6.5.1 The nature of symbols
Symbols are a useful way to convey meaning quickly and efficiently. Symbols may be in the form of words or numbers, or as visual images - a picture, maybe, or a graph.
Symbols have three basic characteristics (Pollio, 1974):
- They are representational. A symbol stands for something other than itself. A word symbol (e.g. MBA) is a substitute that represents an object (the course itself, which is made up of this unit plus several others) and is linked to the idea of the object.
- They are freely created. A symbol is freely created because it is made up and chosen by the users. It can be a distinctive yellow, as the McDonald hamburger chain has adopted, or the Nike® swoosh symbol.
- They are culturally transmitted by those who agree to use them. Each profession, for instance, develops its own jargon, one that is often unintelligible to anybody outside the profession. An accountant need only open an academic journal in, say, engineering for proof of this!
The impact of a symbol depends on how much meaning is associated with it. The idea for advertisers is to hang as much meaning as possible on a symbol. The following extract describes the importance of symbols to the western world:
- Corporations, foundations, trade associations, and government agencies also use symbols (logos) to identify themselves or their products. Once a symbol has been firmly based in our mind, we think of the organization every time we see the logo. Such symbols hope to create recognition that is useful in helping sales and in maintaining a visible public image. In one well publicized search, the NBC television network spent $1 million on its new television logo, and Exxon spent $100 million and three years converting to its new name (Preston, 1979: 150).
The notion that a picture is worth a thousand words is illustrated below.
Figure 3 What readers of annual reports read
(Bowles & Graham 1995:82)
This illustration summarises what is actually read of a company report. Most people look at the pictures only and none but the most sophisticated readers get as far as the footnotes. The difficulty of consuming copious logic in alphabetical symbols (left-brain activity) is too much for many people who prefer the symbolic imagery of pictures (right-brain activity).
A logo or picture conveys what a paragraph or page of the written word would otherwise do. These symbols rely on the right side of the brain - an intuitive feeling of recognition, a sudden capturing of impression and meaning - whereas the written word relies on the left side of the brain - the logical sequence of language. The world of advertising worked this out decades ago. It is strange that managers have not applied communicating in creative images to employees since this is what works in everyday life. What is even more surprising is that organisations have taken over thirty years to realise that the use of common symbols for occupational health and safety within workplaces across the globe has promoted consistent behaviours. Like road signs we have seen the emergence of international codes for workplace signage and the training associated with both changing behaviours and promoting compliance.
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