Epistemology and power in faculty's discourse and practices in electronic communication technology

This qualitative dissertation explores how ten faculty members who teach professional communication courses at one university integrate electronic communication technology into their courses and how they view the nature of that technology. Ten in-depth cases are presented from two interviews conducted with each faculty member. These cases show how views of curriculum and individual agendas affect choices of technology use and how perspectives about the the nature of technology knowledge and its place in these courses vary. Three cross-case analysis chapters discuss categories of perspectives regarding the technology, sources of knowledge about technology, and ways specific uses of electronic communication technology change relationships and knowledge. Issues of power and authority are shown as embedded in the social construction of technology knowledge at the university level. Implications for teaching and faculty development are suggested, and these are based on the findings that faculty hold limited perspectives on technology knowledge and its uses. Technology use in professional communication courses raise new issues for instruction, and although these technologies have the potential to democratize education, these outcomes are not necessarily realized.