Why are office romances such a bad Idea?!

Okay folks this being my last entry I'm gonna try and make this short and sweet ! :)

The American T.V soap "Greys Anatomy" is a classic example of office romance. It throws light on the 'managing organization communication' aspect of organization structures and also demonstrates the role "office romance" in day to day lives.

For a lot of people, dating in the workplace is a very important topic, indeed. While the logic is obvious -- people often spend more time at work than just about anywhere else, so where better to find a potential mate than in a professional setting? -- the dangers and risks are quite high too.

There's danger lurking in office romances, genuine risks to your career and credibility, along with your mental health.

The greatest problem with office dating is that it's impossible to avoid the power aspect of your relationship. If you ask someone who is a subordinate to go out on a date and you've crossed the line, you've compromised your professionalism and put them into an extremely difficult situation.

Do they say yes because you're higher ranked (or, worse, their boss)? Do they say no and then fear for their job and/or evaluations thereafter? Do they say yes, then drop you after a date or two, hoping that you'll subsequently be able to differentiate between pleasant social interaction and sexual harassment at work?

And what about the opposite? If they're higher ranked than you, aren't you putting yourself in an inferior position by asking them to go out on a date? That's not the basis of a long-term successful relationship for most people nowadays.

The trite cliché of the boss and his secretary (rarely the boss and her secretary) is problematic for exactly this reason: is the secretary saying yes because she fears for her long term employment prospects or because she thinks the boss is wonderful?

Then there's the all-important question of what happens when the relationship ends?

It's a bit much to expect that your co-worker, boss, or employee can keep their feelings out of the office, and it won't take long for the rest of the group to push both parties out or raise a red flag to top-level management, or even just leave, en masse, in disgust.

If the company is a family metaphor, an organizatonal romance is incest! Most organizations do not encourage the idea of "office romance" since it can disrupt work, cause perceptions that one of the partners is being given unfair advantages and affect the credibility of the organization in the eys of the clients. Office romances are in a sense no longer dyadic relationships, they can affect the attitudes and behaviours of all co workers.

Your mileage will vary. In fact, I'm sure this is a pretty controversial subject, so what's your opinion and take on office romance? Do you think organizations should encourage it or otherwise?

Share your views!

AYO technology! :)))

In this entry I shall stress upon Computer Mediated Communication which basically refers to any form of communication using computers and computer networks, including e-mail, electronic conferences, newsgroups and Web chats.

I reckon, this is gonna be my favourite entry ! :D haha
Well this week my coms professor asked the class a debating question: "Do you think the internet is a waste of time?!"

While I was confident about my reply, I was taken aback to assimilate the fact that there were quite a few who agreed with the statement! I would have thought that everyone in the classroom was irrevocably addicted to the internet the way I was! hahaha. However, I for one would HAVE to disagree about it being a waste of time. Through the internet, I managed to establish close relationships which I'm ever so grateful for. :)

Orkut

When networking sites like Zorpia, Orkut, Myspace were introduced, it stired a certain craze among teenagers, or even adults for that matter. This was yet another way of keeping in touch with friends and family all over the world. It succeeded in grabbing my attention as well; I was a member on two of these much hyped up sites with the intention of re-kindling old ties that I left back home also seeking a new way to make friends in my adopted country. I first joined 'Zorpia' and made a couple of net friends who I absolutely adored over a period of time. Carla was one them.

At the age of 15, I guess teenagers probably think it is "cool" to have like a zillion friends in your buddy list which made me no exception. Adding random strangers on the net was definately not an issue.(A form of 'personal identity', influence of CMC comes into play here.) Three years have come and gone and even though the craze of "zorpia" has worn off, I still am very close to a few of my net friends. Infact I wouldn't call them "net friends" their more than just that! Especially Carla, she's one of the closest girl friends I've ever had and I think its safe to call her my best friend. :)) Even though I haven't met her in real life I know that she is not just in that "virtual world" as you may put it, she's reality!

Carla and ME! :))

By the looks of it I guess I'm not the only one whose thankfull to social sites like facebook, zorpia, orkut etc. FIRMS, yes ! Firms as well have started making use of these sites to promote certain ideas and recieve feedback from the people. It is known to be a faster medium of communication.
The recent article in 'My Paper,Singapore' highlights the latest social site TWITTER that has made headlines. Its editor, Mr John Davidson, told 'My Paper', "Twitter is a good tool of communication between us and our readers, because they 'tweet' regularly. "

Excerpt from 'My Paper', Singapore

Firms use Twitter to update readers to breaking news and share "short and snappy" news opinions and analysis. Other businesses see Twitter as a way to keep their business partners in the loop about what they are doing. They see it as a conventional way to update distributors and advertisers on what the company does on a daily basis. This promotes transparency.

Twitter

This shows the influence of CMC on 'the community'. The internet also has its influence on knowledge, "weired schools" also known as e-learning, which is conducted from a "distance". There are many sites that are educational such as youtube, google, wikipedia etc that are often used by many students and also by organisations to retrieve information. However majority maintain the opinion that the most important kind of learning is still face-to-face schooling.

Facebook (which I'm oh-so-addicted too! :P)

Apart from these merits, the internet does suffer major drawbacks that are a result of unethical practices like pornography, rave parties, hacking accounts etc. It is because of demerits like these that the internet is often termed as being "unsafe". Also due to the anonymity of the internet, people tend to stick to their perception of the internet being a mere waste of time!

Share your opinion! Do YOU think the internet is a waste of time? Sharing of experiences are welcome ! :D

Medias influence!

Deliberating about my entry for this week, I was watching NEWS 5 tonight and I came across this topic which I found quite intriguing (SNAP- I recorded it! :D haha) Reason being 1) I could relate to it. lol and also 2) cause (again) I could connect it to COMS 101.

Below is the recorded clip which was aired on chanel 5 last night. :))

Barbie is a fashion doll manufactured by Mattel, Inc. It has been an important part of the toy fashion doll market for nearly fifty years. Apart from all the merits, it has been the subject of numerous controversies and lawsuits. According to different surveys, it is believed that Barbies image can highten body disatisfaction for girls especially aged 5-10. When they see barbie images they in turn feel more negative about their own body which is concerning to think that girls recieve these negative images at such a young age. "The dolls make women all over the world worry about not having the legs or the looks to keep up "

A new study released in the well-respected American Journal of Health Behaviour suggests that High School girls view themselves as 5kg over their perceived ideal bodyweight, on average, which can then lead to potentially dangerous issues such as substance abuse, low self-esteem, poor eating habits and excessive dieting and even mental health issues. Some of the reasons behind the female students' perception of the 'ideal' body size inlcude overestimating their current body size and the constant 'skinny girl' bombardment seen in the media, which again can be related to the former reasoin. Whether it's on TV, magazines or computer games, young women today face massive pressure to conform to what are generally unrealistic and often unhealthy body sizes. This new study sheds light on the effect that mass media and the 'beautiful people' have on school girls and young women, who feel as though they need to measure up to what are often unachievable and dangerous body sizes.

CELEBRITIES KNOWN FOR BEING 'SIZE 0'

Nicole Richie, socialite

Kareena Kapoor, Bollywood actress

The Olsen Twins, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen.

"Mass communication is a form of communication through which institutional sources address relatively large, heterogeneous and anonymous audiences physically seperated from one another. "

Media theories like Moderate effect model comes into play here. Agenda setting function, where the media through repeated coverage of 'body weight', raises the importance of this issue in the public's mind. Pictures of skinny models be it on the runway or product promotions or advertisements develop peoples mindset about the 'perfect physique'. Media hegemony on the other hand talks about the powerful elite. Constantly celebrities are criticized about their body shape,size,weight etc by the media. Often we see actresses suffering from eating disorders trying to meet the industries 'requirements'. This behaviour influences young women and children in a large way. Spiral of silence occurs here as people have the tendency to refrain from expressing unpopular ideas or views. (In this context, size 12 or 14 considered as being fat) The consumers tend to agree with all the media scrutiny and try to abide to them. Very rarely it is noticed that people who are sizes that are not recognised by the media, are honestly happy with the way they look. Media influences the opinion and behaviour of people, largely.

This week's question: What is your opinion about this issue? Do you support the media? If not what actions would you take?

My opinion- :))

The media often has narrow definitions of beauty. I think people need to be able to critically view the media messages by which we are bombarded with each day. Media messages about body shape and size will affect the way we feel about our bodies and ourselves only if we let them. When we effectively recognize and analyze the media messages that influence us, we remember that the media's definitions of beauty and success do not have to define our self-image or potential. Using our creative mind to view all media with a discriminating eye is essential. All media images and messages are constructions. They are not reflections of reality.

Advertisements and other media messages have been carefully crafted with the intent to send a very specific message.
When you see an ad or hear a message that makes you feel bad about yourself, your body, or others by promoting only thin, formulaic body ideals, talk back to the TV and the advertiser by writing a letter. It works, you can make a change.Also write to advertisers who you think are sending positive, inspiring messages that recognize and celebrate the natural diversity of human body shapes and sizes. Compliment their courage to send positive, affirming messages.