Listening in the Business Context: Reviewing the State of Research

Abstract

For more than 50 years, business professionals and some researchers have held that effective listening is a highly desirable workplace skill (Cooper, 1997; Husband, Cooper, & Monsour, 1988; Nichols & Stevens, 1957; Rogers & Rothlisberger, 1952; Sypher, 1984). However, listening as an organizational variable continues to be seen as a “soft” skill worthy of little attention in the scholarly business literature, in the business classroom, and in organizations (Flynn & Faulk, in press). This paper presents an overview of academic research on listening in the business environment and raises a number of key research questions that guided discussion of the Business Context Division of the International Forum on Listening Research. This work is designed to foster rigorous listening research among scholars in a variety of academic business fields.