'The enabling role of internal organizational communication in insider threat activity – evidence from a high security organization'

Rice, C. and Searle, R. H. (2022) 'The enabling role of internal organizational communication in insider threat activity – evidence from a high security organization'. Management Communication Quarterly, 36(3), pp. 467-495. (doi: 10.1177/08933189211062250)

Abstract

This paper explores the role of internal communication in one under-researched form of organizational crisis, insider threat – threat to an organization, its people or resources, from those who have legitimate access. In this case study, we examine a high security organization, drawing from in-depth interviews with management and employees concerning the organizational context and a real-life incident of insider threat. We identify the importance of three communication flows (top-down, bottom-up, and lateral) in explaining, and in this case, enabling, insider threat. Derived from this analysis, we draw implications for communication and security scholars, as well as practitioners, concerning: the impact of unintentional communication, the consequences of selective silence and the divergence in levels of shared understanding of security among different groups within an organization.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: This research was funded by the Centre for Research and Evidence on Security Threats (ESRC Award: ES/N009614/1).
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Searle, Professor Rosalind
• Authors: Rice, C., and Searle, R. H.
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > Adam Smith Business School > Management
• Journal Name: Management Communication Quarterly
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• ISSN: 0893-3189
• ISSN (Online): 1552-6798
• Published Online: 14 January 2022
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2022 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Management Communication Quarterly 36(3): 467-495
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License