Solving Problems in Technical Communication

The field of technical communication is rapidly expanding in both the academic world and the private sector, yet a problematic divide remains between theory and practice. Here Stuart A. Selber and Johndan Johnson-Eilola, both respected scholars and teachers of technical communication, effectively bridge that gap.

Solving Problems in Technical Communication collects the latest research and theory in the field and applies it to real-world problems faced by practitioners--problems involving ethics, intercultural communication, new media, and other areas that determine the boundaries of the discipline. The book is structured in four parts, offering an overview of the field, situating it historically and culturally, reviewing various theoretical approaches to technical communication, and examining how the field can be advanced by drawing on diverse perspectives. Timely, informed, and practical, Solving Problems in Technical Communication will be an essential tool for undergraduates and graduate students as they begin the transition from classroom to career.

Johndan Johnson-Eilola is professor of communication and media at Clarkson University. He is the author of Datacloud, coauthor of Writing New Media, and coeditor, with Stuart A. Selber, of Central Works in Technical Communication.

Stuart A. Selber is associate professor of English at the Pennsylvania State University. He is the author of Multiliteracies for a Digital Age, editor of Rhetorics and Technologies and Computers and Technical Communication, and coeditor, with Johndan Johnson-Eilola, of Central Works in Technical Communication.

"Solving Problems in Technical Communication is excellent, sound, and credible. Every chapter is engaging, easy to follow, and accurate, which doesn't surprise me given the editors and contributors--all are distinguished leaders with long vitas chronicling the major conversations in the field."--Tracy Bridgeford, University of Nebraska at Omaha "Programmatic Perspectives"
"Provides a richer theoretical approach to technical communication. Such a collection is long overdue."-- "Programmatic Perspectives"
An accessible introduction to major topics in the theory and practice of technical communication.-- "IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication"
In Solving Problems, leading scholars explain how their areas of expertise contribute to technical communication. In assembling these scholars, Johnson-Eilola and Selber offer a collection that introduces readers to 19 areas of content relevant to the discipline, including new media, international environments, and information design. . . . The editors and contributors show readers how their technical communication education will influence the workplace and vice versa. To that end, they help readers see that education does not end with a degree; the workplace will be a learning experience for readers, and readers must adapt as needed.-- "Technical Communication Quarterly"
Using heuristics at both a macrolevel and a microlevel, the editors offer a robust framework for investigating, engaging, and resolving
workplace situations that technical communicators often encounter. . . . Solving Problems is an ideal book for students in upper level undergraduate or graduate courses in technical communication. Yet, with its insightful chapters detailing professional development, new media, and visual rhetoric, the book is also valuable to experienced technical communicators, who will find content that is applicable in today's competitive, mediainfluenced workplace.-- "Journal of Business and Technical Communication"
Winner--2014 CCCC Technical and Scientific Communication Award "Best Original Collection of Essays in Technical or Scientific Communication"