| Power dynamics have the potential of creating tensions in the writing process within business and industry that can result in deskilling or in the actual reduction or loss of basic writing skills. Deskilling, applied to the writing process in business and industry in this study, means eliminating the autonomy of each individual who is doing any company-sponsored writing and introducing a specific writing and editing structure which ultimately constrains the individual. The hypothesis suggests that deskilling may exist in business and industry as it relates to the writing process and is a consequence of management's authority and control (power dynamics) over the writers in the workplace.; In the investigation, the researcher used a jury to analyze writing samples and compare the results with interview data. Using ethnography, narrative research, interview data field notes from observations, and a statistical analysis the data was compiled and reported.; Overall the data does not overwhelmingly support the deskilling hypothesis. However, there is some evidence of subtle deskilling both on the part of the managers and on the part of the employees. In some cases, it may be the result of management applying power dynamics, but in other cases, it may be the attenuation of basic writing skills over time. This loss of writing skills may be the result of the professional writers becoming template writers and thus approaching the writing process with lack of enthusiasm for standard writing conventions. Deskilling or loss of basic writing skills may also be the result of the nonchalance evidenced in the e-mail process where there is little or no control over the written word. The writers become lazy and again pay no attention to standard writing conventions. Now the workplace writers have control over their own writing (no direct management control), yet choose to ignore basic writing etiquette, thus deskilling themselves. The critical outcome of this study is that there are no agreed upon standards for good writing, as evidenced by the juror process used in this study. |
