Eisenberg identified several outcomes associated with the use of strategic ambiguity in organizations. Identify and discuss those that your text suggests are most relevant
What will be an ideal response?
Strategic ambiguity allows for meaning projection. When a supervisor is
ambiguous about the interpretation of an event, value, or behavior, subordinates must fill
in the blanks, so to speak. As they do so, they may project a meaning that is consistent
with their own beliefs, which would lead to a perception of similarity with the supervisor.
A worker's level of perceived similarity with the supervisor is considered to be a
contributor to the worker's satisfaction with the relationship with the supervisor.
Strategic ambiguity leads to a restricted code. As relationships grow deeper between
individuals, the need to be clear and direct often diminishes. What emerges is often a
conversational shorthand that makes little sense to an outsider. Strategic ambiguity, when
successfully employed, may serve to strengthen the relationship between the superior and
the subordinate while simultaneously limiting access to the relationship by outsiders.
Strategic ambiguity allows people to regulate what and how much they want to share. For
a variety of reasons, superiors and subordinates may want to limit the amount and type of
information they share with each other. Strategic ambiguity allows for communication on
a particular topic while at the same time limiting each party's disclosure of personal or
even confidential information.
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What type of presentation aid is useful for showing differences over time, clarifying how a whole is divided into parts, and comparing amounts or sizes?
a. word chart b. model c. map d. graph