Journal of Business and Technical Communication Apr 1993

Theory and Curriculum: Reexamining the Curricular Separation of Business and Technical Communication

NANCY ROUNDY BLYLER

Abstract

Business and technical communication have conventionally been separated in academe—a separation that formalist rhetorical theory has supported. Epistemic rhetorical theory, however, suggests that this separation does not reflect the profession's current understanding of workplace discourse. This article demonstrates that the labels business and technical communication are not helpful in understanding two workplace documents: a memorandum and a report. The article then explores the increased explanatory power in two epistemic theoretical approaches, social construction and paralogic hermeneutics, after which the article discusses the radical implications of these approaches for a curricular dialogue concerning workplace writing. Finally, the article describes interests inside and outside academe that preserve the status quo and thus mitigate against curricular change, positing that such change would be difficult, but not impossible, to achieve.

Journal
Journal of Business and Technical Communication
Published
1993-04-01
DOI
10.1177/1050651993007002003
CompPile
Search in CompPile ↗
Open Access
Closed
Topics
modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism discourse analysis technical communication professional writing
Export
BibTeX RIS

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (2)

  1. Ingram et al. (2002)
    The influence of gender on collaborative projects in an engineering classroom
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  2. Blyler (1995)
    Research as ideology in professional communication
    Technical Communication Quarterly

References (55) · 15 in this index

  1. Anderson, Paul V.
    Technical Writing
  2. Berkenkotter, Carol
    Professional Communication: The Social Perspective
  3. Blyler, Nancy Roundy
    Professional Communication: The Social Perspective
  4. BRODKEY (1987)
    Writing Ethnographic Narratives
    Written Communication
  5. Bruffee (1984)
    Collaborative Learning and the "Conversation of Mankind"
    College English
Show all 55 →
  1. 10.2307/376723
     ↗
  2. Buchholz, William J. (1989)
    JBTC
  3. Carter (1988)
    Stasisandkairos: Principles of social construction in classical rhetoric∗
    Rhetoric Review
  4. 10.2307/357812
     ↗
  5. 10.2307/357516
     ↗
  6. Cooper, Marilyn M.
    Writing as Social Action
  7. Couture, Barbara (1992)
    JBTC
  8. Dandridge, Edmund P.
    The Teaching of Technical Writing
  9. 10.2307/377963
     ↗
  10. Davidson, Donald
    Truth and Interpretation: Perspectives on the Philosophy of Donald Davidson
  11. 10.2307/376773
     ↗
  12. Faigley, Lester
    Writing in Nonacademic Settings
  13. Foreman, Janis
    The Random House Guide to Business Writing
  14. Freed, Richard C.
    Professional Communication: The Social Perspective
  15. 10.2307/357716
     ↗
  16. Greene (1990)
    Toward a dialectical theory of composing1
    Rhetoric Review
  17. Halloran (1978)
    Technical Writing and the Rhetoric of Science
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  18. Harris (1978)
    On Expanding the Definition of Technical Writing
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  19. Hays, Robert
    The Teaching of Technical Writing
  20. Herzberg, Bruce
    Professional Communication: The Social Perspective
  21. Jakobson, Roman
    Essays on the Language of Literature
  22. Kelley, Patrick M. (1977)
    Technical Writing Teacher
  23. Kent, Thomas
    Literary Theory after Davidson
  24. 10.2307/357995
     ↗
  25. Kent (1989)
    Paralogic hermeneutics and the possibilities of rhetoric
    Rhetoric Review
  26. Kent, Thomas
    Paralogic Rhetoric: A Theory of Communicative Interaction
  27. Kinneavy, James L.
    A Theory of Discourse
  28. Knoblauch, C. H.
    Perspectives on Research and Scholarship in Composition
  29. Kuhn, Thomas
    The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
  30. Limaye (1983)
    Redefining Business and Technical Writing by Means of a Six-Factored Communicat…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  31. Lipson, Carol (1988)
    JBTC
  32. Madden, Warren R. Memorandum. 6 Sep. 1991. Ames, IA.
  33. McCarron (1985)
    Changing the Technical Writing Paradigm
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  34. 10.1080/00335638409383686
     ↗
  35. 10.2307/375964
     ↗
  36. 10.2307/377298
     ↗
  37. MYERS (1985)
    The Social Construction of Two Biologists' Proposals
    Written Communication
  38. Nelson, John S.
    The Rhetoric of the Human Sciences
  39. Olson, Gary A. (1989)
    Journal of Advanced Composition
  40. Porter (1986)
    Intertextuality and the discourse community
    Rhetoric Review
  41. Rorty, Richard
    Contingency, Irony, and Solidarity
  42. Russell (1990)
    Writing across the Curriculum in Historical Perspective: Toward a Social Interp…
    College English
  43. Simons, Herbert W.
    Rhetoric in the Human Sciences
  44. Stratton (1979)
    Technical Writing: What it is and What it isn't
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  45. Thralls, Charlotte
    Professional Communication: The Social Perspective
  46. 10.2307/377955
     ↗
  47. Walter (1977)
    Technical Writing: Species or Genus?
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  48. 10.2307/357747
     ↗
  49. WINSOR (1989)
    An Engineer's Writing and the Corporate Construction of Knowledge
    Written Communication
  50. Wisner, Robert N.
    World Food Trade and U.S. Agriculture, 1960-1987
CrossRef global citation count: 5 View in citation network → Build reading path →

Related Articles

  1. Pedagogy Jan 2022
    Contributors ↗
    modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism genre theory discourse analysis african american rhetorics decolonial rhetorics first-year composition writing pedagogy basic writing writing across the curriculum graduate education teacher development argument collaborative writing transfer assessment portfolios writing program administration writing centers peer tutoring technical communication professional writing archival research digital rhetoric social media grammar and mechanics literacy studies race and writing gender and writing disability studies public rhetoric community literacy literary studies editorial matter
  2. Pedagogy Oct 2025
    Contributors ↗
    modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism genre theory cultural rhetorics first-year composition writing pedagogy advanced composition creative writing writing across the curriculum graduate education two-year college service learning teacher development technical communication professional writing labor and working conditions archival research multimodality artificial intelligence literacy studies race and writing gender and writing disability studies literary studies editorial matter
  3. IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication Jun 2025
    Presenting and Making Relevant: Analyzing Teaching Assistant Perceptions of Writing in Statistics Using Semantic Frames ↗
    Ben Markey
    rhetorical criticism genre theory discourse analysis graduate education teacher development assessment technical communication professional writing
  4. Pedagogy Apr 2025
    Contributors ↗
    modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism african american rhetorics cultural rhetorics first-year composition writing pedagogy basic writing graduate education two-year college teacher development writing centers technical communication professional writing labor and working conditions digital rhetoric multimodality social media literacy studies race and writing gender and writing community literacy literary studies editorial matter
  5. Technical Communication Quarterly Oct 2024
    Editors’ Use of Comprehensive Style Guides: The Case of Singular They ↗
    Jo Mackiewicz; Shaya Kraut; Allison Durazzi
    rhetorical criticism discourse analysis first-year composition writing pedagogy graduate education teacher development writing centers technical communication professional writing digital rhetoric multilingual writers grammar and mechanics literacy studies race and writing public rhetoric editorial matter