Information Design in Action

Institutions at(of) Risk

"The Rhetorical Work of Institutions" - Elizabeth C. Britt

The main problem:  There is not enough attention being paid to institutions and how they influence and inform technical communication.

The mini problem(s): Scholars and researchers fail to identify or define institutions (which makes it difficult for the role of institutions to be addressed.  Institutions function in the background, so they are typically overlooked.  Britt suggests institutions are created by rhetoric.

**The description of how institutions develop through analogy and narrative reminds me of urban legends**

Through the example of an analysis of letters from insurance companies that was conducted by Schryer, Britt outlines the holes in the current methods of critique and analysis.  She explains insurance is an institution that has been created or manufactured  (risk exists --> probabilities determine risks --> insurance was created by/for those probabilities).  Schryer's analysis, though it does put the problematic letters into a context of genre, fails to recognize or consider what force or factors created the genre.  Britt claims Schryer should move beyond the immediate and look at how the letters and outcomes were also influenced by the institution of insurance.

The solution:  Since institutions are defined by their technical communications (a point that highlights technical communication as something more than production and consumption), scholars should include the investigation of institutions in their critiques and analyses.  Britt does note that tackling the monster that is institutions is an overwhelming (and possibly impossible) job, so scholars and researchers should work together to allow for specialization.

Question:  Britt frames her argument around research and critique -- scholarly work.  Is understanding institutions something that should/could be emphasized in the classroom?  Would it be more beneficial to focus on organizational awareness?

Connections:  There are obvious connections to both Longo and Grabill.  Longo calls for scholars to look at the ways in which technical communication is connected to and driven by power and power relations (power comes from the establishment of the institution).  Grabill believes there is a need to understand the cultural conditions that help shape the production and consumption of technical and professional writing (technical communication creates different cultures as much as it is influenced by them).