Corporate rumor activity, belief and accuracy

Nicholas DiFonzo; Prashant Bordia

doi:10.1016/S0363-8111(02)00107-8

Corporate rumor activity, belief and accuracy

Nicholas DiFonzo^*, Prashant Bordia

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

67 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

An integrated model relating workplace rumor activity, belief, and accuracy is proposed and tested. Senior VPs of Communications from a sample of Fortune-500 corporations and CEOs of established public relations firms were surveyed regarding rumor episodes that they had experienced. Results confirmed previous research on the role of uncertainty, anxiety, and belief in rumor activity. In addition, a reduced sense of control mediated the effects of uncertainty on anxiety, and anxiety mediated the effects of importance on rumor activity. Evidence was found for the roles of group bias in how strongly a rumor is believed. Rumor activity was also implicated in the formation of more accurate rumors. The significance of these results for rumor theory and for Public Relations practitioners is presented.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1-19
Number of pages	19
Journal	Public Relations Review
Volume	28
Issue number	1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/S0363-8111(02)00107-8
Publication status	Published - Feb 2002
Externally published	Yes

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10.1016/S0363-8111(02)00107-8

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Corporate rumor activity, belief and accuracy

Abstract

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