Abstract
This article explores silence as a phenomenon and practice in the workplace through a Buddhist-enacted lens where silence is intentionally encouraged. It brings forward a reconsideration of the roles of silence in organizations by proposing emancipatory dimensions of silence—reflexivity, self-decentralization, and transformation. Based on 54 interviews with employees and managers in a Vietnamese telecommunications organization, we discuss the dynamic nature of silence, and the possible coexistence of the constructive and the oppressive aspects of silence in a workplace spirituality context. Instead of studying silence as one-dimensional, we call for an integrated view and argue that studying silence requires consideration of the multiplicity of its interconnected dimensions. By considering silence as a relational and emerging processes constructed around its vagueness and uncertainties, our study reveals the many possible ways silence is organized and organizes and sheds light on silence as a marker of the complexities and paradoxes of organizational life.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 307-325 |
| Journal | Journal of Management Inquiry |
| Volume | 31 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| Early online date | 22 Apr 2021 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Jul 2022 |
Bibliographical note
© The Author(s) 2021.Keywords
- communication
- organizational behavior
- qualitative research