Cultural Differences in the Appreciation of Introductions of Presentations    

On the basis of both established theories of the differences between cultures and recommendations in advice literature from different cultures, we believe that it is likely that cultures will differ in what they consider to be an effective introduction to a presentation. In this article, we report on an exploratory experimental study with 300 respondents in the Netherlands, France, and Senegal regarding their appreciation of and response to three introductions to a presentation about a mobile phone. The results show that the cultures differ with respect to the introduction they prefer. The Dutch respondents appreciated the overview most, while the French respondents preferred the ethical appeal, and research participants from Senegal preferred the anecdote. It is likely that the introduction that gains greatest attention and that best increases the ability to listen in a culture will be most appreciated in that culture.

Gerritsen, Marinel and Evelyn Wannet. Technical Communication Online (2005). Articles>Presentations>Cultural Theory>Rhetoric

Cut Big, Then Small

Precise and concise writing comes from disciplined cutting.

Clark, Roy Peter. Poynter Online (2004). Articles>Writing>Rhetoric

Dabbling in Document Design

One of the advantages that print journalists have is that they learn document design on the job. Today, thanks to computers and design packages, design awareness is very high. Even the novice computer user becomes proficient in designing documents within a few days, if not weeks. Usually, templates are available for brochures, reports, books, etc. All you need to do is fill in the contents in the readymade template.

Kamath, Gurudutt R. IT People (2003). Articles>Document Design>Document Design>Visual Rhetoric

Dam Visuals: The Changing Visual Argument for the Glen Canyon Dam    

Arguments manifest in scientific visuals through graphic representation, content placement, and overall document structure. These arguments, designed to influence public perception, change over time in relation to sociopolitical climate. Analysis of a series of documents constructed deliberately to influence perception can help to determine patterns of argumentation and perceived exigencies. In this article, four self-guided tour brochures produced for distribution to visitors to the Glen Canyon Dam in 1977, 1984, 1990, and 1993 are analyzed in order to identify rhetorical strategies designed to influence public perceptions of the dam site, and examine how public perception of the dam, and related argumentation, is structured by sociopolitical climate.

Ross, Derek G. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication (2007). Articles>Scientific Communication>Technical Illustration>Visual Rhetoric

The Data Artist

Tufte shares Orwell's impatience with doublethink and humbuggery, his insight that bad thinking and bad expression travel in a pair, and his awareness that they are usually deployed in the service of some brand of propaganda.

Rosenberg, Scott. Salon (1997). Articles>Interviews>Visual Rhetoric>Charts and Graphs

Declarative Information in Software Manuals: What's the Use?    

Declarative information is often considered to be of little value to software manual users, for two reasons: some research results state that it is consistently skipped by users, and other research results show that declarative information does not enhance task performance. This study puts these conclusions to the test, because the research underlying them does not support such general conclusions. Two experiments are conducted to collect quantitative data about the selection and use of procedural and declarative information and to investigate whether or not the use of declarative information affects task performance and knowledge. A new technique for measuring information selection was developed for this purpose: the click and read method.

Ummelen, Nicole. ACM SIGDOC (2000). Articles>Documentation>Rhetoric

Definitional Techniques

In the course of developing a report, essay, memo, etc. writers are often called upon to define their terms. Some of the more common definitional techniques used in professional and academic writing are described below.

Whitburn, Merrill. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Articles>Rhetoric

A Derridean Approach to Critical Reading: A MONSTER!

Hearing the term 'critical reading' provokes my composition students to lemon-pucker grimace and nervously shift in their seats as if a monster had suddenly appeared. They often gasp at the prospects of the composition course's planned future critical reading unit. They identify with theorist Jacques Derrida's poststructural (deconstruction) notion that 'the future is necessarily monstrous: the figure of the future, that is, that which can only be surprising, that for which [they] are not prepared, you see, is heralded by a species of monsters'. I do not try convincing students that texts are un-intimidating and that critical reading is an unthreatening process of merely examining specific dominant codes within texts that allow for predisposed meanings to occur. I rather tell students that texts are indeed monstrous and the process of critical reading is undeniably what Derrida terms 'a monster.' Considering then that a monster rears its head in the composition classroom, it is necessary to learn one possible way students may approach the wide-ranging process of critical reading. In this brief article, I attempt to discuss Jacques Derrida's definition of the 'monster' and how this definition may be applied to a practice of critically reading texts, appropriately expressed by the memorable acronym, 'A MONSTER.'

May, Talitha. Lore (2002). Articles>Rhetoric>Theory

Design is Function  

Good design, like good writing or editing, cart make or break a technical publication. Even if you know little about design us a discipline, as a technical communicator you employ it in every publication you produce. If technical communicstion is indeed the art that bridges the gap between people and technology, then understanding the function of design us an inherent element of communication is paramount. Design seeks 10 translate perceptions, goals, and desires through the manipulation of images and language. Design inspires understanding, is both an art and a science, and is good business. Design matters! The purpose of our presentation is to explore the relationship between design until technical communication and heighten the level of consciousness of the function of design.

DuBose, Mary E. and Deborah L. Baxley. STC Proceedings (1993). Articles>Graphic Design>Visual Rhetoric

Developing the Political Perspective on Technological Change Through Rhetorical Analysis    

Rhetorical analysis provides a means through which a political perspective on technological change can be developed at a micro-discursive level. Through the analysis of managers' arguments and counterarguments, this article identifies three rhetorical strategies that negotiate the relationship between the technical and the social: attributing the effects of technology; claiming convergent and divergent interests; and constructing identities for self, groups, and the technology. It argues that a rhetorical approach maintains space for agency on the behalf of employees (through the witcraft of argument) and analytical skepticism concerning the reality of technology properties and effects (through counterargument). In addition, it proposes the concept of the argumentative context as a means of bridging the gap between individual and organizational rhetoric.

Symon, Gillian. Management Communication Quarterly (2008). Articles>Management>Technology>Rhetoric

The Development of Transitional Writers: The Role of Identification Strategies in Workplace Writing Competence  

Studies of transitional writers (between the classroom and workplace) in nonacademic settings.

Wegner, Diana. Rhetor (2004). Articles>Business Communication>Rhetoric

Digital Photography: Communication, Identity, Memory    

Taking photographs seems no longer primarily an act of memory intended to safeguard a family's pictorial heritage, but is increasingly becoming a tool for an individual's identity formation and communication. Digital cameras, cameraphones, photoblogs and other multipurpose devices are used to promote the use of images as the preferred idiom of a new generation of users. The aim of this article is to explore how technical changes (digitization) combined with growing insights in cognitive science and socio-cultural transformations have affected personal photography. The increased manipulation of photographic images may suit the individual's need for continuous self-remodelling and instant communication and bonding. However, that same manipulability may also lessen our grip on our images' future repurposing and reframing. Memory is not eradicated from digital multipurpose tools. Instead, the function of memory reappears in the networked, distributed nature of digital photographs, as most images are sent over the internet and stored in virtual space.

van Dijck, Jose. Visual Communication (2008). Articles>Graphic Design>Photography>Visual Rhetoric

Do You Sound Like a CEO Behind a Microphone?

"You have two options when you walk into a room," says public speaking expert Richard Levick about the art of giving speeches. Most entrepreneurs find speech making to be either terrifying or a waste of time. Too many CEOs see dealing with the media or making presentations as an interruption, but it's as essential to doing business as customers. If you can't deliver energetic and commanding speeches, or polished and articulate interviews, then you're short-circuiting your company's future. It's time to do something about it.

Krotz, Joanna L. Communication World Bulletin (2003). Articles>Presentations>Management>Rhetoric

Does Web Delivery Impact the Reader-Response Approach to Technical Communication?

This paper is an attempt to explore how reader-response criticism and the overall approach to using rhetoric in technical communication may be impacted by the large amount of technical documentation moving to the Web. The discussion focuses on three main areas: moving from the “reader” to the “user” in online documentation; the value of plain language style in this medium; and how Web delivery seems to be bridging the gap between user interface (UI) text and help documentation. I shall explore these areas in an attempt to clarify whether the publication of technical documentation on the Internet negates the rhetorical approach to technical communication and how or if Web delivery impacts the reader-response view that users play a significant role in creating the meaning of a text.

Fisher, Jeanette. Orange Journal, The (2001). Articles>Rhetoric>Theory

Review: The Economics of Attention: Style and Substance in the Age of Information, by Richard A. Lanham    

This is a clever, witty, and engaging--if at times frustrating--book. The central thesis is that in our information age, made possible by digital technology, the scarce commodity to be allocated (and thus a matter of economics) is not 'stuff,' broadly defined as what you can kick or the information based on such stuff (also, stuff). We're drowning in stuff. Instead, it's attention that's scarce, and allocating attention is a matter of style, of rhetoric.

Andrews, Deborah C. JBC (2007). Articles>Reviews>Rhetoric

Ecrire Concis

La concision, c'est l'ergonomie de l'écrivain, c'est obtenir le même résultat informatif en moins de mots, en moins de phrases, moyennant moins de 'bruit' (au sens linguistique du terme).

Redaction (2004). Articles>Writing>Rhetoric

Editorial  

Recently a striking change has taken place in the organization and visibility of what we writing teachers do.

Bruffee, Kenneth. WPA Writing Program Administration (1978). Articles>Education>Writing>Rhetoric

Educating 'Community Intellectuals': Rhetoric, Moral Philosophy, and Civic Engagement    

This article encourages technical and professional communication programs to take on the challenge of educating students to become 'community intellectuals.' The notion of educating future professionals for a career needs to be reconsidered in light of both current research concerning civic rhetoric and past practices in moral humanism courses. The triumvirate of rhetoric, ethics, and moral philosophy provides an effective foundation for reconfiguring existing pedagogy in the field and offers insights for nurturing community intellectuals.

Eble, Michelle F. and Lynee Lewis Gaillet. Technical Communication Quarterly (2004). Articles>Education>Rhetoric

The Effect of Inductively Versus Deductively Organized Text on American and Japanese Readers      

When document designers localize documents for readers in other cultures, they should consider what text organization will best suit those readers. The study presented here examines American and Japanese readers’ comprehension of and preference for expository text that contains a thesis and is organized either inductively or deductively. The results revealed that while Americans performed equally well with either organizational structure Japanese readers recalled more information from inductively organized text. The implications for document designers in English and Japanese speaking countries are discussed.

Spyridakis, Jan H. and Waka Fukuoka. IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication (2002). Articles>Language>Rhetoric

Effective Presentations

An essential aspect of any research project is dissemination of the findings arising from the study. The most common ways to make others aware of your work is by publishing the results in a journal article, or by giving an oral or poster presentation (often at a regional or national meeting). While efforts are made to teach the elements of writing a journal article in many graduate school curricula, much less attention is paid to teaching those skills necessary to develop a good oral or poster presentation - even though these arguably are the most common and most rapid ways to disseminate new findings. In addition, the skills needed to prepare an oral presentation can be used in a variety of other settings - such as preparing a seminar in graduate school, organizing a dissertaton defense, conducting a job interview seminar, or even addressing potential philanthropic sources!

University of Kansas. Articles>Presentations>Rhetoric>Scientific Communication

Effective Writing, or Tips on How to Write English 'Gooder'    

Some quick tips toward a clearer, more lucid, meaningful,…well, you know what I mean.

Perez De Tagle, Robert. MetroVoice (2004). Articles>Writing>Rhetoric>Minimalism

The Effects of Motivational Elements in User Instructions    

Should instructional texts be purely technical, with a focus on effectiveness and efficiency, or should they also focus on satisfying and motivating users? Good arguments have been made for paying attention to motivational aspects. But only analyses of existing instructions have been published so far, and guidelines for making user instructions motivational have not yet been studied carefully. This article presents motivational strategies and an experiment to test their effects. The results show that motivational elements have little effect on users’ effectiveness and efficiency in performing tasks, their product appreciation, and their self-efficacy, but they do increase users’ appreciation for the instructions.

Loorbach, N., Steehouder, M., Taal, E. Journal of Business and Technical Communication (2006). Articles>Documentation>Rhetoric>User Centered Design

Eleven Tips on Terrific Titles

Honestly, which white paper would YOU sooner read: 'Implications of Business Intelligence Methodologies on Operational Efficiencies: A Retrospective Study' or 'Six Things You Must Know about Data Warehousing'? This article offers eleven tips on putting together compelling titles for white papers.

Graham, Gordon. WhitePaperSource (2006). Articles>Writing>Rhetoric>White Papers