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A MODERNIZED
CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE “EXCELLENCE MODELS” OF
PUBLIC RELATIONS
BY: NAWAF ALTAMIMI
Public
relation’s researcher have been exploring
different approaches to PR, (Grunig and Hunt,
1984; Murphy, 1991; Grunig and Grunig, 1992;
Creedon, 1993; Grunig, 1993), to explain the
value of public relations in an organization and
describes how the communication function is organized and practiced most
effectively in a corporate setting. Excellence
theory suggests that public relations must serve
in corporate roles that are both managerial and
technical nature. In addition, public relations
departments must play some role in influencing
the company’s strategic management and
decision-making (Grunig & Grunig, 2002).
In
order to plan more effective communication
strategies, scholars and practitioners has
identified the Two-way asymmetric communication
as the basis of public relations.
This paper will
examine the role of public relations in
strategic management. But first it will review
the theories, specifically the excellence models
with focusing on the
Two-way symmetric communication, not just as a
model in communicating between an organization
and its stakeholders/publics, but also as a
model in planning the strategic decisions and
policies of an organization.
DEFINITIONS
OF PUBLIC RELATIONS:
Practitioners
and scholars tried to establish a theoretical
framework to answer the question, "What is
public relations?”. Grunig and Hunt (1984.p7)
suggested that most definers of public relations
"describe: (1) the kinds of things public
relations practitioners do, (2) what effect they
think public relations should have, and (3) how
they believe public relations should be
practiced responsibly."(Cutlip
1995.p x) stated that Public
relations -- or its equivalents, propaganda,
publicity, public information -- began when
people came to live together in tribal camps
where one's survival depended on others of the
tribe.
Funded by the
Foundation for Public Relations Research and
Education, Harlow (1976,p.36) collected
hundreds of public relations definitions and
interacted with over 80 leading practitioners to
develop the following definition:
“Public
relations is a distinctive management function
which helps establish and maintain mutual lines
of communication, understanding, acceptance and
cooperation between an organization and its
publics; involves the management of problems or
issues; helps management keep informed on and
responsive to public opinion; defines and
emphasizes the responsibility of management to
serve the public interest; helps management keep
abreast of and effectively utilize change,
serving as an early warning system to help
anticipate trends; and uses research and sound
ethical communication techniques as its
principal tools”.
In 1984 J. E. Grunig and T. Hunt offered the broadest definition of
public relations when they wrote: "Public
relations is the management of communication
between an organization and its publics.
GRUNIG AND
HUNT'S FOUR MODELS:
One of the most
important stages of the public relation’s
history was when J. Grunig and Hunt (1984) first
identified the four models of communication
between organizations and its stakeholder
/publics. Although J. Grunig and Hunt
acknowledged that there had been
"public-relations-like" activities throughout
history, they claimed that the press agents of
the mid-19th century were the first full-time
specialists to practice public relations.
The earliest PR model to appear was press agentry or publicity. It
emerged in the late 19th century and
was characterized as one-way, source-to-receiver
communication. Its purpose was largely
propagandistic and the truth was sometimes
expendable.
The second model
– the public information model – was created in
the early 1900s to disseminate information. The
intention of this model, however, was not to
persuade, but to provide objective information
to the public (Grunig and Hunt, 1984, p. 21).
By the early
1920s the press agentry model lost credibility
with journalists, largely because they had been
deceived by press agents too many times. Ivy
Lee, a former journalist turned PR practitioner,
recognized this problem and sought to address it
by sending his Declaration of Principles to
journalists.
By the late
1920s and early 1930s the new Two-Way Asymmetric
model began to emerge. It took advantage of
advances in psychology and public opinion
polling to understand the attitudes of the
public. E. L. Bernays was the leading PR
practitioner to apply this model. Bernays had
worked as a press agent, but began to encounter
problems that could not simply be solved by
providing more information to the public.
·
Two-way
symmetric model:
The two-way
symmetric model use social science theory and
methods instead of theories of persuasion when
planning and evaluating steps of campaigns
because the goal of this model is for the
publics to understand and not necessarily be
persuaded (Grunig and Hunt, 1984, p. 22).
CRITICISM AND
DEVELOPMENT:
As the four-model typology became an established
conceptual and measurement framework for public
relations behavior in public relations research
worldwide, J. Grunig
and Hunt (1984)
advocated the ‘symmetrical model’ of public
relations over the ‘asymmetrical’,
‘information’, and ‘press agent/publicity’
models. (pp. 21-43). This model argued that the
over-riding purpose of public relations was not
persuasion, as suggested by earlier models.
Instead, it posited the notion of creating
mutual understanding and accommodation between
organizations and their publics as the goal of
public relations.
The first
criticism came from scholars of game theory,
persuasion, and rhetoric (Miller, 1989; Murphy,
1991; Van der Meiden, 1993). Their argument was
that the symmetry model abandons the
organization’s interest in favor of the publics.
Borrowing insight from game theory, Murphy
(1991) developed the idea of a mixed-motive
model. According to this model organizations try
to satisfy their own interests while
simultaneously trying to help a public satisfy
its interests.()
In reply to
Morph’s criticism, L.Grunig et al (2002
p.309) emphasized that they never have viewed
the two-way symmetrical model as advocating pure
cooperation or of total accommodation of a
public's interest , but as a way of reconciling
the organization's and the public's interests.
The second type
of critiques came from critical scholars (Gandy,
1982; L’Etang,1996; Pieczka, 1996) who argued
that the symmetrical model is unrealistic and
strives for unrealistic harmony as the outcome.
In reply to this, J. Grunig (2000) and J. Grunig
and L. Grunig (1992) emphasized that symmetry
describes a process of public relations and not
an outcome.
In parallel to
the deepened theoretical understanding of
symmetry as a mixed motive mindset, a series of
quantitative-based methodological critiques have
called for close examination of the validity of
the four-model typology.
J. Grunig and
Hunt (1984) initially proposed a contingency
theory of situations in which each of the four
models could be effective, depending on the
structure of the organization and the nature of
its environment. Later,J. Grunig and L. Grunig
(1992) dropped the contingency theory and
instead put forward a normative theory that the
two-way symmetrical model would be most
effective in most situations.
Grunig, J.
Grunig, and Dozier (2002) conducted confirmatory
factor analysis on the four model typology. They
compared the competing two-model typology with
the four-model typology to see which fit the
data best and presented evidence that the
four-model typology is a better model than the
two-model typology.
In later stage
L. Grunig, J. Grunig, and Dozier (2002) and
Huang (2001, 1997) came up with the new four
dimensions as : (1)direction (one-way,
two-way),(2) purpose (asymmetrical,
symmetrical), (3)channel (interpersonal,
mediated), (4) ethics (ethical, unethical).
More recently,
Plowman, Briggs, and Huang (2001,cited by
Toth,2007) established a number of negotiation
strategies that fit into what Plowman called a
mixed-motive model that encompassed the entire
spectrum between the two-way asymmetrical and
the two-way symmetrical models.
The above, does
not suggest that excellence theory is fully
developed. As L. Grunig et al. (2002) said: the
challenges remain for research in public
relations and there is room for growth in the
excellence theory, especially in the areas of
globalization, strategic management,
relationship building, ethics, and change
management.
THE FOUR
MODELS IN PRACTICAL FUNCTION:
Most of the
scholars and practitioners who examined the
validity of Grunig and Hunt's four models-
Deatherage and Hazleton (1998) and Leichty and
Springston (1993)-noticed that practitioners in
organizations practicing the press agentry and
public information models of public relations
will engage in few activities that define the
public relations manager role. Practitioners in
organizations practicing the two-way asymmetric
and two-way symmetric models of public relations
are more likely to play the public relations
manager role. Organizations that practice the
press agentry and public information models need
technicians (in house journalists) who are not
involved in strategic planning and problem
solving.
Publicity/press
agentry model organizations spread favorable
propaganda about the organization with only
moderate regard for information accuracy. Public
information model organizations disseminate
information with traditional journalistic
concerns for objectivity and accuracy. Such low
level staff functions do not require
practitioners to enact the manager role. In
appendix A Grunig and Hunt (1984) explained the
differences between the four models in
functional and involvement levels.
EXCELLENCE PUBLIC RELATIONS:
PUBLIC RELATIONS WITHIN STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT:
J. Grunig and D.
Dozier (1992) stated that public relations is
most likely to be excellent when it is an
integral part of an organization's strategic
management process and when public relations
itself is managed strategically. As
Tench and Yeomans (2006,p.41) explained in
(appendix B) public relations practitioner as a
communicator will
help the
management in solving public relations programs
(Issues) and facilitate communication between
management and publics (environment).
J. Grunig and D.
Dozier (1992, 2002,p.149) suggested that the
senior public relations practitioner must be
part of the dominant coalition, function at a
high level of decision making, and participate
in strategic management if public relations is
to be excellent and is to make the organization
more effective.
Baskin, Aronoff, and Lattimore (1997.p.5) provide this lengthy working
definition in their text, Public Relations: The
Profession and the Practice:
“Public
relations is a management function that helps
achieve organizational objectives, define
philosophy, and facilitate organizational
change. Public relations practitioners
communicate with all relevant internal and
external publics to develop positive
relationships and to create consistency between
organizational goals and societal expectations.
Public relations practitioners develop, execute,
and evaluate organizational programs that
promote the exchange of influence and
understanding among an organization's
constituent parts and publics”.
Moss (1999, p
24.) suggested that most definitions of public
relations included in textbooks and professional
literature state that public relations is an
integral part of management, and that the
function of public relations in management is
different from other management functions such
as marketing or human resources.
Another element
is needed for public relations practitioners to
operate as managers, they need to assert
themselves as members the dominant coalition,
those with the authority to make decisions and
set policy. In other words, they need to lead
organizations and not just act as "service
providers”. Cutlip, Center, and Broom
(2000,cited by Austin and Pinkleton,2001,p.4
).Dozier et al (1995) believe that
communication departments must be powerful
players in order to implement excellent
communication programs. Dozier et al (1995)
pointed out that the power of communication
departments is frequently informal and excellent
communication departments, usually through top
communicators, influence the decision making of
dominant coalitions without having any formal
power or authority to do so.
Toth (2007)
agreed with the importance of power or authority
as the line between a PR function empowered with
a strategic mandate manages all the activities,
and a PR function without a strategic mandate
manages only limited set of activities. ()
PUBLIC
RELATIONS MANAGED STRATEGICALLY:
J. Grunig and D.
Dozier (1992) stated that public relations is
managed strategically when it identifies
stakeholders, segments active publics from
stakeholder categories, and resolves issues
created by the interaction of organization and
publics through symmetrical communication
programs. (interactive or catalytic strategies)
early in the development of issues.
Maybe the most
important finding of the Excellence Study, a
research project funded by the International
Association of Business Communicators (IABC).the
outcome of the research confirmed that the
public relations department should be empowered
to play a prominent role in the strategic
managerial function of effective organization.
Grunig
(1992.p22,23) pointed out that Early theories of
inter-organizational relationships predicted
that an environmental imperative would determine
the structure and communication system of an
organization as in (Figure.1) which is
abstracted from the macro-level literature on
organizational behavior.
Figure.1 factors influencing the choice of a
public relations.
Source: Grunig (1992.p23)
The (Figure.1)
shows that the choice of the symmetrical model
of public relations is the key choice made by
effective organizations. Also the model shows
how the organizations should use public
relations to interact with their environments.
And why organizations with excellent public
relations departments are more likely to manage
communication strategically and therefore are
more effective than organizations that do not
have excellent departments.
Toth
(2007,p.139) suggested that, in its strategic
role, public relations assists the organization
to adapt to its societal and stakeholder
environment by feeding into the organization's
strategy formulation process intelligence with
regards to strategic stakeholders (and their
concerns or expectations), societal issues, and
the publics that emerge around the issues. While
Freeman (1984) found that the typical
stakeholder map for a corporation contains
owners, consumer advocates, customers,
competitors, the media, employees, special
interest groups, environmentalists, suppliers,
governments, and local community organizations
Pearce and Robinson (1982, p.62) defined
environment as "the sum total of all conditions
and forces that affect the strategic options of
a business but that are typically beyond its
ability to control”. Grunig and Hunt (1984)
provide a clear link between an organization and
its publics / environmental elements.
DISCUSSION:
As
Grunig and Hunt’s four models theory was born
last century (about 25 years ago), many
practitioners and scholars may argue its
validity in the age of super-high technology and
the age of Network media (social media).
Pavlik (2007) pointed out that technological
change presents many significant implications
for the structure, culture and management of
organizations, particularly from the point of
view of public relations.
In this line, De
Bussy, Watson, Pitt, & Ewing, (2000) indicate
that simple models of communication between ‘an
organization and its publics’ are either
redundant, or at least should be reviewed. From
his side The
WPP
advertising boss Sir Martin Sorrell (2007)
summrised this issuse by saying that
the next
few years will be the age of engagement. It is
like the one-way communication is not possible
any more and the two-way communication is not
enough any more.
Pavlik and
Dozier (2007) see that the new IT brought
another challenge to organizations, as if the
Web to offers a communication tool that can
deliver in real-time interactive, individualized
messages to any type of public, in contrast, it
is the empowers the individuals to create their
own communication platforms and along the way it
presents significant challenges to organizations
trying to manage the communication function in
the age of the information superhighway.
Authors such as
Blood (2000), noted that the Internet has made
protest against corporations and other dominant
organizations easier. But they go on to explain
that the Internet has also created a new class
of protesters and enables them to cooperate very
effectively.(pp. 165-169).
Social networking sites such as MySpace and
video file sharing sites such as YouTube also
have enormous implications for public relations
as millions of users populate such Web sites and
spend increasing amounts of time immersed in
them, these (Pavlik 2007) online environments
become increasingly relevant to the
communication strategies for organizations.
CONCLUSION:
Throughout the
literature on excellent model and excellent
public relations management, writers emphasized
that public relations department should base its
goals and its communication activities on the
two-way symmetrical model of public relations.
Also the public relations managers and
executives must have the professional knowledge
needed to practice the two-way symmetrical
model. Excellent organization should have a
symmetrical system of internal and external
communication based on the principles of
employee empowerment and participation in
decision-making.
Nowadays, public
relations theory and practice, must get engaged
in a new age of two-way communication,with
no dout that the new communications means and
tools
made a very important
shift
in corporation communication in changing the way
public relations practice and managed.
-
End-
REFERENCE:
BOOKS:
Davis, A. (2007) Mastering Public
Relations, Basingstoke: Palgrave
McMillan.
David M. Dozier,
James E. Grunig, and Larissa A. Grunig. (1995)
Manager's Guide to Excellence in Public
Relations and Communication Management.Mahwah,
NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Dennis L.
Wilcox, Phillip, H. Ault, and Warren K. Agee.
(1995) Public Relations: Strategies and
Tactics .New York: Harper Collins College
Publishers.
James E. Grunig
, David M. Dozier , William P. Ehling , Larissa
A. Grunig , Fred C. Repper , Jon White. (1992)
Excellence in Public Relations and
Communication Management.Hillsdale ,NJ:
Lawrence Erlbaum Associates
Larissa A. Grunig, James E. Grunig, and David M.
Dozier (2002)
Excellent Public
Relations and Effective Organizations: A Study
of Communication Management in Three Countries
(Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates
Moss, Danny
(1999). Perspectives on Public Relations
Research.
London:
Routledge
Oliver, Sandra. (2007) Public Relation
Strategy, London: Kogan.
Otis W. Baskin,
Craig E. Aronoff, and Dan Lattimore .(1997)
Public Relations: The Profession and the
Practice, 4th ed. Dubuque: Brown and
Benchmark.
Otis W. Baskin,
Craig E. Aronoff, and Dan Lattimore (1995)
Public Relations: The Profession and the
Practice, 4th ed.Dubuque: Brown and
Benchmark.
Richard E.
Crable and Steven L. Vibbert. (1986) Public
Relations as Communication Management
.Edina, MN: Bellwether Press.
Simon, R. (1984)
Public Relations Concepts and Practices, 3rd
ed. (New York: John Wiley & Sons.
Scott M. Cutlip,
Allen H. Center, and Glen L. Broom (1985)
Effective Public Relations, 6th ed.
Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Toth . L
Elizabeth (2007) The future of excellence in
public relationd and communication management:
Challenges for the next generation.Lawarence
Erlbaum associates. Mahawan,New Jersey, London
Theodore N.
Beckman. and William R. Davidson.(1967)
Marketing .New York: Ronald Press Co.
Tench,R and
Yeomans,L(2006).Exploring public relations.
London:Oearson Education ltd.
Yeshin,T.(1998).Integrated
marketing communication the holistic approach.Oxford:Butterworth
Heinemann.
Journal article by Christina P. Deatherage;
Journal of Public Relations Research, Vol. 10,
1998. 15 pgs.
Effects of Organizational Worldviews on the
Practice of Public Relations: A Test of the
Theory of Public Relations Excellence
Journal article by Christina P. Deatherage;
Journal of Public Relations Research, Vol. 10,
1998. 15 pgs.
Journal article by Christina P. Deatherage;
Journal of Public Relations Research, Vol. 10,
1998. 15 pgs.
Effects of Organizational Worldviews on the
Practice of Public Relations: A Test of the
Theory of Public Relations Excellence
Journal article by Christina P. Deatherage;
Journal of Public Relations Research, Vol. 10,
1998. 15 pgs.
Journal article by Christina P. Deatherage;
Journal of Public Relations Research, Vol. 10,
1998. 15 pgs.
Effects of Organizational Worldviews on the
Practice of Public Relations: A Test of the
Theory of Public Relations Excellence
Journal article by Christina P. Deatherage;
Journal of Public Relations Research, Vol. 10,
1998. 15 pgs.
Journal article by Christina P. Deatherage;
Journal of Public Relations Research, Vol. 10,
1998. 15 pgs.
Effects of Organizational Worldviews on the
Practice of Public Relations: A Test of the
Theory of Public Relations Excellence
Journal article by Christina P. Deatherage;
Journal of Public Relations Research, Vol. 10,
1998. 15 pgs.
-Toth
(2007, p.87) wrote: “In mixed motives,
each side in a stakeholder relationship
retains a strong sense of its own
self-interests, yet each is motivated to
cooperate to attain at least some
resolution of the conflict. They may be
on opposite sides of an issue, but it is
in their best interests to cooperate
with each other. Mixed-motive games
provide a broad third category that
describes behavior as most public
relations people experience it: a
multidirectional scale of competition
and cooperation in which organizational
needs must be balanced against
constituents' needs. These parties are
really cooperative protagonists in the
struggle to satisfy their own interests,
with the knowledge that satisfaction is
best accomplished through satisfying
each other's interests as well.
- Toth (2007,pp 140-141) stated that: A
PR function empowered with a strategic
mandate manages all the activities as
set out in points 1 and 2 in the list
that follows. A PR function without a
strategic mandate has no role in
strategic decision making at the top
management level, does not formulate PR
strategy, and manages only the
activities outlined under point 2.
1. The functional responsibilities of PR as a function with a
strategic mandate includes:
a. Developing PR strategy that addresses the organization's
key strategic goals and positions,
culminating in public relations goals
and themes that are aligned to
organizational goals and positions. This
does not refer to ad hoc communication
planning where public relations
communicates when requested to do so by
others in the organization, but a
concerted effort to study organizational
strategies and goals, identifying
strategic goals and positions that need
to be communicated and advising
organizational leaders accordingly. PR
strategy in this instance could be
classified as deliberate or prescriptive
strategy, a wellknown concept in the
strategic management literature (Lynch,
1997). PR goals developed to implement
deliberate PR strategy are referred to
as deliberate PR goals by Digital
Management (n.d.).
b. Developing PR strategy that addresses constantly emerging
societal and stakeholder issues that are
identified in the organization's issues
and stakeholder management processes. PR
strategy in this instance could be
classified as emergent strategy, a
concept developed in the strategic
management domain by Mintzberg (1987,
1990). PR goals developed to implement
emergent PR strategy are referred to as
emergent PR goals by Digital Management
(n.d.).
c. Formulating a strategic PR plan to achieve PR goals.
d. Developing, implementing, and evaluating communication
plans in support of the PR function's
deliberate and emergent strategies.
e. Counseling organizational leaders/managers/supervisors on
their communication responsibility
toward their employees (how to be a
communicating leader).
f. Managing the activities of a support function, as outlined
next.
2. The functional responsibilities of PR as a support
function includes:
a. Developing, implementing and evaluating communication
plans in support of strategies developed
at different organization levels (e.g.,
enterprise/corporate/business unit).
b. Developing, implementing, and evaluating communication
plans in support of the strategies of
other organizational functions (e.g.,
marketing, human resources).
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