Purpose This manuscript refines the conceptualization of instructing and adjusting information to illuminate how and why the two strategies are beneficial to stakeholders during a crisis. Though central to crisis communication, the two concepts are seriously underdeveloped. The refined conceptualization also provides stakeholder-focused outcomes that can be used to assess crisis communication efforts. Design/methodology/approach This is a conceptual piece using an interfield approach that integrates concepts from supportive communication and warning messages to refine the conceptualization of instructing and adjusting information. Findings Adjusting and instructing information are reconceptualized as a variant of supportive communication, occurring within the crisis context, intended to reduce the distress (negative emotions) of stakeholders adversely affected by a crisis (crisis victims) thereby promoting well-being and healing. Research limitations/implications The refined conceptualization provides new insights into understanding crisis communication by enhancing the theoretical conceptualization of the two concepts. Practical implications The manuscripts provides a stronger rationale for using instructing and adjusting information as well as provide new stakeholder-oriented crisis communication outcomes. Originality/value The manuscript provides a more robust conceptualization of instructing and adjusting information along with identifying a number of useful, stakeholder-oriented crisis outcomes related to well-being.
Purpose Although informal communication is a pervasive and inherently interactive workplace phenomenon, prior research has typically relied on self-reports or experimental scenarios that capture individual perceptions and behaviors. The purpose of this study was to improve our understanding of informal communication by examining how it naturally unfolds in vivo within virtual team meetings. Design/methodology/approach We develop a coding scheme to capture informal communication in team interactions and apply this coding scheme to videotaped virtual meetings of nine newly formed student project teams. The coding scheme enables us to classify informal communication both more broadly (task-related versus social informal communication) and to identify distinct forms (e.g. self-disclosure, affirmative reactions) as they emerge in real-time interactions. Findings Our study shows how informal communication can be systematically differentiated from formal communication while also revealing how formal and informal communication alternate during team interaction. In doing so, the study generates insights into the form and development of informal communication in virtual team interactions. Originality/value This study moves beyond dominant survey and experimental approaches by developing and applying a novel coding scheme that enables the systematic analysis of informal communication at different levels of granularity. In doing so, this study provides a conceptual and methodological framework for identifying and analyzing informal communication as it naturally occurs in virtual team meetings.
Purpose: Informal communication has been ascribed well-being functions. Yet in increasingly hybrid work settings, where employees work remotely, informal exchanges frequently occur via digital channels and may hinder relational bonds and drain rather than restore employees’ energy. Drawing on Communicate Bond Belong Theory, this study examines whether informal communication enhances or undermines employees’ well-being in hybrid settings by considering its perceived quality, relational benefits, and energy-related costs. Design/methodology/approach: A one-week experience sampling study (26 participants; 549 surveys) captured employees’ everyday communication episodes with co-workers and their subsequent experiences. Mixed-effects models estimated within-person relationships while accounting for between-person differences.Findings: Episodes that were more informal than usual were associated with higher striving potential (e.g., more pleasantness or meaningfulness). In turn, higher striving potential was associated with more relatedness need satisfaction and a more favorable relatedness-to-energy ratio, though not with energy expenditure. Communication modality did not moderate these associations. However, text-based (vs. audio-visual) exchanges were significantly associated with lower relatedness and energy expenditure, and a higher relatedness-to-energy ratio. Originality: Adopting a situational perspective, this study moves beyond frequency-based and between-person approaches to everyday informal communication. It disentangles message- and channel-related effects and their distinct contributions in the relationship between informal talk and employee well-being. From this novel perspective, the findings provide evidence that informal communication is a resource for employees’ well-being, but can impose demands when it occurs digitally, an aspect that practitioners should recognize when designing informal communication initiatives.
Purpose This paper clarifies how unplanned conversations are operationalized and examines their interrelationships and spatiotemporal patterning at work. It asks (1) how the frequency, length, and perceived value of unplanned conversations relate to one another and (2) how the type and perceived value of unplanned conversations vary by location and day of the week. Design/methodology/approach A multi-method design was used across two organizational sites. Proximity data derived from a custom mobile application were used as proxies for the frequency and length of unplanned conversations; structured observations near workstations supplemented these data, and Qualtrics spot-sampling surveys captured conversation type, location, and perceived value. Analyses were conducted using dyad-level bivariate correlations and conversation-level χ2 tests and two-way ANOVAs. Findings Frequency was negatively associated with mean conversation length, but not with work-related or non-work-related perceived value. Conversation type varied by location, but not by day of the week. Perceived work-related value varied by location, whereas non-work-related value did not vary by location, day of the week, or their interaction. Originality/value The paper demonstrates the centrality of unplanned conversations to organizing processes and explains why methodological choices about operationalization and spatiotemporal data collection matter for theorizing and interpreting them.
Purpose This paper examines how organizations can manage the tension between visibility and vulnerability in digital environments by introducing progressive disclosure, a strategic corporate communication approach that sequences and times information release to balance transparency, credibility, and reputation. Design/methodology/approach The study develops a conceptual framework grounded in corporate communication scholarship, integrating signaling theory, impression management, strategic silence, and digital transparency research. Drawing on illustrative corporate cases, it synthesizes how disclosure timing, message selectivity, and relational reciprocity shape stakeholder interpretation and communication outcomes. Findings The analysis shows that unmanaged or impulsive disclosure in digital channels can amplify reputational risk and stakeholder distrust. The proposed progressive disclosure framework identifies seven strategic communication practices, anchored in credibility management, temporal control, and reciprocal stakeholder engagement. Practical implications The framework provides actionable guidance for designing disclosure strategies, social media policies, and reputational resilience practices in highly transparent digital environments. Social implications More intentional disclosure practices may contribute to healthier digital communication ecosystems by reducing misinformation, mitigating reputational volatility, and supporting ethical standards of corporate transparency. Originality/value This paper advances corporate communication theory by conceptualizing progressive disclosure as a disciplined, strategic communication capability. It moves beyond static or normative notions of transparency and offers a dynamic model explaining how organizations can manage the risks and opportunities of digital visibility.
