Do You Hear What I Hear?
Authors:   , Stellatella Sara Lynn , Van Ginkel Wendy P 
Published: September 2022

Communication is imperative to business (Chancellor, Layous, Margolis, & Lyubomirsky, 2017; Downs & Adrian, 2004). Successful formal workforce communications are timely and appropriate with expressed limitations, and have positive impacts on productivity and employee wellbeing (Downs & Adrian, 2004; Smidts, Pryun, & van Riel, 2001). Conversely, misinformation and inadequate data elevate employee stress levels and lead to reliance on collective sense-making within one's intimate social network (Bordia, Jones, Gallois, Callan, & DiFonzo, 2006; DiFonzo & Bordia, 2007a, 2007b). Social networks are a system of interpersonal bonds that form through regular engagements (Nelson, 1989; Rank, Robbins, & Pattison, 2010); rumors, defined as unsubstantiated, relevant statements, are one means in which employees collectively cope within the network (Bordia et al., 2006; DiFonzo & Bordia, 2000, 2007a; Rosnow, 2001). This research seeks to determine factors that may inhibit and promote rumors, specifically "How does dissimilarity influence the rumor network? What is the role of the communication climate?" The management team of a mid-Atlantic federal organization served as the sample population. Data collection included archival demographics from the sample site's Human Resource department and a one-time online survey to gather respondent rumor network ties, sentiment toward organizational communication and justice perceptions, and dissimilarity variables. I studied the rumor network attributes (informal and formal communication network comparison, dominant network threshold state, and ego network density) to evaluate information flow and network features that influence rumor participation. Organizational communication was evaluated through general organizational perspective and horizontal informal communication satisfaction regarding the dissemination of external influences and overall performance and interactions within one's peer group (Downs & Adrian, 2004; Downs & Hazen, 1977). I utilized formal procedure and interactional justice to understand the influence that employee fairness perceptions of formal policies and supervisory implementation of those policies may have on rumor engagement and communication satisfaction (Moorman, 1991). Educational level and functional specialty were employed to assess the association of informational dissimilarity and one's propensity to share rumors with like and unlike others. I performed linear regressions and t-tests to analyze my hypotheses. My findings support the notion that the formal and informal networks are different, highlighting that informal social ties present more opportunity for rumor engagement than formal ties. Additionally, the dominant network threshold state (positively) and ego network density (negatively) influence one's participation in the rumor network. The effect of informational dissimilarity was partially supported with a positive association between functional similarity and rumor sharing, while educational and functional dissimilarity were not significant. The results also do not corroborate an impact of communication satisfaction or justice perceptions on rumor activity. However, a positive interaction was identified between communication satisfaction and justice perceptions. For practical application, I recommend that management evolve from mere rumor control to leveraging the rumor network. Organizations can harness the pre-existing networks of social (rumor) influencers to parallel formal communication, enhancing clarity and affirmation of workforce messages. As functional similarity and shared organization department are positively associated with rumor sharing, I suggest that supervisors assess the valence of rumors and whether engagement interferes with productivity or if the collective sense-making encourages social bond formation. If the valence is positive and the rumor is not disruptive, the bonding interaction may promote collaboration in other workplace scenarios. Organizational leadership should also give attention to ensure all parties are considered and represented in policy formation as the fairness of formal procedures has a positive influence on communication satisfaction. Additionally, I suggest a period evaluation of management teams perceptions of communication satisfaction and justice as their sentiments are found to diffuse throughout the total workforce (Ambrose, Schminke, & Mayer, 2013; Degoey, 2000; Masterson, Lewis, Goldman, & Taylor, 2000).