Technical Communication, Group Differentiation, and the Decision to Launch the Space Shuttle Challenger

Roger C. Pace University of San Diego

Abstract

One lesson to be learned from the fatal decision to launch Challenger is that effective technical and group communication requires more than the fidelious exchange of information. This article examines testimony gathered by the Presidential Commission on the Challenger Accident and reveals communication failures in four dimensions of group differentiation—clarity, interrelatedness, centrality, and openness. The article illustrates all four dimensions with excerpts from the Commission Hearings and identifies communication problems peculiar to highly technical groups.

Journal
Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
Published
1988-07-01
DOI
10.2190/19lq-862p-pant-9t3v
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Citation Context

Cited by in this index (16)

  1. Technical Communication Quarterly
  2. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  3. Technical Communication Quarterly
  4. Technical Communication Quarterly
  5. Journal of Business and Technical Communication
Show all 16 →
  1. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  2. Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  3. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  4. IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  5. Technical Communication Quarterly
  6. Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  7. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  8. Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  9. Technical Communication Quarterly
  10. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  11. IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication

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