Celebrating the 'Intellectual Heart': Emergent Meanings from a Post-Earthquake Organizational Communication Culture Perspective.

The Organizational Communication Culture (OCC) method, designed by Charles A. Bantz (1993) was utilized as the primary method for analyzing messages coming from the administration of California State University, Northridge, after the earthquake. Bantz feels that communication interactions in an organization bring meanings and expectations to that organization and that by analyzing these symbolic forms, the researcher has some insight into the culture of the group being studied. Results of the study were organized around three key constructs: harmony, family community, and spirit/dedication. It is important to note, however, that no single construct is representative of the entire culture of the university--this study concerns only the administration's vision as it is represented in its documents. First, the documents emphasized team work and collaboration as though the harmony displayed among the participants in the project reorganization were representative of an organism back in harmony with nature and not at odds with nature. Second, the university became a refuge or family for students who had lost their homes or were in some way displaced by the earthquake. Third, letters from the president's office explained, defined, and expressed how the slogan, "Not Just Back...Better" reflected an attitude of what the administration was trying to do. Key documents are analyzed according to themes outlined by Bantz: vocabulary, themes, temporality, and architecture. (TB)