Organisation, Power and E-mail: An Investigation of Electronic Power Relationships

This thesis examines and contributes to the study of how, and in what forms, power
and influence is communicated via e-mail. The methods used in the investigation
examine the e-mail patterns of six respondents, who occupy varying hierarchical
positions, within a single public sector organisation. It achieves this examination
through a discourse analysis of each respondent’s sent mail box, using the
respondents themselves as secondary coders. Underpinning the empirical work is an
examination of how the theories of Foucault relate to the subject of power and e-mail.
The examination suggests that Foucault’s methodology can provide insight into the
role of power in influencing e-mail discursive patterns. This is theoretically achieved
by applying a similar structural linguistic methodology to that used by Foucault to
uncover how logical relations appear in e-mail exchanges and the power
relationships they produce. Central to the application of Foucault’s work is the notion
of context; a theoretical concept that suggests relational power as expressed through
e-mails is shaped by the perceptual relationship between actors and text.