Graduation Term

Spring 2026

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

School of Communication

Committee Chair

Rebecca A. Hayes

Committee Member

John R. Baldwin

Committee Member

Peter M. Smudde

Abstract

Seasonal employees constitute an essential yet understudied workforce sustaining organizational operations during peak demand periods across industries. Despite the growing organizational reliance on temporary employees, organizational communication studies have primary focused on permanent employees with extended socialization periods, leaving important questions about how leadership communication operates in compressed timeframes inadequately addressed. This qualitative study examined how leadership communication practices shape seasonal employees’ adaptation, belonging, and morale within the temporal constraints characteristic of temporary employment. Drawing on organizational socialization theory, leader-member exchange theory and cultural dimensions, this study employed semi-structured interviews with 19 seasonal employees across hospitality, camp, retail, and education sectors.

The findings suggest that adaptation depends on multimodal onboarding communication, accessible supervisors, and timely feedback rather than formal training alone. Scaffolded instruction enabled systematic skill development, while single-channel delivery produced irreversible adaptation failures. Belonging operated simultaneously at three levels: supervisor recognition created dyadic belonging, leadership-facilitated integration produced community belonging, and organizational responses to exclusion established institutional belonging. High-quality supervisor relationships proved insufficient when institutions tolerated harassment or ignored safety concerns. Morale developed through sustained patterns of specific recognition, respectful communication, and organizational responsiveness, declining when leadership communication investment diminished after initial training. Cultural dimensions functioned as interpretive framework creating vulnerability to identity-based harm. Temporal compression prevented gradual cultural adjustment, transforming differences into active vulnerabilities requiring immediate institutional protection. The findings provide actionable guidance for organizations managing increasingly multicultural seasonal workforce while revealing boundary conditions for theories developed in permanent employment contexts.

Access Type

Thesis-Open Access

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