Journal of Technical Writing and Communication Jul 2013

Constrained Agency in Corporate Social Media Policy

Ryan Weber University of Alabama in Huntsville

Abstract

Corporate social media policies construct what Herndl and Licona term “constrained agency,” an ambiguous, contradictory agent function. Drawing on an analysis of 31 corporate social media policies, this article argues that these policies create constrained agency in two ways: they establish contradictory expectations for a writer's voice by requesting both individual and corporate-friendly voices, and they create a seemingly paradoxical situation where employees both do and do not represent the company. These policies shed light on the complex constructions of agency within corporations and encapsulate the workplace tensions that accompany the affordances of social media tools.

Journal
Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
Published
2013-07-01
DOI
10.2190/tw.43.3.d
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Open Access
Closed
Topics
voice and style social media
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Citation Context

Cited by in this index (4)

  1. Andrews (2020)
    Why major in writing? Hyperpragmatism and writing program websites
    Computers and Composition
  2. Melton et al. (2018)
    University Student Use of Twitter and Facebook: A Study of Posting in Three Countries
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  3. Faris et al. (2017)
    Emerging scholars and social media use: a pilot study of risk
    Communication Design Quarterly
  4. Lauren et al. (2016)
    Networking in a Field of Introverts: The Egonets, Networking Practices, and Net…
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication

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CrossRef global citation count: 15 View in citation network → Build reading path →

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