A Five-Year Regional Review of Advertising and Public Relations Education at U.S. Colleges and Universities

Abstract

This study is an investigation of advertising and public relations education over the past five years, presenting a regional analysis using data from the annual research project Where Shall I Go to Study Advertising and Public Relations? The results show the American Midwest, heartland and birthplace of advertising education, holding forth as the major region for advertising preparation. The Southeastern U.S. currently ranks first in public relations enrollment while the Midwest awards more PR degrees. In combined advertising/public relations programs, the Eastern U.S. leads in degrees awarded and student enrollment. Nationwide, all regions have experienced varying degrees of growth, reflecting the increased numbers seen in the national aggregate.     

On automated e‐business negotiations: Goal,policy, strategy,and plans of decision and action

In recent years, there has been increasing interest in automated e‐business negotiations. The automation of negotiation requires a decision model to capture the negotiation knowledge of policymakers and negotiation experts so that the decision‐making process can be carried out automatically. Current research on automated e‐business negotiations has focused on defining low‐level tactics (or negotiation rules) so that automated negotiation systems can carry out automated negotiation processes. These low‐level tactics are usually defined from a technical perspective, not from a business perspective. There is a gap between high‐level business negotiation goals and low‐level tactics. In this article, we distinguish the concepts of negotiation context, negotiation goals, negotiation strategy, and negotiation tactics and introduce a formal decision model to show the relations among these concepts. We show how high‐level negotiation goals can be formally mapped to low‐level tactics that can be used to affect the behavior of a negotiation system during the negotiation process. In business, a business organization faces different negotiation situations (or contexts) and determines different sets of goals for different negotiation contexts. In our decision model, a business policymaker sets negotiation goals from different perspectives, which are called goal dimensions. A negotiation policy is a functional mapping from a negotiation context to some quantitative measures (or goal values) for the goal dimensions to express how competitive the policymaker wants to reach that set of goals. A negotiation expert who has the experience and expertise to conduct negotiations would define the negotiation strategies needed for reaching the negotiation goals. Formally, a negotiation strategy is a functional mapping from a set of goal values to a set of decision‐action rules that implement negotiation tactics. The selected decision‐action rules can then be used to control the execution of an automated negotiation system, which conducts a negotiation on behalf of a business organization.     

Nigerian Business Negotiators: Cultural Characteristics

Abstract

This exploratory study examines cultural characteristics of Nigerian negotiators. There is abundant research evidence that culture affects negotiating styles. As Nigeria constitutes a major market in Africa, knowledge of what behavior to expect from Nigerian negotiators can facilitate the negotiation process.

A questionnaire was administered to 200 Nigerian business men and women of the formal private sector of the economy, who were asked to rate themselves along ten dimensions of factors affected by culture. Responses were analyzed according to gender, age group, occupation and regional group. Statistical tests of significance were carried out.

Results reveal that Nigerians involved in negotiation on behalf of their organizations are likely to be relationship oriented and adopt a win-win approach, although the Yoruba may be less so than other ethnic groups. Nigerians will seek a specific form of agreement and avoid wasting time. They are likely to be moderate in formality and display of emotions. Women are much less likely than men to take high risks. An informal style will be more frequent among negotiators with an engineering background. Most Nigerians below the age of 40 who form part of a negotiating team will expect their leader to make decisions based on team consensus.

People from other countries wanting to do business with Nigerians should familiarize themselves with the way culture is likely to influence the 10 negotiation factors. They will then be better prepared to interpret and understand their counterparts' behavior at the negotiation table, and to communicate effectively.     

Judgment of Ingroups and Outgroups in Intra- and Intercultural Negotiation: The Role of Interdependent Self-Construal in Judgment Timing

Extending the common ingroup identity model (Gaertner et al. 1993, European Reveiw of Social Psycology, Vol. 4, pp. 1–26) and social categorization theory (Turner et al. 1987, Rediscovering the Social Group: A Self-Categorization Theory, Oxford: Basil Blackwell.), the current study investigates when superordinate categorization with an opponent occurs during intra- and intercultural integrative negotiation. I hypothesize that a high level of interdependent self-construal (Markus and Kitayama 1991, Psychological Review, 98, 224–253) is associated with early superordinate categorization with an opponent and favorable judgment of an opponents cultural group before negotiation takes place, whereas a low level of interdependent self-construal shows favorable judgment of an ingroup and outgroup after negotiation is closed. One hundred fourteen participants of the U.S. and the Republic of Korea completed a multi-issue negotiation simulation with integrative potential in either intracultural or intercultural dyads. Results support the hypotheses. I discuss theoretical and practical implications of the sensitivity of interdependent self-construal to social context and fluid boundaries of ingroups and outgroups, and the role of integrative negotiation in improving intergroup relations in globalizing and multicultural organizations and societies.     

Mexico and the United States: Common border,common negotiating orientations

With a growing cadre of people conducting business across the U.S.–Mexico border, there is a need for information about the negotiation orientations they are likely to encounter. While information on negotiating orientations is available, it is often anecdotal, stereotyped, and contradictory. Empirical work that systematically compares Mexico and the United States across a range of negotiating dimensions is scarce. We have clarified, refined, and operationalized 12 negotiation dimensions in a comprehensive conceptual framework proposed over 20 years ago by Weiss and Stripp (1985). Our findings suggest that U.S. and Mexican negotiators may have more in common than they think and that negotiation orientations in both countries may run counter to conventional wisdom. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

工资集体协商对劳资关系气氛的影响

随着我国民营经济的发展,劳资关系由政府部门的行政调控为主转变成市场调节为主,作为一种劳资力量平衡及平等对话的机制,工资集体协商引起了政府、企业和学术界的广泛关注。基于对武汉市部分民营企业的调查,发现实质性工资集体协商可显著提升员工的组织承诺、工会承诺及双组织承诺,与积极劳资关系气氛中度正相关;而形式化工资集体协商显著降低员工的工会承诺及双组织承诺,与消极劳资关系气氛高度正相关;双组织承诺在工资集体协商与劳资关系气氛之间起部分中介作用。     

The Theoretical Ground for Public Relations Practice and Ethics: A Koehnian Analysis

Public relations literature laments the lack of a theoretical base for the practice and ethics of public relations. Drawing primarily upon Koehn (The Ground of Professional Ethics, 1994) and Hutton (Public Relations Review, 1999), this paper proposes such a theoretical ground.The paper adopts Hutton's assertion that "the central organizing theme of public relations theory and practice" is relationships(Hutton, 1999, p. 209). It also relies upon Koehn (1994) to provide a theoretical discussion of the nature of professions, and the ground upon which professional ethics and public trust in the professions are based. It concludes, from a Koehnian perspective, that for public relations to move from the expertise and contractual models of practice into a covenantal model as a profession worthy of public trust, the field must devote itself to a defined human good (relationships), and must be grounded in a public pledge to serve this good.     

The Cultural Dimensions of Negotiation: The Chinese Case

Culture is one of the major components of negotiation and plays an especially crucial role in international relations. The current state of research is presented and discussed. The type of influence of culture is specified and compared with other categories such as strategic behavior and structural determination.Then, referring to the China case, the way culture impacts on the key elements of negotiation such as actors, structures, strategies, process, and outcome is described and analyzed. Lastly, culture's consequences on the negotiator's cognition, beliefs, behaviors and identity are investigated.     

Conflict analysis of the NAFTA negotiations

The 1991–92 negotiations for a North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) are modelled at two points in time during the negotiation process from a Mexican perspective. The first model in February 1992 captures the positions of the parties on several key issues. The second model in April 1992 concentrates on the energy issue, which is of particular importance to Mexico. The formal model provided a framework for structuring the negotiation, and a communications medium for discussing and recording it. The analyses were fairly accurate as predictors of events and could have been effective in giving advice to the negotiations.     

Solidarity,Entrepreneurship and Hard Times

Abstract

This paper examines the commercial relationship between Cuba and Mexico in the 1990s. Recent investment and trade are analyzed in the context of the diplomatic and commercial history which has developed between the two countries since the Cuban revolution. This study also considers factors that have led to a decrease of Mexican trade and investment in Cuba in the late 1990s.     

Negotiation protocol based on ordered weighted averaging and Fuzzy metrics

ABSTRACT

Negotiation Support Systems are used to exchange offers and to improve the negotiation process. Some methods are based on perspectives like heuristics in order to bring the negotiation protocol gradually closer to reality. These approaches can be important in real negotiation as they can help to improve skillsespecially in distributive bargaining. This paper proposes a Negotiation Support framework to provide the negotiator with recommendations on making decisions in a negotiation process. To input this idea into negotiation protocols, this paper suggests that some concepts based on OWA (Ordered Weighted Averaging) and some of its metrics (Orness, Dispersion) be included in the heuristics of a structured negotiation schedule. It is expected that the support provided will aid the negotiator to make decisions during the negotiation process, to learn from the elicitation and his own behavior the results obtained can help the negotiator improving his skills in the negotiation process.     

2008年我国公共关系专业教育与学术研究报告

本文是对2008年我国公共关系专业教育与公共关系学术研究这两部分内容进行综合性梳理的概述。2008年国内设置公关本科专业的高校已有14所,设置公关硕士学位点的高校已达18所,设置公关博士学位点的高校也有5所;而2008年国内出版的公关著作超过86部,发表的公关论文多达490多篇。危机公关、企业公关、政府公关、媒体公关、高校公关、奥运公关、司法公关、赈灾公关、图书馆公关等是2008年公关学术研究领域所关注的9大主题。     

Avow or Avoid?

Abstract

Sixteen press releases from Enron and 16 releases from WorldCom representing the first three months of each organization's financial crises were gathered from the organization's web sites. The goal of this study was to determine whether the dominant public communication tactic of these companies was to avow or promote frankness, a traditional public relations stance, or to avoid or be evasive, a traditional legal stance. The releases were compared with 47 published accounts of the unfolding financial crises to determine whether the organizational messages remained intact. The findings show no dominant communication strategy in either company. Both professed openness but engaged in blame shifting. The combined message strategy suggests cooperation between legal and public relations counsel. The messages of both organizations were successfully transmitted via the mass media but were tempered by solid reporting. These findings suggest additional evidence that legal and public relations crisis communication strategies are starting to blur.     

The Impact of Social Marketing on Social Engineering in Economic Restructuring

SUMMARY

Social Marketing is a rapidly growing marketing sub-discipline based on the premise that bringing successful commercial marketing technologies to bear on problems of individual and social welfare can generate positive outcomes. This paper gives an overview of recent developments in Social Marketing in a global context and discusses the relationship of these developments to those in commercial, not-for-profit or third sector and public sector marketing, and public relations. The paper then relates the global context back to developments in Australasian and Asian nations, with particular reference to social engineering during economic restructuring.     

Crisis in the College/University Relationship with the Community

Abstract

Crises can arise in relationships between colleges and universities and their surrounding communities especially when campuses need to grow. If these institutions have focused strictly on sending their messages out rather than establishing two-way communication with important publics, they may suddenly find themselves embroiled in conflict and confronted with a crisis. Colleges and universities must rethink and restructure their communication and public relations function to include two-way communication and community engagement as a means of avoiding certain crisis situations.     

Identifying the Communication,Behaviors, and Interaction Patterns of Agency-Client Relationships in Development and Decline

Abstract

Leichty and Springston (1993) suggest that “if the relationship management metaphor is to be taken seriously, we need to develop a theory of how relationships between organizations and publics develop, change, and are maintained” (p. 334). The current investigation is a response to that challenge by suggesting a theoretical grounding, drawn from Knapp and Vangelisti's (1996) interaction stages research, for describing how agency-client relationships are initiated, developed, maintained, and deteriorate. The research was conducted with 25 account executives of a medium-sized mid-western public relations agency. The participants provided examples of communication, behaviors, and interaction patterns that are experienced when agencies and clients initiate, develop, maintain, deteriorate, and terminate relationships. A total of five phases of organization-public relationship development and five phases of organization-public relationship decline are reported. The paper concludes with a discussion of the role that relationship management should play in the study and practice of public relations.     

Finding Milton Wright

Abstract

This research project uses a case study to deconstruct public relations campaigns conducted by disaster relief organizations following the presidentially declared disaster for flooding in Kentucky in the spring of 2003. It is an attempt to show how public relations campaigns are a part of the social construction of disaster. It explores the resulting cultural product of public relations texts and how older populations are directly impacted by institutional values regarding trauma and disasters. It indicates that the origin of trauma for elderly people after disasters does not seem to come from the flood, but from an inability to change the vulnerabilities that come with advanced age, or the sense of social isolation felt from lack of communication on the part of a social support network and disaster relief agencies.     

Children and Government Propaganda

Abstract

Around the world “public relations” is confused with “propaganda.” Although “propaganda” has negative connotations today, the authors examine the history of propaganda studies, which is tied to the government-sponsored study of communication. Then they offer a recent example of how the U.S. government used children as messengers of propaganda. By abandoning our prejudices against propaganda, the authors argue we can reconnect public relations with a tradition of scholarship on communication audiences, public communication campaigns, and government propaganda efforts.     

Economic Crisis and its Impact on Promotion and Media in Cyprus

ABSTRACT

The economic crisis has redounded sharply upon marketing communications and media vehicles in Cyprus. In recession periods, communication and marketing budgets can contract while companies seek to obtain the best communication outcomes with more limited resources, both the size and the distribution of the communication mix can alter rapidly. This qualitative paper reveals that Cypriot advertising agencies now place greater emphasis upon marketing public relations (MPR) as it is perceived to be cost effective and efficient in achieving campaign objectives. The empirical data also indicates a shift towards the use of internet marketing and social media as more and more businesses are realizing the importance of consumer generated marketing and word-of-mouth/mouse marketing (WOMm).     

Leveraging Associations: The Promotion of Cultural Sponsorships

SUMMARY

Sponsorship of the arts is growing as a marketing communication method, and companies are using this tool to achieve various business objectives. These include branding, corporate hospitality, and building community relations. The activities that the companies engage in to promote the sponsorships are guided by the objectives they wish to achieve. Additional leveraging is supported by advertising and public relations for branding. For corporate hospitality, promotional support is vested in personal selling with public relations initiatives. For community relations, promoting the sponsorship is focused primarily on public relations activities with an emphasis on personal selling.