Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-xbtfd Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T16:57:53.415Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Impression management performances in a Brazilian mining company: The researcher as audience

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 February 2015

Fernanda P Duarte
Fernanda P Duarte*
Affiliation:
School of Management, University of Western Sydney, Penrith, NSW, Australia
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Writing from an autoethnographic perspective, in this paper I re-visit Erving Goffman's ideas to examine impression management tactics used by staff from a large Brazilian mining company. The analysis is based on a 6-week fieldwork trip to Brazil in 2008 for the purpose of gathering qualitative data for a study on corporate social responsibility in the extractivist sector. Post-fieldwork reflections prompted the insight that during the data gathering phase of my research, I was subject to a series of impression management ‘performances’ by my corporate informants, carried out to foster a positive image of their company. In the paper I juxtapose data obtained during fieldwork and my personal reflections with selected excerpts from Goffman's The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life.

Keywords

impression managementcorporate social responsibilityCSRsustainabilityorganizational culture
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Management & Organization , Volume 17 , Issue 2 , March 2011 , pp. 179 - 193
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press and Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management 2011

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Alvesson, M., & Willmott, H. (1999). Critical theory and management studies: An introduction. In Alvesson, M. & Willmott, H. (Eds.), Critical management studies (pp. 1–20). London: Sage Publications.Google Scholar
Ashforth, B. E., & Gibbs, B. W. (1990). The double-edge of organizational legitimation. Organization Science, 1(2), 177–194.Google Scholar
Bansal, P., & Kistruck, G. (2006). Seeing is (not) believing: Managing the impressions of the firm's commitment to the natural environment. Journal of Business Ethics, 67(2), 165–180.Google Scholar
Baron, R. A. (1986). Self-presentation in job interviews:When there can be ‘too much of a good thing’? Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 16(1), 16–28.Google Scholar
Beattie, V., Dhanani, A., & Jones, M. J. (2008). Investigating presentational change in U.K. annual reports: A longitudinal perspective. The Journal of Business Communication, 45(2), 181–222.Google Scholar
Bernardi, R., & La Cross, C. (2005). Corporate transparency: Code of ethics disclosures. The CPA Journal, 75(4), 34–37.Google Scholar
Boje, D. M. (2003). Theatres of capitalism. Cresskill, NJ: Hampton Press.Google Scholar
Carter, S. M. (2006). The interaction of top management group, stakeholder, and situational factors on certain corporate reputation management activities. Journal of Management Studies, 43(5), 1145–1176.Google Scholar
Chatman, J., Bell, N., & Staw, B. (1986). The managed thought: The role of self-justification and impression management in organizational settings. In Gioia, D. & Sims, H. (Eds.), The thinking organization: Dynamics of social cognition (pp. 191–214). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar
Czarniawska, B. (1997). Narrating the organization: Dramas of institutional identity. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.Google Scholar
Davis, J. (1993). Strategies for environmental advertising. The Journal of Consumer Marketing, 10(2), 19–36.Google Scholar
Dolphin, R. (2004). Corporate reputation – A value creating strategy. Corporate Governance, 4(3), 77–92.Google Scholar
Dutton, J. E., & Dukerich, J. M. (1991). Keeping an eye on the mirror: Image and identity in organizational adaptation. Adminstrative Science Quarterly, 34(3), 517–554.Google Scholar
Ellis, C., & Bochner, A. (2000). Autoethnography, personal narrative, reflexivity: Researcher as subject. In Denzin, N. & Lincoln, Y. (Eds.), Sage handbook of qualitative research (2nd ed., pp. 733–768). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.Google Scholar
Elsbach, K. D., & Sutton, R. I. (1992). Acquiring organizational legitimacy through illegitimate actions: A marriage of institutional and impression management theories. Academy of Management Journal, 35(4), 699–738.Google Scholar
Firestein, P. (2006). Building and protecting corporate reputation. Strategy and Leadership, 34(4), 25–31.Google Scholar
Fombrun, C. (1996). Reputation: Realizing value for the corporate image. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.Google Scholar
Fombrun, C., & Shanley, M. (1990). What's in a name? Reputation building and corporate strategy. Academy of Management Journal, 33(2), 233–258.Google Scholar
Gardner, W. I., & Martinko, M. (1988). Impression management in organizations. Journal of Management, 14(2), 321–338.Google Scholar
Ginzel, L. E., Kramer, R. M., & Sutton, R. I. (1993). Organizational impression management as a reciprocal influence process: The neglected role of the organizational audience. Research in Organizational Behaviour, 15, 227–266.Google Scholar
Goffman, E. (1959). The presentation of self in everyday life. New York: Double Day & Company Inc.Google Scholar
Gotsi, M., & Wilson, A. (2001a). Corporate reputation management: Living the brand. Management Decision, 39(2), 99–129.Google Scholar
Gotsi, M., & Wilson, A. (2001b). Corporate reputation: Seeking a definition. Corporate Communications: An International Journal, 6(1), 24–30.Google Scholar
Greyser, S. (1999). Advancing and enhancing corporate reputation. Corporate Communications: An International Journal, 4(4), 177–181.Google Scholar
Hooghiemstra, R. (2000). Corporate communication and impression management: New perspectives why companies engage in corporate social reporting. Journal of Business Ethics, 27(1/2), 55–68.Google Scholar
Inglis, R., Morley, C., & Sammut, P. (2006). Corporate reputation and organisational performance: An Australian study. Managerial Auditing Journal, 21(9), 934–947.Google Scholar
Instituto Ethos. (2008). Perguntas frequentes. Retrieved 11 28, 2008, from http://www.ethos.org.br/DesktopDefault.aspx?TabID=3344&Alias=Ethos&Lang=pt-BRGoogle Scholar
Jackson, K. (2005). Building reputational capital: Strategies for integrity and fair play that improve the bottom-line. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Jiang, R. J., & Bansal, P. (2003). Seeing the need for ISO 14001. The Journal of Management Studies, 40(4), 1047–1067.Google Scholar
Jones, E. E. (1964). Ingratiation. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts.Google Scholar
Kapelus, P. (2002). Mining, corporate social responsibility and the “community”: The Case of Rio Tinto, Richards Bay Minerals and the Mbonambi. Journal of Business Ethics, 39(3), 275–296.Google Scholar
Mehan, H., & Wood, H. (1975). The Reality of Ethnomethodology. New York: Wiley.Google Scholar
Merkl-Davies, D., & Brennan, N. M. (2007). Discretionary disclosure strategies in corporate narratives: Incremental information or impression management? Journal of Accounting Literature, 26(1), 116–194.Google Scholar
Petrick, J., Scherer, R., Brodzinski, J., Quinn, J., & Ainina, M. F. (1999). Global leadership skills and reputational capital: Intangible resources for sustainable competitive advantage. The Academy of Management Executive, 13(1), 58–69.Google Scholar
Ralston, D. A. (1985). Employee ingratiation: The role of management. Academy of Management Review, 10(3), 477–487.Google Scholar
Roberts, P. W., & Dowling, G. (2002). Corporate reputation and sustained superior financial performance. Strategic Management Journal, 23(12), 1077–1093. Retrieved November 15, 2010, from http://goizueta.emory.edu/upload/155/rad5B4ED.pdfGoogle Scholar
Tapscott, D., & Ticoll, D. (2003). The naked corporation: How the age of transparency will revolutionize business. New York: The Free Press.Google Scholar
Van Maanen, J. (1988). Tales of the field. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.Google Scholar
Walker, J., & Howard, S. (2002). Finding the way forward: How could voluntary action move mining towards sustainable development? London: Environment Resources Management (ERM) in collaboration with the International Institute for Environment and Development and World Business Council for Sustainable Development.Google Scholar
Young, S. (2003). Moral capitalism: Reconciling private interest with public good. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publications.Google Scholar