Public Relations 2006 Abstracts
Public Relations Division
College students and Creatine: Are Fear Appeals Effective in Communicating Health Risks? • Hyang Sook Kim, Donna Sheffield and Talal Almutairi, Kansas State University • This study looks at the effect of fear appeals on self-protective behavior. A total of 121 college students viewed advertisements depicting side effects of creatine consumption. Comparing three groups with different levels of knowledge, we found that messages were most effective on those who were familiar with creatine, but had never used it. Primary results suggest that previous knowledge is a factor to be considered when presenting threatening health information.
Examining the Social Context of the College Learning Environment for the Growing Population of Older Adult Students • Terri Ann Bailey, University of North Carolina • Age-based nontraditional students, defined as students 25 years old or greater, represent the fastest growing postsecondary educational group in the United States. The size and growth of the population of older adult students suggests that information about their unique experiences has implications for public relations faculty in developing more open pedagogies and mentoring strategies.
A Sense of Agency: Utilizing Firms in the Public Relations Campaigns Course • Vince Benigni, College of Charleston and J. Christopher Wood, University of Georgia and Glen T. Cameron, University of Missouri • Extending Benigni and Cameron (1999) and subsequent works, this essay espouses the notion of agency partnership in the public relations campaigns course. Because 90 percent of campaigns professors utilize an “agency structure” in this capstone course, it stands to reason that area firms are a natural bridge to fully embracing the concept. The authors examine pedagogical, role definition, and careerist literature, and offer a 10-part list of best practices for agency partnership.
An Investigation of Public Relations’ Role in Supporting Corporate Culture: A Case Study of a Regional Healthcare Facility • Pamela G. Bourland-Davis and Beverly L. Graham, Georgia Southern University • Tapping into the stories of an organization provides an opportunity to capture an organization’s culture. This study examined an organization’s culture to assess the public relations role in regard to the culture. Focused interviews of employees and a content analysis of newsletters identified recurring cultural themes. The results provide support for public relations playing an integral role in advocating for or supporting the culture of the organization as identified in the key themes generated.
The Power of Public Relations in Media Relations: A National Survey of Health PR Practitioners • Sooyoung Choo, University of South Carolina • Based on the typology of power suggested by French and Raven, this study identified five types of power PR practitioners have in media relations. The survey results suggest that PR practitioners working for health organizations have “expert power” in the media relations. Especially, those who work for non-profit organizations, who have frequent contacts with reporters, and who develop close relationships with reporters have “expert power.”
The Role of Public Relations Practitioners’ Communication Networks: A Social Network Perspective on Public Relations Management • Joungwha Choi, Michigan State University • This study examines the relationship between public relations practitioners’ and departments’ communication networks and organizations’ public relations performance. Based on the social network approach and the Excellence theory of public relations, theoretical propositions are provided on the relationships between the network structure that PR practitioners have and public relations excellence.
Effects of Entertainment Television Program Viewing on Student’s Perceptions of Public Relations Functions • Youjin Choi, University of Florida • This study conducted a survey with students in an introductory public relations course to examine the effects of television viewing of entertainment programs with public relations characters on the perceptions about public relations functions. A factor analysis classified students’ perceptions into five categories: two-way communications, political communication, spokesperson, writing, and informal media relations.
Excuse us, please: Examining the Effect of Excuses on Corporate Credibility after an Adverse Incident • Colleen Connolly-Ahern, Penn State University • Crisis communication is an important area of public relations research. This paper details the results of an experiment that examined the effectiveness of different types of excuses and different delivery formats for those excuses on the credibility of a fictitious company after an adverse incident. Results indicate that excuses help corporations regain some their credibility after an adverse incident.
Persuasion and Ethics: Towards a Taxonomy of Means and Ends • Brenton Danner and Spiro Kiousis, University of Florida • The literature on persuasion ethics either largely ignores the distinction between the means and ends of ethical persuasion or at least does not recognize the finer distinctions at work. This paper provides a review of the current literature on persuasion ethics with particular attention to the distinction between when it is ethical to engage in persuasion and the ethical boundaries when performing persuasive acts in a public relations context.
Relationship Types and Outcomes: A Case Study of Internal Military Relationships • Tiffany Derville and Teresa Heisler, University of Maryland University College • Internal military base relationships were examined through 18 interviews and a focus group. The researchers found that the order of importance for relationship outcomes is either situational or in need of adjustment; publics with long relationships with organizations evaluate them against their histories with them; and the need to carry concerns up a chain of management results in dissatisfaction, even when needs are ultimately met. A three-tiered method for classifying relationship types is proposed.
Building an Understanding of the Main Elements of Management in the Communication/ Public Relations Context: A Study of U.S. Practitioner Practices • Barbara DeSanto, University of North Carolina-Charlotte and Danny Moss, Manchester Metropolitan University and Andrew J. Newman, Manchester Business School • This study is the U.S. stage of an international research program identifying the managerial elements of public relations work. Building on previous research studies, this study had two aims: (1) examining the efficacy of the five-factor model emerging from the previous U.K. study, and (2) identifying and exploring the U.S. practitioners’ managerial elements. The results include the validation of the five-factor model among U.S. practitioners, along with identification of managerial role characteristics in U.S. organizations.
Transparency in Government Communication • Jenille Fairbanks, Kenneth Plowman and Brad Rawlins, Brigham Young University • Basic to a successful democracy is the existence of a public informed about government actions. This requires government information to be open and accessible to the public. This study sought to understand how communicators in government value and practice transparency. Constant comparative thematic analysis of 18 semi-structured interviews of government communicators revealed a transparency model for government communication. This paper outlines that model and identifies practices and structures that promote transparent communication practices.
Man or Mouse – Which is Better: Proctored or Online Exams? A Comparison of Test Score Among a Graduate Public Relations Management Course • Lisa T. Fall, University of Tennessee • The purpose of this study is to determine if online exam administration is inferior to traditional face-to-face proctored (pen and paper) administration. The population for this sample consists of 186 graduate students enrolled in an online Master’s degree in Science Administration program at a mid-sized Midwestern state university. In particular, these students have all taken JRN 670 (Public Relations Management) as an elective course toward their degree.
The Intersection of Administration Support for the Faculty Advisor and Student Need Satisfaction • Vincent F. Filak and Robert S. Pritchard, Ball State University • This paper investigates a “motivation transference” wherein instructors receiving administration support are likely to perceive greater student motivation and need satisfaction. A survey of PRSSA faculty advisors (n=104) found that higher levels of administrative support and self-determined motivation predicted the advisor’s own rating of how positive they thought their students would be in rating their performance as the advisor.
Extending Models of International Public Relations Practice: An Analysis of the Arla Foods Crisis • T. Kenn Gaither, Elon University and Patricia A. Curtin, University of Oregon • This study examines communications materials from the Arla Foods case to test models of international public relations practice, extend theory in the discipline, and provide suggestions for international practice. It begins by classifying the models according to their underlying macro-level philosophical assumptions and outlining the ramifications of those assumptions.
Communicating During Times of Crises: An Analysis of Press Releases from the Federal Government Before, During, and After Hurricanes Katrina and Rita • Amanda Hall Gallagher, Maria Fontenot and Kris Boyle, Texas Tech University • This paper examines crisis communication strategies before, during, and after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Press releases from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, Homeland Security, and U.S. Senators and Governors from Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas were analyzed using Coomb’s (1995; 1996; 1998; 1999) symbolic approach to crisis communication. Findings from the study demonstrate that the tactic used most commonly by state officials were suffering and attacking the accuser.
Predicting Media Coverage of Corporate Performance • Soo Yeon Hong, Kiuli Wang, Syracuse University • This study collected and analyzed 838 news stories to identify predictors of corporate performance coverage in the media. A context of company’s quarterly earnings reported to the Securities and Exchange Commission was used. The hierarchical regression analyses found that economic power and earnings per share surprise are significant predictors.
Contemporary Attitudes Toward Integrated Marketing Communication • Jeffrey D. Hutson, Ball State University • This research explored whether attitudes regarding integrated marketing communication (IMC) among both educators and practitioners can place IMC in an inductive or pre-theory stage of theory development. The analysis indicates an acceptance of IMC methods. However the data does not place attitudes regarding IMC in an inductive or pre-theory stage of development. This then permits the conclusion that IMC at present is a communications management approach, not a nascent communication theory.
What you Don’t Know will Hurt You: Information Literacy, Service Learning, and Future Public Relations Practitioners • Ann D. Jabro, Robert Morris University • Students’ information literacy skills of “know” and “access” were determined to be inadequate during a 15-week course titled “Writing for Advertising and Public Relations,” a writing and research-intensive course featuring a service learning component. Pre- and Post- course assessment surveys, weekly student journals, and research portfolio analyses support that students’ information literacy skills can be enhanced by altering pedagogic practices, consulting with experts and empowering students to seek assistance.
Building Online Dialogic Relationship: The U.S. Fortune 500 versus China 500 Corporate Web Sites • Jing Jiang, California Lutheran University • This study explored the similarities and differences of corporate Web sites in the use of dialogic principles to build online dialogic relationship by the U.S. Fortune 500 and China 500 companies. Consistent with previous studies, the results show that both the U.S. Fortune 500 and China 500 companies corporate Web sites do meet the prerequisites of dialogue, namely, they are easily navigated, contain useful information for customer, investor, and media publics, and provide features to maintain visitors on the site.
An Analysis of the Literature on Third-Person Effect for Implications in Public Relations Strategic Message Design • Deena G. Kemp, University of South Florida • Third-person effect (TPE) theory states that people respond to messages based on the expectation that others will be more influenced than themselves. For public relations, TPE can result in unintended outcomes or may be used strategically to achieve communication goals. This paper reviews seven studies that examine TPE for strategic communication in order to formulate a TPE research agenda for public relations in the areas of audience analysis, message design, and program evaluation.
Exploring the Effects of Negative Publicity: News Coverage and Public Perceptions of a University • Sei-Hill Kim, John P. Carvalho and Christy E. Cooksey, Auburn University • Using content analysis of a local newspaper and data from a survey of local residents, this study examines the effects of negative publicity on public perceptions of and support for a university. Our data indicated that greater exposure to unfavorable news articles was associated with lower levels of perceived reputation and trust in the university. Unfavorable perceptions were also related to decreased support for the university.
Differences in Gender Roles in Public Relations and South Korea • Sora Kim and Roxanne Hovland, University of Tennessee • This study examined gender differences in the roles of public relations practitioners, inclusion in influential networks, and relationships with mentors in South Korea. Altogether 102 South Korean public relations practitioners participated in the survey from January to February 2006. The results of the study confirm some of the findings of Western research as well as suggest new insights about important cultural differences in the roles of practitioners as managers and technicians.
The Portrayal of Public Relations Practitioners in The West Wing • Emily Kinsky, Texas Tech University • An investigation of the portrayal of public relations practitioners was performed using content analysis of the 22 episodes in the debut season of The West Wing. The practitioners were coded based on demonstrated traits and work performed or discussed. Significant differences were found between male and female practitioners being included or disciplined, appearing as major characters, dealing with government officials and the media, discussing speech writing, and appearing silly.
Understanding Influence on Corporate Reputation: An Examination of Public Relations Efforts, Media Coverage, Public Opinion, and Financial Performance from an Agenda-Building and Agenda-Setting Perspective • Spiro Kiousis, Christina Popescu and Michael Mitrook, University of Florida • This study investigates public relations efforts and media coverage beyond message outputs and media placement, by tracing the impact of public relations efforts and media coverage on corporate reputation through the theoretical grounding of first- and second-level agenda-building and agenda-setting. A triangulation of research methods compared public relations content, news coverage, public opinion, and corporate financial performance for 28 companies from the annual Harris Interactive (2005) Reputation Quotient.
Going Public to Restore a Tarnished Image: A Content Analysis of President Bush’s Major Post-Katrina Speeches • Brooke Fisher Liu, University of North Carolina • When Hurricane Katrina swept the Gulf Coast, President Bush’s newly formed Department of Homeland Security received its first test and failed. In this paper, I apply image repair discourse theory to analyze the major speeches Bush gave after Katrina. I examine: (1) how Bush presented his response to Katrina in his speeches; (2) how Bush responded to the public’s criticism in his speeches; and (3) how effective the speeches were in repairing Bush’s tarnished image.
Practicing Public Relations in China: An Examination of Multinational Public Relations Firms • Yi Luo, University of Maryland • This study of five multinational public relations firms in China seeks to (a) examine the multinational public relations firms’ sensitivity to societal culture and (b) explore three core concerns in public relations management: function, gender diversity and communication models. Results with 16 practitioners in the firms supported global public relations theory. Suggestions for specific application of global public relations theory are recommended.
Challenging the Monolithic View of Ethnic Minorities in Public Relations Strategies: Hispanic Culture-frames of the Healthcare Issue • Belio A. Martinez, Jr., University of Florida • Framing, and etic/emic concepts are combined to formulate a culture-framing model to discern between minority subgroup issue-frames. An analysis of 21 in-depth interviews with Colombian, Cuban and Puerto Rican Americans in the state of Florida resulted in five unique healthcare frames for these Latino subgroups. Findings in this study challenge the myth of a monolithic Hispanic community and call for more nuanced public relations research and campaign efforts targeting multicultural publics.
The Secret Key to Beautiful Skin is not a Secret Anymore: A Case Study of SK-II’s Image Restoration Strategies • Juan Meng, University of Alabama • SK-II, a high profile beauty line of Proctor & Gamble, was sued by a Chinese consumer in 2005, which raised serious questions about SK-II’s product safety and the credibility of its advertisements. The theory of image restoration discourse was applied in this case to analyze SK-II’s attempts to restore its tarnished reputation in the Asian market. More rigorous image restoration strategies for multinational corporations (MNCs) in the Asian market were also recommended.
Digging Deeper: Crisis Management in the Coal Industry • Barbara Miller and J. Suzanne Horsley, University of North Carolina • Through an analysis of the coal industry, this study provides insight into the unique considerations associated with responding to crises among risk-related industries. Given the often-negative image associated with risk industries, crises may be a context for improving existing public perceptions by demonstrating a commitment to responding to crises effectively.
The Academy versus the Profession: A Comparative Analysis of Ethical Discussion in Public Relations Publications • Michael A. Mitrook and Benton Danner, University of Florida • Content analysis concerning the nature of ethical discussion in both peer reviewed public relations journals and public relations industry publications. Of the 35,944 articles from four scholarly journals and four industry publications covering the period 1998-2005, 1057 mentioned ethics in some substantive way and were further analyzed in four categories: appeal to a normative ethical theory; mention of a code of ethics; mention of metaethical issues; and relating ethics to a particular public relations theory.
Cultivation of Relationships as Resource Management: Employee-organization Relationships (EOR) in the Context of Globalization • Lan Ni, University of Texas at San Antonio • Applying the framework of resource management to the cultivation of relationships for achieving organizational goals, this study examined how the cultivation of employee-organization relationships (EOR) was influenced by globalization strategies. Findings from 60 interviews in 14 organizations suggested that the process of cultivating EOR indeed reflected the demands of globalization strategies. Organizations focused on different dimensions of EOR cultivation, demonstrating a visible effort of public relations to build resources that could contribute to organizational effectiveness.
The Link Between Strong Public Relationships and Donor Support • Julie O’Neil, Texas Christian University • Based upon a mail survey completed by 275 donors of a non-profit organization, this study measured the association between perceptions of public relationships and donor support. A modified version of Hon and J.E. Grunig’s (1999) relationship scale was used. Results of one-way analyses of variance indicate that strong public relationships are not related to amount donated, but they are associated with years of support, happiness to continue donating, and happiness to recommend others to donate.
A New Typology of Risk Communication Process Variables • Michael J. Palenchar and Elizabeth A. Crisp, University of Tennessee • Risk communication process variables are a potentially useful typology for examining the strategic creation of risk communication messages and audience responses. Based on a literature review across disciplines, this meta-analysis identifies a new typology of psychometric and other risk communication process variables categorized by control, trust, context, uncertainty and knowledge. The authors also advocate for more reflection and review of risk communication research literature to systematically address present and future research needs in the field.
Roles and Blogs in Public Relations • Lance V. Porter, Kaye D. Trammell, Louisiana State University and Deborah Chung, University of Kentucky • A national email survey of public relations practitioners investigated the use and perceptions of weblogs or blogs and how that use is related to roles and status. Cluster analysis challenged Porter and Sallot’s 2003 roles typology, reverting to the previous manager-technician dichotomy. While blog use was on par with national audiences, practitioners were maintaining mostly personal blogs and using blogs professionally at low levels. Furthermore, women lagged behind men in the strategic use of blogs.
Public Participation: An Experimental Test of Stage of Involvement and Power Sharing on Satisfaction • Kristina M. Ray, David M. Dozier, Glen M. Broom and C. Richard Hofstetter, San Diego State University • The normative literature on public participation suggests that stakeholder satisfaction increases (a) when decision-making power is shared and (b) the public participates early in the decision-making process. In an experiment, 804 subjects were randomly assigned to groups and exposed to four treatments where power sharing and stage of public involvement were systematically manipulated.
The Dialogic Characteristic of NGO Web sites and The Concept of Interactivity • Hakimeh Saghaye-Biria and Foad Izadi, Louisiana State University • This study examined the interactive potential of the Web sites of 50 non-governmental organizations to understand how they are building dialogic relationships online. The data suggest that while most NGO organizations meet the technical and design aspects of dialogic communication – here referred to as user-to-system interactivity – they are not taking full advantage of the two-way communication potential of the Internet.
Claimsmaking and Mountaintop Removal Mining: A Frame Mapping Analysis of PR Material from the Coal Industry and Environmental Activists • Marc C. Seamon, Marshall University • This study is a computer-assisted analysis of how claimsmakers frame mountaintop removal mining in PR materials designed to influence public opinion and policy. The frames used by competing claimsmakers and the words that comprise those frames are identified. Abstract patterns of usage and association among the frames are documented and made visual through 3-D interactive graphs. Interpretation is provided of the frames and their associative patterns. Implications for PR practitioners and researchers are discussed.
A Qualitative Analysis of Fund Raiser Roles and Experiences at Public Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) • Natalie T. J. Tindall, University of Maryland • According to fund raising theory, the chief fund raiser should be a member of the dominant coalition for any advancement of fund raising effort to succeed (L. A. Grunig, J. E. Grunig, & Dozier, 2002; J. E. Grunig, 1992; Kelly, 1998). This paper examines the experiences of 27 institutional advancement officers at public historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs).1 The fund raisers enacted the expert prescriber, problem-solving facilitator, and technician roles described by Kelly (1998).
Perception of Public Relations: An Experiment Testing the Impact of Entertainment Portrayals of the Profession on Students and Practitioners • Kaye D. Trammell, University of Georgia and Lisa K. Lundy, Louisiana State University • In this pre/posttest experimental design involving practitioners (n =28), public relations majors (n=39), communication majors (n=33), and non-majors (n=40), researchers investigated the impact of entertainment portrayals of the public relations profession. Findings indicate that while all groups believe the portrayal of the profession in the stimulus was inaccurate, participants allowed the entertainment program to cloud their perception of public relations. Respondents experienced third-person effects but the phenomenon dissipated as one’s connection to the profession decreased.
Impact of Blogs on Relationship Management during a Crisis • Kaye D. Trammell, University of Georgia and Emily Metzgar, Louisiana State University • Using a post-test only experimental design with control group, this study investigated the impact of blogs on relationship management during a crisis. Participants (N = 109) were exposed to a personal blog (n = 45), organizational blog (n = 46), or control (n = 18). Results indicate blogs impact the perception of the level of crisis an organization experiences. Additionally, relationships created through blogs impact the perception of crisis. Use and credibility were also investigated.
Toward a Social Construction of the Field of Global Public Relations: A Case of Female Practitioners in Russia • Katerina Tsetura, University of Oklahoma • Social construction was used to develop a theoretical framework for studying multiple identities of public relations practitioners, based on professional, cultural, and gender characteristics, as a foundation for reconceptualization of the public relations field. Results of interviews and focus groups with female practitioners from Russia reported. This project provided baseline to systematically explore multiple identities of professionals and showed how the proposed framework can be used to understand public relations as a socially constructed field.
Women’s Meaning-making of Cervical Cancer Campaigns: Using a Cultural Approach to Reframe Women’s Involvement with their Health • Jennifer Vardeman, University of Maryland • This study extended the situational theory of publics to understand how women from different racial and ethnic backgrounds seek information about cervical cancer. Qualitative focus groups and in-depth interviews were employed with African American, Hispanic, Indian, and White women. Findings suggest that women represent both aware and latent publics because of differences in problem recognition and level of involvement. Furthermore, women tend to group reproductive health issues together rather than separating them.
“My Grandmother Ate Fish Her Whole Life and There Isn’t Anything Wrong With Her”: An Exploratory Study of How Women Perceive Contradictory Messages in Media about Fish Consumption • Jennifer Vardeman and Linda Aldoory, University of Maryland • This study employed focus groups with women to examine their perceptions of contradictory information portrayed in media about fish consumption. The situational theory of publics provided a theoretical framework in that women’s perceptions were understood in terms of how much they recognized eating fish to be a problem, how personally relevant the problem of eating fish was for them, and whether they perceived barriers to eating fish safely.
Priming, Framing and Position on Corporate Social Responsibility • Alex Wang, University of Connecticut-Stamford • This study tested the effects of priming, framing, and position on how participants judged a target corporation: effects produced by statements that focused on issues of corporate social responsibility (CSR) within a context without mentioning a target corporation (priming) and effects produced by stories that linked the target corporation to CSR issues through negatively framed news (framing).
Telling the American Story to the World: The Purpose of U.S. Public Diplomacy in Historical Perspective • Jian Wang, Purdue University • This paper seeks to provide a critical reflection on the mission and function of U.S. public diplomacy through an examination of the manifest mandate of the three major institutional settings for such international outreach programs, i.e., Committee on Public Information, Office of War Information, and the United States Information Agency. Through historical synthesis, this discussion aims to enrich our understanding of current and long-standing issues regarding the concept of public diplomacy.
Blogging 101: Issues and Approaches to Teaching Blog Management in Public Relations Courses • Richard D. Waters and Jennifer A. Robinson, University of Florida • As the social impact of blogging continues to grow, public relations practitioners must be prepared to develop and manage constituency relationships by managing and responding to blogs. This paper highlights how blog writing/management can be purposefully incorporated in public relations curricula, including a sample assignment. Results of informal interviews (n = 28) with students enrolled in a public relations writing course are reported and a variety of issues raised by students are discussed.
Measuring the Donor-Nonprofit Organization Relationship: The Impact of Relationship Cultivation on Donor Renewal • Richard D. Waters, University of Florida • Through the use of organization-public relationship measures developed by Grunig and Hon (1999), this project examined the value of the donor-nonprofit organization relationship. A survey of donors (n = 120) for a California-based healthcare organization revealed that major gift donors and repeat donors were more likely to have stronger feelings of trust, satisfaction, commitment, and balanced power than normal donors and one-time donors, respectively.
Beyond Counting: The Use of Press Clippings as a Measurement Tool • Brinn Wellise and Jennifer Greer, University of Nevada, Reno • A survey of a randomly selected sample of PRSA members found that practitioners deem press clippings, despite their simplicity, as an important and frequently used measurement tool. Practitioners counted press clippings and used more complex levels of clip analysis; those techniques combined ranked near the top of a list of what some have seen as “more sophisticated” PR measurement tools. Long-time and more upper-level practitioners placed less value on clippings than other professionals surveyed.
Constructing a Cultural Definition of Public Relations: A Textual Analysis of The New York Times • Candace White and Cheryl Ann Lambert, University of Tennessee • This study examined how public relations is contextually defined, using newspaper articles as cultural texts, to determine how readers would derive meaning of the term. Public relations was frequently used as an adjective to ascribe negative meaning to the noun it modified, and the media definitions, and therefore the cultural perceptions of public relations, do not often match textbook definitions. Newspaper readers would make negative inferences about public relations.
The Moral Development of Public Relations Practitioners: A Comparison with Other Professions • Lee Wilkins, University of Missouri and Renita Coleman, University of Texas-Austin • This study gathered baseline data on the moral development of 84 public relations professionals. The PR practitioners in this study scored sixth highest among professionals tested, ranking behind seminarians/philosophers, medical students, physicians, journalists, and dental students, but above nurses, graduate students, undergraduate college students, veterinary students, and adults in general. They performed significantly better when the ethical dilemmas were about public relations issues than when they were not.
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