Abstract:
This study investigated the organisational communication of subvented organisations
in Ghana focusing on the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE). It
specifically sought to identify the policy framework guiding NCCE‘s communication
practices, the communication practices employed by NCCE and the ramifications
implied in the communication structure of NCCE. The objectives of the study were to
understand the communication practices of NCCE and how those communication
practices influence the work of the Commission. The study was guided by the Media
Richness Theory and Barnlund‘s Transactional Model of Communication (1970). It
employed a case study design within a qualitative research approach, with data
sourced from semi-structured interviews and documents. The interview data came
from purposively selected key NCCE staff of the departments of Corporate and
Communication Affairs, Programmes, and Human Resource. Expert opinions were
also sought through semi-structured interviews from academia and the Electoral
Commission of Ghana. The documents analysed also involved communication-related
productions of the Commission. The analysis discovered that, although
communication is vitally important for the effective performance of NCCE‘s
constitutionally and socially mandated civic education functions, the Commission
operates without a codified and/or published communication policy. Yet such a
document is necessary to regulate and assess its communication and educative
functions. Instead, the Commission‘s communication thrives on established
conventions and ad hoc measures as and when needed. The significant implication of
the findings was that NCCE‘s communication could be haphazardly organised,
making the Commission appear not serious and laidback with its communication. The
study therefore suggested the need for the Commission to develop a proactive
communication policy to serve as a road map for its civic education activities.
Nevertheless, the study revealed that NCCE‘s internal and external communication
practices appeared to reflect modern corporate communication trends. Though the
study explored the communication structure of one public organisation, insights
generated could illuminate broader organisational communication dynamics,
especially in non-profit public organisations in Ghana.
Description:
A thesis in the Department Of Communication and Media Studies,
Faculty of Foreign Languages Education and Communication,
submitted to the School Of Graduate Studies in partial fulfilment
of the requirements for the award of the degree of
Master of Philosophy Communication and Media Studies
(Business Communication)
in the University Of Education, Winneba
FEBRUARY, 2021