Organization of university communication depending on the type of university

Project description

University Communications is becoming more important in the competitive field of science and humanities. Universities are going to position themselves strategically in accordance with their goals. Thereby, following our initial assumption, form, goals and organization of the respective units for university communications vary specifically. Therefore and in the meantime, there is a shift in studies about science communication including questions with regard to the segment of organizational communication and public relations of universities. Nevertheless, neither the principal question addressing the forms of organizing university communications on a Meso- and Micro-level nor the organization of university communications in relation to the overall structure of universities were thoroughly analyzed yet.

Against this background, this pilot project is posing the following questions:

  • How do the multifaceted conflicts of internal processes influence the organizing of university communications?
  • How do the organizational structures and the leeway of individual action relate to each other and which significance play differences in power between units of university communications and the board of management of the university?
  • What are the processes and mechanisms to solve conflicts of goals and to bargain compromise?
  • Are there typical constellations of the form of university and the form of organizing university communications?

Aim of the project is relating ways of organizing university communications and forms of university and identifying ideal typical constellations of both.

A form of university can be described as specific occurrence of features like trusteeship (state, economy, church), type of university (University, university of applied science) and their size (namely the number of students registered at the university). On this basis a set of exemplary cases will be selected and focused case studies will be conceived for exploring the concrete organizing of university communications at respect universities. University communications and its structural embeddedness are to be seen as result as well as instrument of dynamics of change within universities. 

Therefore, it is key to map the diversity of university communications in relation to the heterogeneity of forms of universities and to condense the insights typologically. We lay the focus on the concrete action and the organizational structures and the changes of role models in dependence to the organizational becoming of university communications. In the backdrop there are the following questions: How are concrete actions and organizational structures intertwined in the professional field of university communications? If we understand the relevant actor-structure-dynamics, we will be able to analyze the output, perhaps also to evaluate the internal as well as external impact of university communications.

The project serves as a pilot as it does not only construct a typology, but also identify relevant problems for further systematic analysis in this field. This project connects studies of university communications with the field of sociological organization research in an interdisciplinary way. Moreover, it focuses highly important questions for the professional field. The insights of the pilot as well as further studies will allow to give advice not only for organizing university communications more effectively but also for improving the education of the communicators themselves.

 

Funding:

 

 

Duration:

June 2017 - November 2019

Collaborators

Scientists involved:

  • Prof. Dr. Annette Leßmöllmann (project management)
  • Christiane Hauser M.A. (project coordination)
  • Thorsten Schwetje M.A. (research assistant)

    Project Partner: Prof. Dr. Stefan Böschen (RWTH Aachen University)

Student assistants:

  • Vivien Blum
  • Mareike Freiling
  • Julia Goldstein

Publications

  • Hauser, C.: Akteure und Organisationsweisen der Hochschulkommunikation. Eine Analyse der Akteurkonstellationen und Akteur-Struktur-Dynamiken an deutschen Hochschulen. Springer VS, eng. Actors and organizational modes of university communication. An analysis of actor constellations and actor-structure dynamics at German universities.
  • Schwetje, T.; Hauser, C.; Böschen, S.; Leßmöllmann, A.: Communicating science in Higher Education and Research Institutions. An organization communication perspective on science communication, in: Journal of Communication Management
  • Leßmöllmann, A. (2019): Hochschulkommunikation und Gemeinwohl. In: Wilfried Hinsch, Daniel Eggers (Hrsg.): Öffentliche Vernunft?: Die Wissenschaft in der Demokratie, S. 73–84. Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, eng. University communication and the common good. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110614244-008
  • Hauser, C.; Schwetje, T.; Leßmöllmann, A. (2019): Organisation von Hochschulkommunikation. In: Fähnrich, B; Metag, J.; Post, S.; Schäfer, M. (Hrsg.): Forschungsfeld Hochschulkommunikation. Wiesbaden: Springer VS., S. 123-139, eng. Organization of university communication. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-22409-7_6
  • Hauser, C. (2018): Hochschulkommunikation zwischen den Stühlen Interview auf wissenschaftskommunikation.de, eng. University communication between the stools Interview on wissenschaftskommunikation.de, 12.09.2018

Theses

  • University communication at church universities in Germany (BA thesis)
  • Web videos in university communication. A product analysis and typology of the YouTube channels of selected German universities (BA thesis)
  • University communication at universities of music in Germany (MA thesis)
  • University communication at art colleges in Germany (MA thesis)
  • Communication of German university hospitals (MA thesis)

Workshops

  • Hauser, C.; Leßmöllmann, A.: Die Hochschulkommunikationsabteilung als zentrale Schnittstelle. Workshop auf der Jahrestagung des Bundesverbands Hochschulkommunikation, eng. The university communication department as a central interface. Workshop at the annual conference of the Federal Association of University Communication, Cologne, 06.09.2019
  • Leßmöllmann, A.; Hauser, C.; Schwetje, T.; Goldstein, J.: Hochschulkommunikator*innen zwischen den Stühlen. Workshop auf der Jahrestagung des Bundesverbands Hochschulkommunikation, eng. University communicators between the chairs. Workshop at the annual conference of the Federal Association of University Communication, Heidelberg 13.09.2018

Research field university communication - further projects

The chair is broadly positioned in the research field of university communication and has been active for many years. Read more about university communication research.

The HoKoPro project is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and expands the field of investigation to include non-state universities :Higher education communication at non-state universities: practice and organization

Another project began collecting data on university communication back in 2015. Funded by the Federal Association of University Communication, a quantitative online survey among university communicators in two waves was carried out.