Possibilities and limitations of communication in a democratic organization : a case study of the premium collective

This research is an inquiry into how communication enables or limits democratic structures in an organization. I investigate communicative practices of an atypical organization, which considers itself as consensus democratic, the Premium Collective. I take the stances of Bohms Dialogue, Habermas Deliberative Democracy and Rosenbergs Nonviolent Communication and explore how dimensions of their approaches influence democratic structures towards flat hierarchies and participation. It includes an analysis of participation paradoxes concerning the organizational structure, commitment, and homogeneity. I show that openness, inclusion, transparency, trust and equality in communication practices facilitate democratic structures if those are protected and reproduced through social interaction. Whereas long communication processes constitute a double-binding situation towards information asymmetry and further consequences.author: Maria WieningerUniversität Innsbruck, Masterarbeit, 2018(VLID)295172