Public Relations 1999 Abstracts
Public Relations Division
Research
Delineating (and Delimiting) the Boundary Spanning Role of the Medical Public Information Officer: A Survey of Editors and Cardiac Surgeons — Raymond N. Ankney and Patricia A. Curtin, North Carolina — Medical public information officers serve as boundary spanners between medical experts and journalists. Editors at every daily newspaper in Pennsylvania and cardiac surgeons in Pennsylvania were surveyed the role of medical PIOs. While the two groups expressed many similar opinions, editors generally were more open to medical PIOs as boundary spanners, whereas surgeons preferred to handle their own media relations.
Getting Past Platitudes: Factors Limiting Accommodation in Public Relations — Glen T. Cameron, Fritz Cropp and Bryan H. Reber, Missouri — We wanted to learn whether top corporate public relations executives at companies with revenues measured in billions of dollars had ever encountered situations that precluded taking an accommodative stance toward a public. Respondents offered instances when proscriptive factors did preclude accommodation on some occasions. Top practitioners strive for accommodation toward most publics, expressed in win-win platitudes. But the practice of two-way symmetrical communication was supplanted when “we got down to cases” that provide a rich understanding of the forces at play in conflict management.
The Cultural Competence Spiral: An Assessment and Profile of U.S Public Relations Practitioners’ Preparation for International Assignments — Alan R. Freitag, North Carolina-Charlotte — This applied research predicts, and finds support for, a spiral beginning with public relations practitioners’ preparation for international assignments, leading to assignment-seeking behavior, success and satisfaction in those assignments, consequently increased intercultural competence, followed by further assignment-seeking behavior, continuing the upward spiral. Results indicate that academic and professional preparation for international assignments among U.S. practitioners is limited, but that preparation correlates positively with success and satisfaction in international assignments.
Corporate Social Responsibility: Do People Really Hold Corporations Responsible For Their Actions? — Jessica Hicks, Hua-Hsin Wan and Michael Pfau, Wisconsin-Madison — Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has become a hot issue in public relations. Many corporate CEOs believe that CSR plays an instrumental role in consumer evaluations of a corporation. Surveys of consumers’ attitude and behaviors also indicate that they intend to reward corporations for being socially responsible and punish those who are not. In reality, however, there is a debate over whether consumers indeed do what they intend to do. fIn other words, researchers have argued that there is a discrepancy between consumers’ intention to act and their actual behavior. >
Measuring the Economic Value of Public Relations — Yungwook Kim, Florida — This study establishes a two-step model to measure the economic value of public relations by testing two relationships: 1) the impact of public relations expense on reputation as a goal of public relations, and 2) the economic impact of reputation on revenues as companies’ bottom lines. The proposed model showed an appropriate fitting and coefficients were statistically significant. All three hypotheses were supported. By integrating the results of the hypothesis tests, the proposed two-stage model for measuring the economic impact of public relations activities was supported.
Persuasion, Image, And Campaign Message Design: A Case Study Of University Image — Mary Anne Moffitt, Illinois State University — It is a bit ironic that research conducted into image has typically focused on the profit-oriented corporation and that many scholars exploring image have not paid much attention to the image processes of the one organization which Supports most of them-the university. Recent research into image, however, has begun to recognize the importance’ of studying university image processes (Bok, 1992; Gose, 1994; Immerwahr & Harvey, 1995; Phair, 1992; Theus, 1993).
Uncovering the Support Area/In-House Agency Paradox with Evaluative Research — Juan C. Molleda and Lynn M. Zoch, South Carolina — While conducting evaluative research for the corporate communications division of a large regional affiliate of a national insurance group, the researchers uncovered a paradox in the way the communication function is viewed by the division and its “internal customers.” The staff of the division see themselves as a support area of the organization, acting mainly in a technical function by following the directives of other areas, while the areas with which they work see corporate communications as an in-house agency and themselves as its “clients.”
Toward a Self-Regulated and an Ethics-Based Framework for Marketing Communications in Sub-Saharan Africa — Cornelius B. Pratt, University of Zambia and Evelyn Hone College of Applied Arts and Commerce-Southern Africa, Charles C. Okigbo, North Dakota State University and Louisa Ha, The Gallup Organization — Marketing communications, as a promotional strategy, are being used in public- and private-sector campaigns to stimulate the establishment and expansion of much-needed economic growth and development in sub-Saharan Africa. Therefore, this paper argues that such a pivotal role be performed within an ethical framework, if the resources of the region and its potential are to be fully explored to attain such goals. The framework is anchored on the non-consequential, duty-based normative theory of deontology.
The Models of Public Relations in India — K. Sriramesh, Florida — As we approach the new millennium, we see a shrinking world in which people in the far corners of the world are increasingly influencing each other in many ways. The decade of the 90’s has been the harbinger of cross-nation exchanges of goods and services. The formation of trading blocks such as NAFTA, EC, ASEAN and APEC has resulted in increased trade among different countries. Further, the explosion of communication technology such as satellite communication and the Internet has contributed to the development of markets around the globe.
A Content Analysis of the Web Pages of Large U.S. Corporations: What is the Role of Public Relations and Marketing? — Suchitra Vattyam and Charles A. Lubbers, Kansas State University — American businesses have expended a great deal of effort on World Wide Web activities, often with limited success. A content analysis of homepage features for 83 of the Fortune 100 companies was performed. The percentages of pages with each feature is provided and then the features are classified according to the business function each attempts to fulfill. The results indicate that many activities found on these homepages are traditionally associated with public relations.
An Innovative Look at Gender in Public Relations: Examining Relationships between Gender and Source Credibility in Employee Communication Messages and Media — Donald K. Wright and Jill R. Haynes, South Alabama — Gender differences between women and men have served as the focal point for much public relations research within the past two decades. However, the public relations body of knowledge lacks any studies that examine gender in terms of how women and men react differently to public relations communication messages and the communication media delivering them. This study examines the impact of gender differences on the receivers of an organization’s internal public relations communication messages.
Teaching
An Exploratory Look at Graduate Public Relations Curricula — Linda Aldoory and Elizabeth L. Toth, Syracuse University — This was an exploratory content analysis of master’s degree programs in public relations that described the status of public relations graduate curricula. Using recommendations of the Foundation for Public Relations Research and Education as a benchmark, general requirements, core public relations courses, optional public relations courses and other optional courses were examined. Findings indicated a lack of adherence to the Foundation’s recommendations and a lack of consistency across programs as to number and type of courses required or offered.
A National Study of a Three-Weekend Accelerated Class Format Within the Public Relations Curriculum — Lisa T. Fall, Michigan State University — The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of Public Relations Management courses offered over a six-month period in a three-weekend accelerated curriculum format. The theoretical framework from which this study was designed is derived from Malcolm Knowles’ andragogy theory of adult learning. This study addresses the following three research questions: RQ1: How do students who are enrolled in this class format rate its effectiveness in relation to the assumptions of the andragogy theory?
Helping Students Succeed in the Introduction to Public Relations Course: The Influence of Student Study Manuals and Cablecast Review Sessions on Classroom Performance — Charles A. Lubbers, Kansas State University — This research assessed the value of two distance learning tools as supplements for the traditional introduction to public relations course. The point totals from four exams taken by 506 students were regressed with students’ reported usage of a study manual, usage of televised review sessions, year in school and major status. The results indicate that all four variables are significantly correlated with class performance, but that the study manual explains the most variance.
The Internet, Online Resources and Public Relations Practitioners: What They Use and What They Recommend for Students — Michael Ryan, Houston — This paper reports the results of a nationwide survey of 150 public relations practitioners who were to indicate the extent to which they use the World Wide Web and online resources; when they began using computers for non-word processing purposes; what computer skills are needed in their offices; what skills they seek in new hires; the extent to which they were involved in creating Web sites; and how much importance they attach to Web pages.
Student
Do Corporate Annual Reports and Web Sites Support a Commitment to Social Responsibility? — Kimberly Gill, Florida — This pilot study employed content analysis to examine the extent to which the corporate annual reports and web sites of six corporations demonstrated social responsibility. Social responsibility was framed through the literature review using definitions of social responsibility, philanthropy and public relations. Literature indicated that investors are concerned about the corporate citizenship of companies in which they invest. Contrary to what the literature suggested, companies lacked complete social responsibility disclosure in annual reports and web sites.
Making the Web Work for Non-Profits: Recommendations for the Ronald McDonald House of Dallas — Amy Henika, Trinity University — This paper discusses making Web sites effective for non-profit organizations. It reviews Web sites in general: what they are, why they have proliferated, how they function as part of marketing communications, and what makes them effective. It compares an effective commercial site, Gap, with two lion-profit sites: Bryan’s House and Ronald McDonald House of Dallas. Based on that analysis, the paper recommends improvements for the Ronald McDonald House of Dallas site.
Tactics in Labor Disputes Viewed as Public Relations Activities: Two Strikes in Milwaukee, 1934-1935 — Darlene Jirikowic, Wisconsin-Milwaukee — The mid-1930s were rich in union organizing and the period lends itself to a review of public relations functions as they were used in an arena not usually associated with such activities. This paper focuses on the strategies designed to influence a public or publics in two high-profile strikes in Milwaukee, the Electric Railway and Light Company and the Lindemann-Hoverson Stove Works. In particular, this paper concentrates on the tactics centering on the unions’ most important external public, the employer.
What Dimensions Constitute A Good Corporate Image In the Eyes of Chinese Educated Public in Hong Kong — Lee Kaman Betty, Hong Kong Baptist University — The present study is to examine what dimensions constitute a good corporate image in the eyes of Chinese educated public in Hong Kong. Two hundred and fifty-four (54 males and 200 females) undergraduate students in Hong Kong participated in the present study. An empirical measure called Corporate Image Scale was developed and used. Varimax factor analysis revealed seven meaningful factors. Moreover, the predictability of each factor was examined. Implications of findings are discussed.
Standardizing International Crisis Communication In The United States: The Effects Of Spokesperson Ethnicity On Credibility And Image Ratings Of Multinational Organizations — Laura Arpan Ralstin, Alabama — An experiment was conducted to examine the effects of using American versus non-American spokespersons for multinational organizations in a crisis situation. The experiment varied the home country of the organization (United States, Mexico, Japan, and Germany) as well as whether the company used a spokesperson from its home country or an American spokesperson. Path analyses found company image to be predicted by spokesperson credibility ratings. Additionally, the degree of participants’ ethnic identities affected spokesperson similarity ratings, which in turn predicted spokesperson credibility ratings.
Responding to Crisis: The Communications Aftermath of the Thurston High School Shootings — Andi Stein, Oregon — This paper is a case-study of the crisis communications response that took place following the Thurston High School shootings in Springfield, Oregon, in May 1998. It addresses the challenges faced by the public information officers in the Springfield/Eugene, Oregon, area who dealt with the communications aftermath of the Thurston shootings and evaluates the public relations activities implemented by these individuals while responding to this crisis.
There’s Something About PR: Influence Of Positive And Normative Models Of Public Relations On Job Satisfaction Among Bulgarian Practitioners — Christopher Varadon, Florida — This study explores job satisfaction among Bulgarian public relations practitioners in the light of the four models of public relations-press agentry/publicity, public information, two-way asymmetrical and two-way symmetrical in positive (real–life) and normative (ideal) settings. In addition, this study tests integral models of craft vs. professional public relations. Findings suggest that Bulgarian practitioners are dealing with both craft and professional models in their daily business, but aspire to revert only to the professional model.
Print friendly
