Communication · Executive Insight Brief · 179
The average hides the dimension
A profile of employee perceptions can locate dissatisfaction without masquerading as an objective audit of communication quality.
Premise
An overall communication score can conceal opposite organizational realities: employees may value their supervisors while lacking enterprise context, or approve of channels while receiving weak personal feedback. The Downs-Hazen Communication Satisfaction Questionnaire separates those experiences into dimensions. Its executive value is a diagnostic profile of employee perception, not a percentage measure of communication effectiveness. It tells leaders where to investigate next, while leaving the cause and operational consequence to be established through additional evidence. This prevents a favorable average from closing inquiry prematurely or directing investment toward the wrong communication mechanism.
What the model is: Communication Satisfaction Questionnaire (CSQ) in Knowledge →

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- FamilyTool
- CategoryMeasurement & Assessment Instruments
- DomainOrganization & Structure
What these mean
Editorial orientation · Family
Tool
In this series, Tool names the editorial family primarily used to act on, examine, measure or organize communication. It includes instruments, methods, practices, protocols, codes and institutional arrangements. Membership does not certify effectiveness, portability or safe use in every setting.
Editorial orientation · Category
Measurement & Assessment Instruments
Produces measures, scores, profiles or assessments through defined items, observations or measurement rules. The entry identifies what is measured and the conditions governing interpretation.
- KnowledgeCommunication Satisfaction Questionnaire (CSQ)
- Related briefThe ICA Communication Audit: Diagnose the System Before Prescribing the Channel
- Related briefCommunication Surveys: Measure a Defined Construct Not Communication in General
- Related briefInterpersonal Communication Satisfaction Inventory: Measure the Experience, Not the Outcome