Running against Time and Technology: Problems in Empirical Research into Written Business Communication.

Problems involving empirical research into written business communication in Finnish and English are examined. Some of the problems are shown to be obvious reasons for the scarcity of research in this field. Three issues are discussed: (1) problems in establishing sub-categories and classification of current written business communication; (2) the role that some of the categories in the established pattern have in cross-cultural communication regarding changes taking place in'international communication systems, and problems in the treatment of cross-cultural issues in international business writing (with the Finnish language as one element); and (3) the accessibility and diversity of real-life material. The problem of research into written business communication is treated as a struggle against time and technical development because time and technology affect real-life business _ommunication practices. It is concluded that the linguistic outcome of a piece of communication in business is greatly determined by the mode of communication (e.g., telex, fax machine), and that the rapid emergence of new media for communication affects the researcher's ability to investigate the properties of one before another enters the market. Contains 19 references. (LB) ******************************************** ***** ********************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be maae from the original document. *********************************************************************** RUNNING AGAINST TIME AND TECHNOLOGY; PROBLEMS IN EMPIRICAL RESEARCH INTO WRITTEN BUSINESS COMMUNICATION