usability Goals With User Localization
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  9. Spafford et al. (2006)
    Look Who’s Talking
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  10. Witte et al. (2005)
    Research in Activity:
    Written Communication
  11. Artemeva et al. (2001)
    “Just the Boys Playing on Computers”
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  12. MIREL (1998)
    “Applied Constructivism” for User Documentation
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  13. RUSSELL (1997)
    Rethinking Genre in School and Society
    Written Communication
  14. Spinuzzi (1996)
    Pseudotransactionality, Activity Theory, and Professional Writing Instruction
    Technical Communication Quarterly
Also cites 48 works outside this index ↓
  1. 10.1080/00131910902844754
     ↗
  2. 10.1080/00131910902846916
     ↗
  3. 10.1080/10749030701307754
     ↗
  4. 10.1017/CBO9780511809989.013
     ↗
  5. 10.1080/10749039509524699
     ↗
  6. 10.1017/CBO9780511812774.003
     ↗
  7. 10.1023/A:1008648532192
     ↗
  8. 10.1080/13639080020028747
     ↗
  9. Engeström Y. (2004). New forms of learning in co-configuration work. Retrieved from http://is.lse.ac.uk/event…
     ↗
  10. 10.1016/S1572-0977(05)11011-5
     ↗
  11. 10.1177/0170840606071898
     ↗
  12. 10.1080/10749030701307689
     ↗
  13. 10.1017/CBO9780511619847
     ↗
  14. 10.1017/CBO9780511809989.020
     ↗
  15. 10.1016/0959-4752(95)00021-6
     ↗
  16. 10.1207/S15327884MCA0902_04
     ↗
  17. Geisler C. (2003). When management becomes personal: An activity-theoretic analysis of Palm technologies. In …
     ↗
  18. 10.1207/s15327884mca1201_3
     ↗
  19. 10.1207/s15327884mca1201_2
     ↗
  20. 10.1108/13665620410521503
     ↗
  21. 10.1017/CBO9780511509568.004
     ↗
  22. 10.1080/00131910902844689
     ↗
  23. 10.1145/1297144.1297164
     ↗
  24. 10.1177/030631298028003003
     ↗
  25. 10.1080/10749039909524725
     ↗
  26. 10.1207/s15327884mca1201_5
     ↗
  27. 10.1023/A:1015256909032
     ↗
  28. 10.1177/1350508405051279
     ↗
  29. 10.1215/9780822384151
     ↗
  30. 10.1207/s15327884mca1201_4
     ↗
  31. 10.1080/10749030701307663
     ↗
  32. 10.3998/toi.8008655.0001.001
     ↗
  33. 10.1023/A:1015241914483
     ↗
  34. 10.1080/00131910902846874
     ↗
  35. 10.1017/CBO9780511809989.007
     ↗
  36. 10.1207/s15327884mca0404_2
     ↗
  37. 10.1017/CBO9780511809989.004
     ↗
  38. Russell D. R., Yañez A. (2003). “Big picture people rarely become historians”: Genre systems and the contradi…
     ↗
  39. 10.1017/CBO9780511809989
     ↗
  40. 10.1017/CBO9780511509568
     ↗
  41. 10.7551/mitpress/6875.001.0001
     ↗
  42. 10.1017/CBO9780511509605
     ↗
  43. 10.1145/1166324.1166336
     ↗
  44. 10.1177/030631289019003001
     ↗
  45. 10.1097/ACM.0b013e318183e67b
     ↗
  46. 10.1177/1080569904265422
     ↗
  47. 10.1017/CBO9780511803932
     ↗
  48. 10.1017/CBO9780511809989.014
     ↗
CrossRef global citation count: 45 View in citation network →

Related Articles

  1. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication Jan 2024
    Conferences With the Engineers: The Innovative Pedagogy and Career of Sada Harbarger, 1884–1942 ↗
    Mike Duncan
    genre theory technical communication
  2. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication Apr 2019
    Simulation Rhetoric and Activity Theory: Experiential Learning in Intercultural Simulations ↗
    Junhua Wang
    genre theory technical communication
  3. Journal of Business and Technical Communication Oct 2017
    Moments and Metagenres ↗
    Brian McNely
    genre theory writing across the curriculum social media technical communication
  4. Journal of Business and Technical Communication Jul 2017
    Start-Up Nation ↗
    Steven Fraiberg
    genre theory multimodality social media technical communication
  5. Journal of Business and Technical Communication Oct 2016
    Surviving Outsourcing and Offshoring ↗
    Jenni Virtaluoto; Annalisa Sannino; Yrjö Engeström
    genre theory writing across the curriculum technical communication race and writing