CHAPTER 8

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

8.1 Introduction
Studies for managing reputation and its linkages with other factors
such as behavioural factors of stakeholders have always been the focus
of comm-unication and behavioural sciences. Many scholars describe
reputation management as the role of public relations whereas others
feel that managing components like trust and commitment through
effective media communication can lead to reputation and image. The
present chapter gives an account of the literature focusing on perception
management and public relations, its linkages, components and key
factors which lead to perception and reputation.

8.2 Jun, ki Eyun and Childers Hon Linda. Testing the Linkages
among the Organization-Public Relationship and Attitude and
Behavioral Intentions. Journal of Public Relations Research
19.1(2007): 1-23.

In this research Jung and Hon tested a model that posits the linkages
among perceptions of the organization-public relationships, attitudes,
and behavioral intentions toward an organization among members of a
key public.

They formulated three hypotheses in this research:

H1: A public’s perceptions of its relationship with the organization

will influence the public’s attitude towards the organization.

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 H2: A public’s perceptions of its relationship with the organization
will influence the public’s behavioral intentions towards the
organization.

H3: A public’s attitude towards the organization will influence the

public’s behavioral intentions.

This study measured perception of the large public university students.

For research samples, students were an appropriate choice, because
students are a key public and target for the university’s relationship-
building efforts. Respondents took 10 to 20 min to complete the survey.
A total of 277 students agreed to complete the survey. The final sample
contained 267 valid cases.

The results presented here support the fundamental assumption of

much of the relationship literature- that building and sustaining positive
organization Public Relations should be the Public relations function’s
primary aim.

Like any other research, this study has several limitations, like a
non probability convenience sample was used. Therefore, the findings
of this research are not generalizable to the study’s population, nor are
the results generalizable to other Public and organizations involved in a
public relationship.

8.3 Broom, G.M. and D. M. Dozier. Using Research in Public

Relations: An application to Program Management. Journal of
Communication Management 14.3 (1998): 327-337.

Another study on organizational Public Relations and Perceptions

was undertaken by Broom and Dozier and they a suggested a co-

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orientation process for measuring Organization Public Relations in which
an organization’s key Public’s perceptions were tested to determine levels
of arrangement and accuracy of Public Relations.

Ledingham and Bruning (1998) also measured Organization Public

Relations based on trust, openness, involvement, investment and
commitment. They found that these variables influenced the public’s
loyalty as well as behavioral intentions toward the organization as long
as public was aware of the organization’s relationship building activities.
Burning and Ledingham (2000) also measured the Organization Public
Relations based on the Public’s perceptions of personal, professional
and community relationship. These researchers found that the public’s
perceptions of its personal and professional relationship with the
organization significantly affected the public’s evaluations of over all
satisfaction with the organization.

8.4 Bruning, S.D. and T. Galloway. Expanding the Organization

Public Relations Scale: Exploring the Role that Structural and
Personal Commitment play in Organization Public Relationships.
Public Relation Review 29 (2003) :309-319.

Extending the scales developed by Burning and Ledingham, Burning

and Galloway (2003) measured the customer’s relation-ship with their
electrical service provider. Factor analysis isolated five underlined
dimensions (control mutuality, trust, satisfaction, commitment, communal
relationship, and exchange relationship) of the Organization Public
Relations. Data was collected from 135 respondents. A factor analysis
with a Varimax rotation was computed and showed that organization–
public relationships have at least five (5) dimensions, anthropomorphism,
professional benefits / expectations, personal commitment, community

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improvement, and comparison of alternatives. Anthropomorphism
refers to the way the organization demonstrates positive human
qualities (e.g., trustworthy, open, willing to invest in the relationship).
Professional benefits and expectations represent a public’s perceptions
of professionalism of the organization and expectations for how the
organization will behave in the relationship, such as being responsible
and providing benefits. Personal commitment is characteristic of wanting
to maintain the relationship; feeling linked to the organization, and wants
the relationship to continue for a long time. Community improvement
focuses on customer perceptions that the company supports events that
are of interest to customers and plays role in making the community
better. The results from this investigation suggest that organization-
public relationships are multi-dimensional. Although anthropomorphism
shows some correlation with personal commitment and community
improvement, the amount of variation explained remains relatively small.
Additionally, even though a co-relation does exist, an examination of the
questions from each dimension shows the constructs being measured
to be very different. This research was limited as customers of only one
company in one city were surveyed.

8.5 David, Phillips. Towards relationship management: Public

relations at the core of organizational development. Journal of
Communication Management 10.2 (2006): 211-226.

The purpose of this paper is to outline concepts that explore and

extend the significance of public relations as a relationship management
discipline.

The paper postulates practice through which value is created to meet

organisational objectives from the known or latent potential of tangible and

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intangible assets. In doing so, a definition and early research findings into
the nature of relationships is put forward and a definition of organisations
as the nexus of relationships is proposed. The differentiation between
organisational and interpersonal relationships is explored through a
concept that organisations’ tangible and intangible tokens are limited by
a concept of materiality in a cultural setting.

The paper posits that material value is released through a process

of relationship change and a public relations practice of relationship
management is put forward as a management discipline that can create
value when the process of relationship management acting on material
tokens is deployed.

The paper explores how Public Relations is an agent for changing the
value of organizations.

8.6 Choi, Jounghwa and Yoonhyeung Choi. Behavioral

dimensions of public relations leadership in organizations. Journal
of Communication Management 13.4 (2009): 292-309.

The evolution of public relations into a management function has

brought the importance of leadership to the forefront of professional
discussion. This study aims to identify and develop a measure of behavioral
dimensions critical to effective public relations for organization-wide
public relations leadership.

Using a national survey of Public Relations Society of America

(PRSA) members (n=159), a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA)
was conducted on the seven theoretically-driven leadership behaviors:
upward influence, coordinating, internal monitoring, networking,

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representing, providing vision and acting as a change agent.

The results suggest that the measurement model had a good internal
and global fit. CFA results supported the seven-factor model over the
one-factor model, suggesting that public relations leadership is multi-
dimensional. Among the behaviors, “providing vision” and “acting as a
change agent” were those most strongly associated with the value of public
relations in an organization.The study shows that understanding public
relations leadership from an organization-wide perspective opens up a
whole new avenue for future research to strengthen public relations as a
management function. The present study also provides public relations
managers with valuable insight concerning the leadership behaviors
they can exercise to contribute to the value of public relations in their
organizations.

8.7 Lading Hum, John, A. and D. Brwain Stephen. Relationship

management in public relation: Dimensions of an organization-
Public relationship. Public Relation Review 24.1(1998): 55-56.

As per this study, increasingly, scholars and practitioners are

defining public relations as relationship management. The research
study is an attempt to identify through qualitative research and verify
through quantitative research relationship dimensions upon which
good organization-public relationships are initiated, developed and
maintained.

The respondents for this study were local telephone subscribers who
resided in territories that were recently opened to competition for local
telephone service. A total of 384 respondents were surveyed.

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 The hypotheses developed as a result of the review of literature and
the qualitative research are presented below: Hl: The organization-public
relationship dimensions of openness, trust, involvement, commitment, and
investment will differentiate staying, leaving and undecided consumers.
H2: The organization-public relationship dimensions of openness, trust,
involvement, commitment, and investment can be used to predict which
subscribers will stay, leave, or are undecided. H3: The organization-public
relationship mean scores of stayers will be highest of the stayers, leavers,
and undecideds. The organization-public relationship mean scores of
undecided will be in the middle, and the mean scores of leavers will be
the lowest.

The results indicate that the relationship dimensions of trust, openness,

involvement, investment, and commitment in an organization–public
relationship differentiated those respondents who indicated they would
stay with the current provider, would sign up with a new provider, or were
undecided as to what they would do. Overall, the result of the research
suggests a significant role for public relations within the broader scope
of corporate strategic planning. Conclusions as to the impact of public
relations as relationship management are offered, as well as suggestions
for future areas of research.

8.8 Hung, Hung-Chia. The Effect of Brand Image on Public

Relations Perceptions and Customer Loyalty. International Journal
of Management 25.2 (2008):237-241.

The present study seeks to contribute to the development of a conceptual

framework that integrates customer perceived public relations, brand
image and customer loyalty. The purpose of this study are (1) to analyze

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the relationship between the practice of public relations and brand image
(2) to analyze the relationship between brand customer loyalty, and (3) to
assess the mediating effect of brand image in public relations perception
[PRP] and customer loyalty.

Empirical findings of the study are based on a survey of 367 consumers

with insurance experience in the Taiwan region.

In the first research problem, the study finds that public relations
perception poses favorable influence on customers associated with brand
image. Empirical results indicate that the higher the consumer’s perception
of public relations, the more favorable the brand image is. Empirical
results of this study also show that company’s dedication in the practice
of public relations is worthwhile because the result of public relations is
beneficial toward enhancing brand image.

In the second problem, the study discovers that favorable brand

image can enhance customer loyalty. Result indicates that the higher the
favorable brand image, the higher the customer loyalty.

In the third research problem, customers with positive perception of

public relations are more likely to have favorable brand image, in turn,
those with more favorable brand image should be more satisfied with
the firm and willing to repurchase and recommend. In consequence,
public relations are more likely to be successful when the brand image is
reinforced by effective marketing communications.

In order to build favourable brand image that facilitates the desirable

outcome, it is essential first to identify the target customer and then to
design and develop a suitable mutual beneficial programs, so the public
relations effort can be recognized by the customer and further enhance

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positive brand image and desirable outcome. In summary these results
suggest that effectively managed public relations activities are important,
because it can help the company compare favourably against competitors
and increase competitive advantage.

8.9 Yang, Sung-Un. An Integrated Model for Organization-

Public Relational Outcomes, Organizational Reputation and their
Antecedents. Journal of Public Relations Research 19. 2 (2007): 91-121.

The purpose of this study was to integrate the concepts of

“organization- public relationships” and ‘organizational reputation’ in a
theoretical model derived from multidisciplinary literature. This study
proposed that organization-public relational outcomes are hypothesized
to influence organizational reputation, considering the exogenous
influence of communication behaviours, experience, and familiarity that
the research participants hold of the organizations studied. The proposed
model illustrated tenable data-model fits and most of the hypothesis were
statistically supported.

To test this model, a survey with the residents of a South Korean city
was quota-sampled in age and sex on the basis of approximate proportion
from the South Korean Census of Population. This study selected different
types of organizations to cross-validate the proposed model.

Questionnaires were administered in person to participants until the

desired sample size was N-300 for each organization studied was obtained
from the large population. The key findings of the research were that
across all organizations studied; organization- public relational outcomes
were associated positively with favorable reputation of the organizations
studied in a significant manner. Limitations and suggestions for the future
research were also discussed.

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 8.10 Hon, Linda Childers. Demonstrating Effectiveness in Public
Relations: Goals, Objectives and Evaluation. Journal of Public
Relations Research 10. 2 (1998):103-135

The purpose of this research was to explore issues surrounding goals,

objectives, and evaluation in public relations. The ultimate intent was a
better understanding of the opportunities and constraints practitioners
face in demonstrating the value of public relations. This study is a follow-
up to earlier research (Hon, 1997) that explored practitioners and CEO’S
definitions of effectiveness in public relations and their perceptions of the
value public relations brings to clients and organizations.

The assumption found in public relations literature is that goals are

general guidelines or a framework for the public relations department,
whereas objectives are the specific outcomes desired from programs.

Research questions were investigated through in-depth, non-directed

interviews with 32 public relations practitioners and 10 other executives. A
qualitative method was chosen to provide the opportunity for respondents
to discuss research topics from their point of view.

Practitioners said that goals reflect the priorities of their institution

whereas the CEOs believed public relations ultimate aim is communicating
the image of the organization. Responses showed many practitioners
conduct informal evaluation, whereas only a few conduct formal evaluation
of the value of public relations. However, the research suggests that
public relations planning and evaluation are becoming more systematic
but are still constrained by lack of resources and difficulty. It also suggests
that measuring the outcomes of public relations programs provides data
needed to demonstrate that public relation helps organizations and the
clients meet their performance goals.

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 8.11 Wright, Donald K. Perception of Corporate Communication
as Public Relations. Corporate Communications: An International
Journal 2.4 (1997):143-154.

The basic purpose of this research was an attempt to determine or

was designed specifically to discover what corporate executives, from
fields other than public relations and corporate communication like
accounting, legal and administration think about the public relations
function in four major corporations. This was a mail questionnaire study
of corporate managers and executives in these four major corporations.
Analysis included frequency and mean tests plus factor analysis. Results
suggest these managers and executives consider the public relations
function to be significantly important to their organization. However,
most of those surveyed do not know what the public relations function
in their organization is or does. Respondents (n=423) ranked external
communication activities to be considerably more important than internal
communication. Technical public relations skills were also considered
more necessary than public relations management abilities. Few thought
corporate communication or public relations people needed to be involved
in strategic planning or organizational decision making.

8.12 Graeme David, Sterne. Business Perceptions of Public

Relations in New Zealand. Journal of Communication Management
12.1(2008):30-50.

This research aims to describe business perceptions of public relations

(PR) in New Zealand. It also intends to provide insights which will assist the
Public Relations Institute of New Zealand (PRINZ) to achieve its mission
“to promote PR as a reputable, dynamic profession”. Senior managers
from 28 of New Zealand’s top 200 companies completed a questionnaire
and participated in a 45-minute interview to explore definitions of PR and

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its place in their organisations. A symbolic interactionist methodology
was utilised to analyse the findings. The study finds that CEOs had a low
opinion of public relations practitioners and found that PR consultancies
are not delivering value for money. The study also finds that PR
practitioners need to adjust to the new demand for transparent and speedy
communication as priorities have shifted from gaining media coverage to
strategic communication. Senior Practitioners had an aversion to term
‘Public Relations’ and preferred the term ‘communication’ ‘Corporate
Affairs’ or ‘Public Affairs’. They also saw reputation management as
best conducted by themselves rather than a consultancy - except in a
crisis. A clear distinction was made between PR (consultancy based)
and corporate communication (in-house). Communications managers
distanced themselves from PR, claiming instead to offer integrity-based,
transparent communication. Marketers saw PR as serving marketing.

Despite a very good response rate (66.7 per cent) the base was
uneven in terms of geographic spread and category of organisation.
This study did not extend to the public sector that employs a number
of PR practitioners in New Zealand especially in Wellington. The main
recommendations are that Communication is definitely part of senior
management decision making in New Zealand but PR and communication
practitioners need to demonstrate their value if they want to participate
at this level. Public Relations in New Zealand can assist the promotion of
PR by professionalising the practitioners and by influencing the training
of the increasing number of PR graduates who are being introduced to the
industry. As no such study has been completed in New Zealand, this study
provides a comparison with UK, US and European studies of business
perceptions of public relations. This study aligns with the Murray and

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White study of CEO views of reputation management in that it gathers
data from senior management.

8.13 Ki, Jung-Eyun. A Measure of Relationship Cultivation

Strategies. Journal of Public Relations Research 21.1 (2009): 1-24.

The primary purpose of this research is to construct the means of

measuring relationship cultivation strategies. Measures of relationship
cultivation were developed based on suggestion. Although the focus of this
study is the member public, the ultimate goal was to develop an instrument
that provides a basic skeleton for each of the six (access, positivity,
openness, sharing of task, networking and assurances) relationship
cultivation strategy dimensions as these as per study can produce better
relationship quality outcomes (e.g. control mutuality, satisfaction, trust
and commitment). This research was designed to develop multiple item
measures of relationship cultivation strategies that meet standards for
reliability and validity.

To conduct this research survey method was used and in questionnaire

several demographic items (such as-gender, age, ethnicity, etc.) included.
Total 249 respondents were selected in the sample.

The results of this research demonstrated that all six dimensions were
viable constructs for measuring relationship cultivation strategies.

This study was limited to developing measures for relationship

cultivation strategies only.

The developed measures can help public relations professionals better

understand how to measure and sustain relationship with their target
public.

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 8.14 Hutton, James G. Reputation Management: The New Face of
Corporate Public Relations? Public Relations Review 27.3 (2001):
247- 261.

For the study on reputation management: the new face of corporate

public relations, the authors were enlisted by the Council of Public Relations
Firms, with the endorsement of the Arthur Page Society, to conduct a study
focusing primarily on the relationship between corporations’ reputations
and the companies’ spending on corporate communication activities.

As part of the study, the authors collected and analyzed some basic data
concerning the corporations’ communication departments, department
management, budgets, staffing and use of outside vendors. The sampling
frame for the study was Fortune 500 companies. The original survey was
mailed with a cover letter. Respondents were informed that their responses
were confidential and that no specific answers to questions would be
seen by the Council of Public Relations Firms, the Arthur Page Society
or anyone other than the principal researchers. Three follow-up waves of
communication were administered: a postcard reminder, a second survey
form and a phone call. Of the original 619 potential respondents on the list,
approximately 20 were eliminated from the sample for a variety of reasons.
Seventy two of the approximately 600 remaining surveys were completed
and returned, a response rate of 12%. This study suggests that “reputation
management” is gaining ground as a driving philosophy behind corporate
public relations. While the study did not find a strong correlation between
reputation and overall spending on corporate communication activities, as
had a similar study the prior year, it did find some interesting correlations
between reputation and specific categories of spending.

As per the study in looking to the future, those who advocate reputation

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management as a guiding philosophy of corporate communications need
to address some very hard questions raised by the current study.

• Can reputation be “managed,” in a traditional business sense? If

so, how much control do corporate communication departments
have over reputation, relative to other corporate activities?

• If “reputation management” is to be the guiding philosophy of

many large corporations, how should it be measured?

• Is reputation the most relevant concept, from a management

perspective?

• How central is reputation to the larger issue of accomplishing

organizational goals?

• Under what circumstances should reputation management be the

guiding philosophy of an organization or agency?

• In the final analysis, is reputation management really the most

appropriate guiding philosophy for the field of public relations?

8.15 Sriramesh, Krishnamurthy. The model of Public Relations in

India. Journal of Communication Management 4.3 (1999): 225-239.

The purpose of this paper is to use Grunig’s models of public relations

to explore the nature of public relations in a sample of four types of
organizations in India. The study began with the purpose of identifying
the nature of public relations practice in India based on a theoretical
framework.

A sample of 18 organizations was studied for this analysis. This sample

consisted of nine private corporations, seven public sector enterprises,
a government agency and a non-profit organization. This study used a

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combination of survey research and ethnographic analysis, rarely used in
public Relations research. The findings of this study, revealed important
information on the nature of public relations in India and also indicated
scope for further research. This study also indicates that, regardless of
the size or type of ownership of the organization, most of the public
relations professionals practiced, apart from Gruning’s model, what can
be called the personal influence model in representing the interests of
their organizations.

Public relations role and media choice : In this study a survey was
conducted to examine the relationship between public relations roles
and media choice based on the integration of public relations theory and
media richness theory.

Respondents were identified as either public relations managers or

technicians using confirmatory factor analysis, corroborating previous
research.

For the survey a mail questionnaire was pretested with 47 respondents.

The actual mailing included 793 questionnaires. The response rate
was 34%.

In this research the researcher formulated two basic hypothesis and

the result was discussed within.

The first hypothesis that “public relations managers will report

spending more time communicating with oral communication channels
than technicians”, was supported. The mean percentage of time that
managers estimated spending on face to face and telephone communication
activities combined was 41.91. For technicians, the mean percentage was
34.07. Managers estimated a larger percentage of time for face to face

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communication specifically than technicians.

The second hypothesis, “public relations technicians will report

spending more time communicating with traditional written channels
(letters, memos, news releases) than managers” was also supported.
The estimated percentage of time on normal, non-e-mail communication
averaged 45.19 for technicians and 36.88 for managers. The final
research question was “To whom do public relations people use e-mail
to communicate with most often “74% ranked co-workers, 18% ranked
clients and 4% media and the rest were miscellaneous. Results show
that there are no significant differences in terms of spending more time
communicating on the phone or via e-mail by managers and technicians.

8.16 Huang, Hui-Yi. Values of Public Relations: Effects on

Organization- Public Relationships Mediating Conflict Resolution.
Journal of Public Relations Research 13.4 (2001): 265-301.

This study identified two important measures of public relations

effects i.e., organization-public relationships and conflict resolution and
investigated how they functionally related to public relations strategies.
The research hypothesis posited that the effect of public relations strategies
on conflict resolution were mediated by organization–public relationships.
Two survey data sets were used and incorporated to derive possible
answers for the proposed research hypothesis and research question. In 1st
data set consisted of 301 was used as a starting point for investigating the
complex relationships among variables. The second data set consisting of
235 was tested and replication procedures were adopted to further cross-
validate the results obtained from the 1st study. The results supported the
research hypothesis positing that the effect of public relations on conflict

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resolution is mediated by organization-public relationships. Theoretically
this study makes evident the value of public relations in term of relationship
management and conflict resolution. On a pragmatic level, the results
of study, as claimed, may serve to benefit public relations practitioners’
interested in generating favorable relationships and resolving conflict
with their publics in general and conducting international business in far
Eastern countries in particular.

8.17 Heinonen, K. The role of Digital Service Encounters Customers’

Perceptions of Companies Journal of Electronic Commerce in
Organizations 6.2 (2008):1-10.

As per this research, the service encounter occurs whenever a

customer interacts with a company personally or through technology,
for example, the Internet, e-mail or telephone. Nowadays, customers
frequently initiate the encounter as, for example, enquiries, information
searches and complaints are conveniently performed online. This article
explores the role of digital service encounters on customer perceptions
of companies. Digital service encounters in this research denote remote
customer-company interactions via the Internet or e-mail. The focus is on
active customers initiating interactions and on customer perceptions of
company responses to these interactions. A conceptual framework that
captures customer perceived service encounter value on two dimensions
(responsiveness and personalization) is proposed. An empirical study
exploring the value of company responses to digital contacts indicated
that many contacts are responded to promptly and satisfyingly. However,
there are also significant differences in the value of the service encounter.
Some service encounters are perceived as impersonalized, and some are
even left without response.

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 8.18 Vilma, Luoma-aho. Sector reputation and public organizations.
International Journal of Public Sector Management 21 .5 (2008):
446 – 467.

As per the study, Economic pressures and rising stakeholder

expectations have led public sector organizations to measure their
reputation. Therefor the research aims to highlight the importance of
reputation for the public sector, define sector reputation and report
findings on a quantitative study of sector reputations of four different types
of Finnish public sector organizations. Inspired by stakeholder theory and
the value of organizational reputation, a quantitative survey of stakeholder
assessments on reputation was carried out in the 12 organizations from
the field of the Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health in 2003. The
organizations represented four sectors: research, authority-functions,
semi-commercial functions and legislation. Survey data were first analyzed
with factor analysis to form five reputational factors for public sector
organizations. Further analyses were carried out to compare differences
between the organizational types and groups of stakeholders (analysis
of variance) and to define the part of the different stakeholders (cluster
analysis) for sector reputation. The paper distinguishes between two major
sector reputations: flexible and bureaucratic public sector organizations.
Those organizations with more traditional functions (legislation and
authority functions) are by reputation labeled bureaucratic, whereas those
with more modern functions (research and semi-commercial functions)
are by reputation more flexible. These findings give insight into the
strengths and weaknesses in the reputation of different types of public
sector organizations and hence contribute to the body of literature on
strategic management of public sector organizations.

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 The study has noted certain limitations. These are : “Though the
concept of sector reputation is universal, the contents of sector reputations
are culturally bound. The study was conducted on Finnish public
sector organizations, so the results could best be generalized to other
Nordic countries. Moreover, reputation is an artificial concept based on
stakeholder assessments and perceptions, and does not measure reality
as such, though it is associated with stakeholder behavior.” The results
of the paper point toward rather stable, yet specific sector reputations.
Knowing the reputation strengths and weaknesses of each type of public
sector organization provides a deeper understanding of how stakeholders
perceive different types of organizations and hence enables suitable
allocation of public resources.

The study, as claimed, will contribute to both theory and practice by

addressing the concept of reputation for public sector organizations as
well as providing new results on sector reputation. The study thus will
be of interest to those searching for ways to measure the effectiveness of
public sector organizations as well as to those interested in stakeholder
relations and strategic management.

8.19 Campbell, E.F. Contradictions in Reputation Management.

Journal of Communication Management 10.2 (2009): 191-196.

As per this paper, “Reputation management” is widely used

as a rationale for public relations, although the public relations
practice has problems with its own reputation. Public relations is
presented in textbooks as a mature management discipline, yet the term
“public relations” is rejected by many practitioners and academics.
“Reputation management” may have been introduced to counter negative

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associations and to gain status for the practice. The purpose of this paper
is to use critical theory to question the ideas and assumptions underlying
“reputation management” and to examine contradictions within the
term.

The paper reviews what this theory has to say about public relations
and its claim to be a mature management discipline. It examines how
public relations practitioners explain their role to internal and external
publics. An initial findings review suggests that the contradictions within
“reputation management” mirror contradictions within public relations
practice. The paper encourages debate in the public relations field.

8.20 Klement, Podnar. Economic Perspectives on Public Relations.

Public Relations Review 35 (2009):340–345.

This paper explores the relationship between economic theory and

public relations, in order to explain how public relations management
contributes to companies’ overall economic gains. It uses a “blend” of
economic theories to explain the role and contribution of public relations
from the economic point of view. The paper sees a link between the
strategic management of public relations as a function, and portions of
neoclassical theory, as well as to alternative economic approaches relating
to investments and transaction costs.

8.21 Hong, Yeon Soo. and Sung – Un Yang. Effects of Reputation,

Relational Satisfaction, and Customer- Company Identification on
Positive Word- of–Mouth Intentions. Journal of Public Relations
Research 21.4 (2009):381-403.

This study develops and tests models of customer’s positive word-

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of mouth (WOM) intentions. Specially, this study examines the effects
of organizational reputation and relational satisfaction on customer’s
positive WOM intensions and the critical mediation role of customer
company identification in such effects.

For survey sample of Starbucks and Apple, college students were

selected as a key public. The researchers recruited 588 students, based
on availability. Among them 416 participants answered the survey – an
approximately 71% response.

The proposed models illustrate tenable data-model fits, and the

results indicate that organizational reputation and relational satisfaction
predict customer’s positive WOM intensions. More important, customer
company identification mediates the influence of organizational reputation
on positive WOM intentions. The finding of this study suggest that, to
promote customer’s positive WOM intensions, companies need to obtain
a favorable reputation held by customers and cultivate a satisfactory
relationship with customers, while fostering company identification.

8.22 Bruning, Stephen D. Paul A. De Miglio and Kristen Embry.

Mutual Benefit as Outcome indicator: Factors Influencing perceptions
of benefit in organization–public relationships. Public Relations
Review 32.1 (2006): 33-40.

The purpose of this investigation was to determine (a) if a quantitative

link exists between respondent perception of benefit and traditional
organizational outcomes such as satisfaction and behavioral intent, and
(b) the factors / variables that positively affect respondent perceptions of
benefit.

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 Additionally, the research also sought to quantify the link between
respondent perception of benefit and traditional organizational outcomes
such as satisfaction and behavioral intent.

In this study the two hypotheses examine:

H1 Respondents who indicate they would continue living in the city

are more likely to feel they have benefited from their association with that
city.

H2 Respondents who report that living in the city has exceeded their
expectations are more likely to report that they have benefited from their
association with that city.

In order to examine the issue of mutual benefit, the author surveyed

a public that had an ongoing relationship with an organization. Data
collection took place using a mailed survey technique. The city water
department supplied the population of 7216 resident addresses because
all residences in the city receive water from the department. A systematic
sampling strategy with a random start determined those residences
included in the sample. Eight-hundred surveys were mailed with 226
(28%) returned.

The results from this investigation illustrate that mutual benefit (a)
provides a competitive advantage (b) is influenced heavily by respondent
organization–public relationship perceptions, and (c) is an outcome
that is specific, measurable and unique to public relations. Relationship
building activities can help the organization compare favorably and
provide a competitive organizational advantage. The results, however,
suggest that effectively managed relationships are an important input into

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the benefit ‘equation’ and can contribute meaningfully in a competitive
environment.

These results also suggest, however, that strategically cultivating city–

citizen relationships can provide an extremely cost-effective technique for
enhancing resident experience. Building trust, helping residents recognize
that the city is working to improve the community for residents, and
supporting events that are of interest to and fulfill the needs of residents
all are specific actions that public relations managers can undertake in
order to enhance the city–resident relationship.

8.23 Michael, Hargis and Watt John D. Organizational Perception

Management: A Framework to Overcome Crisis Events.
Organizational Development Journal (2010).

In this paper Michael and John discussed that crisis events can threaten
organizations through each stage of their life cycle. The research suggests
that crises are happening more regularly and across a wider range of issues.
Thus, it is important to understand the steps that organizations can take
to mitigate loss in image due to crisis events, as well as speed recovery
efforts. This paper examines how perception management can influence
the speed and degree to which an organization recovers from a crisis.
The research highlights two cases to demonstrate the inter relationship
between crisis management and perception management.

Additionally, the research paper presents a framework to guide

business leaders through the use of perception management within a
crisis context.

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 8.24 Moss, Danny, Gary Warnaby and Louise Thame. Tactical
Publicity or Strategic Relationship Management? An exploratory
investigation of the role of public relations in the UK retail sector.
Journal of Consumer Marketing 30.12 (1996): 69-84.

The purpose of this research paper is to examine the role of public

relations within the UK retail sector and to determine whether retailers
use public relations strategically - as a means of managing their
relationships with key stakeholder publics – rather than treating it simply
as a tactical publicity function. The study comprised a series of semi-
structured interviews with senior managers drawn from a small sample
of UK retailers indicative of the different types of retail institutions within
the UK. The main characteristics of the public relations functions were
analyzed and compared with those associated with each of the four
models of public relations identified by Grunig and Hunt. The study has
found considerable differences in the role assigned to public relations
and in the way in which the public relations is practiced among retail
organisations. The data analysis has highlighted a strong emphasis on
the use of public relations as a tactical marketing support activity by retail
organisations. Only limited evidence was found of PR being consulted
for corporate / business strategies but in two of the retailers studied the
role extending beyond simple supporting sales in retailers corporate and
business strategies. This research does not allow to generalize about the
nature of public relations practice in the UK retail sector as a whole even
though, it has highlighted a strong emphasis on the use of public relations
as a tactical marketing support activity (to generate product publicity) by
retail organizations.

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 8.25 Kent, Michael L. and Maureen Taylor. Toward a Dialogic Theory
of Public Relations. Public Relations Review 28 (2002): 21–37.

This essay clarifies the concept of dialogue in public relations. As

public relations theory and research move toward a two-way relational
communication model, many scholars and practitioners are increasingly
using the terms “dialogic” and “dialogue” to describe ethical and practical
approaches to public relations. The concept of dialogue is deeply rooted
in philosophy and relational communication theory. Its inclusion in the
public relations vocabulary is an important step toward understanding
how organizations can build relationships that serve both organizational
and public interests. This essay traces the roots of dialogue and identifies
several over arching tenets, and provides 3 ways that organizations
can incorporate dialogue into their communications with publics. The
majority of this article has focused on describing dialogue in general, and
explaining how dialogue might be incorporated into everyday public
relations practice. There is also the criticism that a dialogic approach can
be easily exploited by one group or the other. That is, when publics engage
in “dialogue” with organizations they run the risk that their disclosures
will be used to exploit or manipulate them. A final criticism of dialogue is
that dialogue is often called “more ethical” but no “evidence” claim.

There are no easy answers to how to implement dialogic systems in

organizations. Dialogue is a complex and multifarious process. Before
dialogic systems can be implemented on the organizational level, however,
a framework for thinking about dialogue is necessary. This article has
provided that beginning framework with five dialogic tenets: mutuality,
empathy, propinquity, risk and commitment. Taking the discussion of
dialogue from the theoretical to the pragmatic, this article also describes

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three approaches useful for creating dialogic communication systems.
In order to bring dialogue to the attention of organizations interested in
fostering more effective communication systems, scholars and practitioners
must be able to provide concrete structures- not just idealize descriptions
of humane communication.

8.26 Hogg, Gillian. Practitioner Roles in Public Relations. European

Journal of Marketing 33.5/6 (1999):597-611.

This research paper considered the various roles that public relations
practitioners play and the implications of those roles for the status of public
relations within the organisation. Within the context of local authorities in
Scotland, considering the organisational constraints within which public
relations practitioners operate and the extent to which the practitioner’s
role is affected by the expectations of those within the organisation
responsible for determining public relations policy.

The purpose of this research is to investigate role prescriptions

and their associated behaviours by exploring practitioner and client
perceptions of the roles played by public relations practitioners in local
government. In particular the research addresses whether higher level
management perceives the same role for the public relations practitioner
as the practitioner does.

In order to complete the research, a two stage methodology was

adopted. In the first instance data were collected using in-depth interviews
with focus groups, which was distributed to all local authorities in
Scotland. In the second stage, a random questionnaire was sent to the
person responsible for public relations. The results indicate that chief
executives and politicians have very definite perceptions of public relations

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and expectations of practitioners and that even practitioners themselves
have a limited view of the role that public relations can play in decision
making within local authorities. This implies that they are not, nor likely
to be, part of the dominant coalition, with consequent implications for the
development of excellence in public relations. This study is the empirical
manifestation of a new direction in public relations roles research, one
which takes a wider look at the organisational and intrapersonal factors
which directly influence day-to-day public relations practice. Exposing
and exploring the complexity of role episodes, this type of research
yields a grounded basis for achieving a positive change in the nature of
organisational roles enacted by practitioners in the future.

8.27 Khodarahmi, Ehsan. Media relations. Disaster Prevention and

Management 18.5 (2009): 535-540.

The purpose of this paper is to identify all important aspects of media

relations researched by others and write a succinct literature review in
order to facilitate the data gathering procedure for future research in the
field. Reliable references are quoted to fulfill the purpose of this paper. As
per the review many small to medium-sized businesses and organisations
do not actually plan for their media relations and have limited knowledge
of the concept. However larger organisations and conglomerates have a
good understanding of media relations and use it as a powerful PR tool.
Just a few of them integrate their media relations with other components
of PR and this can allow some speculations.

As per the review, Media relations should not be used when issues and
crises rise; it is essential to have constant liaison with top media owners
in order to be informed about what is going on in the market. This allows

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adopting / changing strategies when needed in order to earn more public
trust, as well as proactively identifying potential issues. Such flexibility
and relationship with the media helps businesses to hinder potential issues
from being turned to any kind of situation, which may harm own brands
and publicity. Therefore customers feel valued and the government trusts
that particular business activity, because it is in favour with the society.
Hence it gives invaluable credit to the business of the company.

8.28 Shaw, Thomasena and Cadance White. Buyer’s Perspectives

of Four-seller Relationship Development. Industrial Marketing
Management 39.2 (2010): 252-263.

The present study draws on interaction / network theory to test a model

examining the interaction mechanisms and relationship characteristics of
buyer-seller relationships during four progressive phases of relationship
development.

Data from 174 members of the institute for supply management offer
empirical support for the associations proposed in the model, as well as
same surprising results. One of the most useful findings of the research
is that the patterns of these associations vary as buyer-seller relationships
progress through the four phases of relationship development specially:
in the awareness phase joint problem solving increases buyer uncertainty;
in the exploration phase communication quality and joint problem solving
increase relationship specific investments and in expansion phase, joint
problem solving increases relation specific investments and severe conflict
resolution increases buyers uncertainly. Seller reputation moderates
many of these relationships. The major conclusion of the research is
that buyers and sellers should recognize that information exchange and

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conflict resolution are important aspects of buyer-seller relationship
characteristics. Managerial implications of these findings and further
research ideas are presented in the study.

8.29 Carlos Flavián and Miguel Guinalíu. The Influence of

Corporate Image on Consumer Trust: A comparative analysis in
traditional versus internet banking”, Internet Research 15.4(2005):
447- 470.

Purpose of this paper is to analyze the relationship between

corporate image and consumer trust in the context of financial services
distribution.

This paper analyzes the causal relationship that exists between

corporate image and consumer trust in the financial services distribution
through traditional channels, as well as over the internet. This paper also
analyzes the moderating effect of relationship duration on the influence
of corporate image on trust. The results obtained show that in distribution
through traditional channels no significant differences exist in the intensity
of the effect of the image on trust in terms of the relationship duration.
Nevertheless, significant differences in the financial services distribution
over the Internet have been observed. The significant influence that
image exerts on consumer trust shows us that corporate image becomes
a key tool for the management of trust in financial services distribution.
Despite the importance that researchers have assigned to the variables of
corporate image and trust, much of the work so far is in the initial phase
of development. Thus, the majority of the works have been approached
from a fundamentally theoretical perspective, or else the empirical testing
has been carried out in an indirect way, based on factors that form part of

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the image or are related to it. Because of this, today there is no research
that has empirically evaluated the role played by corporate image in the
levels of trust of the consumer of financial services.

8.30 Katharina Wolf.”PR Career Progression – The Gap between

Traditional Research and the UK industry’s Perception”, Journal of
Communication Management 10. 2(2006)147-190.

This article discussed that the public relations research into career
advancement has been frequently criticized for its focus on gender
discrimination and the prevailing dominance of American academics,
while widely ignoring the perception of “industry insiders”. This paper
aims to provide new insight into PR career progression.

The paper considers alternative aspects to PR career progression,

as emphasized by general management and continuous professional
development literature, with a close examination of the UK’s public
relations industry and its practitioners’ perceptions of career advancement
impacting factors. The results gained were used to develop a Five-step PR
Career Progression Model, which may act as a useful starting point for
further research into career advancement factors and the move towards a
widely accepted set of career progression benchmarks for the UK’s public
relations industry. Overall, this paper encourages both PR academics and
practitioners to work closely together on future research projects into
career advancement in order to maximize the potential of the industry as
a whole and improve career chances for individual practitioners.

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 8.31 Terrence L. Warburton and Rod Troester; Three Perspectives
of the Media-Organization Relationship: Media personnel,
corporate spokespersons and CEOs look at the role of the corporate
spokesperson: Journal of Communication Management Volume 1
No.4, 1997, pp. 335-349

In this paper the authors identified the respective perception of

media personnel, corporate spokespersons and CEOs regarding media-
organization relationships. The goal of the study was to provide a descriptive
focus on the spokesperson’s role in routine crises and management
situations. The findings provide a profile of house spokespersons, CEOs
and media and perceive the media organizational relationships. Taken
together, the results clarify the role of the corporate’s spokespersons and its
effect on pubic communication from the organization through the media.
The findings suggested that effective corporate media relations should be
sensitive primarily to the needs and interests of the media i.e. television
and newspapers. Media is seen as most important to the organization’s
message as they address larger and general audiences.

The interesting observation of this study was the differing perceptions

of the three groups of Respondents in respect of the most important
factors contributing to the effective media relations and this difference
in perception leads to overall dissatisfaction which the CEOs might have
with the media relations.

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 8.32 Gruning, E. James. “Image and Substance: from Symbolic to
Behavioral Relationships”. Public Relations Review 19 (1993): 121-139.

J. Grunig’s contribution to this body of research focuses around a two

way symmetrical model that envisions public relations as a process of
continual and reciprocal exchange between the organization and its key
publics. This Article by Gruning on Image and Substance takes from the
Gruning’s contribution to the development of relationship management
models and his contribution to this body of research focusing around a
two way symmetric model that envisions public relations as a process
of continual and reciprocal exchange between the organization and its
key publics. It deconstructs the meaning of image as it is used in several
fields of communication and psychology. It suggests that image disguises
the more precise concepts of perception, cognition, attitude and schema,
concepts that identify symbolic objectives for public relations. As per the
Article, organizations must evaluate the contribution of these objectives to
the behavioral relationships with publics if they are to help organizations
to achieve their goals and missions.

The Article also explores the nature of symbolic and behavioral

relationship in public relations. Symbolic and behavioural relations are
inter-coiled - like strands of a rope. What publics think of an organization
is a product of communication as well as of their experience and the
experience of others with the organization. Communication – a symbolic
relationship – can improve a behavioral relationship but a poor behavioral
relationship can destroy attempts to use communication to build a
symbolic relationship or to improve a behavioural relationship. Gruning
also suggests that for public relations to be valued by the organizations it
services, practitioners must focus their efforts upon developing long term

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behavioral relationships between organizations and their key publics,
rather than relying solely upon symbolic activities designed to enhance
organizational image. When organizations focus public relations efforts
on analyses, then they can be used as a means of determining the value of
those organization-public relations.

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