Six Non-Listening Patterns in Stakeholder Networks: A Grounded Theory Model

Abstract

Listening is a key social mechanism that contributes to the dynamics of stakeholder relationships in marketing systems. Accordingly, this research seeks a fuller-bodied understanding of situational dynamics where stakeholders do not feel listened to. It uses grounded theory methods to construct meaning from in-depth interviews with eighteen Saskatchewan women engaged as stakeholders in nuclear issues. The outcome of this research is a grounded theoretical framework recognizing six patterns of non-listening interaction. Those types are: blocking (vs. expression), isolation (vs. access), withdrawal (vs. presence), dismissal (vs. consideration), refusal (vs. compliance) and finally disruption, which occupies a distinct role. The new model addresses a need for listening theory that is compatible with stakeholder network models and marketing systems analysis. It offers a complex understanding of listening relationships between all types of stakeholders and can be applied to analyze stakeholder interaction and dysfunction in conflict-ridden marketing systems.