A Corpus-Based Study Of Discursive Construction Of Corporate Identities By Chinese And American IT Companies

Nowadays,as the IT industry has ushered in a new era,the development of Chinese IT companies has been the focus of global attention.To occupy a larger market share,companies have to construct their identities positively;thus,corporate identity management has been an inevitable issue for IT companies.However,there are few studies on corporate identity management for Chinese IT companies.Therefore,to investigate how Chinese IT companies manage their own identities,this study presents a corpus-based analysis of corporate identity construction in the Letters to Shareholders.It investigates how IT companies use linguistic resources and discursive strategies to construct and promote a positive corporate identity.As the U.S.has always had a competitive advantage in the IT industry,this study also presents a comparative study between Chinese and American IT companies.Four research questions are proposed as follows:(1)What are the major foci in Letters to Shareholders by Chinese and American IT companies?(2)What communication strategies are used to construct these major foci and how are they realized by linguistic resources in the Letters to Shareholders by Chinese and American IT companies?(3)What corporate identities are discursively constructed by Chinese and American IT companies?(4)What factors contribute to the corporate identity construction of Chinese and American IT companies?To address the above research questions,both the corpora of the Letters to Shareholders in Annual Report of American IT companies(ARA)and the Letters to Shareholders in Annual Report of Chinese IT companies(ARC)are built up for further investigation.The corpora are analyzed with the aid of the corpus tool Wmatrix,and a three-level framework is also applied,in which the major foci,communication strategies,and linguistic resources are explored.The results show that:(1)The major foci lie in the general aspects of business,vision and mission,evaluation,as well as change and time,which can be further categorized as the corporate nature as an actor of general business,the corporate nature as a service provider,and the corporate nature as an agent of positive change.(2)Through the analysis of linguistic devices and communication strategies,we found that both Chinese and American IT companies adopt hybrid communication strategies.However,Chinese IT companies attach great importance to the Corporate Ability(CAb)focused strategy by positively focusing on the corporate development,especially the future and the ongoing process of the future.While American IT companies are more concerned with the Corporate Social Responsibility(CSR)focused strategy and emphasize communications with stakeholders.(3)Within the narrative frame as a service provider with advanced technology,and an active actor reacting to external change,we found that Chinese IT companies are constructed as an authoritative,committed and responsible struggler who keeps self-reforming and progressing for the promising future;while American IT companies are constructed as an affiliative,rational and competent decision-maker who has performed well in both business and relations.(4)The difference in long-term orientation,power distance,individualism,and collectivism contribute to explaining variations in communication strategies and corporate identity construction.This study focuses on identity work and provides insights into how companies construct themselves differently in various cultures.In addition,it provides a basis and suggestions for Chinese IT companies to stably entrench themselves and seek further international recognition in the global market.