Theories used in Public Relations

What is Theory?
Theory is a prediction of how events and action are related to each other.

A person need to understand the relations between events and action in order to answers some questions: whereby if the person answer a routine question, we can say that the person has common sense. But if the person able to answer a non-routine question, we can say that the person is astute or experienced.

How it is important in PR?
Theories explain how to make PR most effective for organization and society.

How can a PR practitioner use theories in their jobs?
Logically, theories help PR practitioner to explain why and how a plan or proposals will be work or accomplished. The theories will be used to support the opinion and convince the superior and co-worker. It is best when anything proposed comes with evidence to back them up.

How many theories that can explain all PR practices?
There are no single theory to explain all public relations practices. There are six types of theories which PR practitioner can use every day in building successful relationship with their publics;



1. THEORIES OF RELATIONSHIP
The type of theories lies under the theories of relationship consist of two category, which are system theory and situational theory;

System Theory

A theory that suggest how an organisation are made up of interrelated parts and how it use that parts to adapt to the environment

Situational Theory

A principal theory for segmenting audience in public relations based on their likelihood of communicating.



2. THEORIES OF PERSUASION

Social Exchange Theory
A theory that assumed individuals or groups choose strategies based on perceived rewards and costs.

Diffusion Theory
Theories that states people adapt an idea only after going through five stages ; awareness, interest, evaluation, trial and adoption.


Social Learning Theory
A theory that attempts to explain and predict behaviour by looking at ways individual process information.

Elaborated Likelihood Model
A cognitive processing model that explains whether an individual skim the messages for relevant cues (peripheral processing) or read and think through material (central processing).



3. THEORIES OF MASS COMMUNICATION

Uses and Gratifications Theory
A theory that asserts people are active and selective users of media

Framing Theory
An active process of drawing out dominant themes from content that come from cultural and social groupings in which we live and work.

Agenda Settings Theory
A theory that demonstrated that the media can set the agenda for what people talk and think about.

4. ROLES
Roles are the collection of daily activities that people perform. It helps people learn about the power of PR functions in an organization and how the activities of PR people produce the right programs, influence strategic planning and affect short-range and long-range goals of organizations.

Two broad roles in PR:

   1) Technician Role : Represent the craft side of PR; writing, editing, taking photos, handling communication production, running special events, and making telephone calls to the media

   2) Manager Role : 

• Focus on activities that helps identify and solve the PR problems
• PR manager advise senior managers about communication needs
• are also responsible for broad organizational result.
• PR manager's three major roles;

             i. Expect Prescriber

             ii. Communication Facilitator

             iii. Problem-Solving Facilitator

5. MODELS
Models help to identify the central ideas of public relations and how they are related to each other. Based on communication, research and ethics, James. E Grunig and Todd Hunt proposed four models of PR consist of Press Agentry, Public Information, the two-way asymmetrical model and the two-way symmetrical model in 1984. Since that Grunig and a team of scholars develop a new model and presented it 1995 as "new model of symmetry as two-way practice". This new model have enriched our understanding of how public relations is practiced.

Press Agentry is a model where information moves one way - from organizations to its publics.
It is synonymous with promotion and publicity. PR practitioners who work under this model always look for opportunities so that the organization's name can be favorably mention in the media. This model includes propaganda tactics such as uses of celebrity or attention-gaining devices such as giveaways, parades and grand openings.

Although Press Agents are not ethical, they don't desire to be ethical either.

Public Informations differs from Press Agentry because the intent is to inform rather than promotion or publicity but the communication is still essentially one-way. Nowadays, this model is normally practice in government sector, educational institutions, non-profit organizations and even in some coorperations. The PR practitioner who operating under this model do a little research about their audiences beyond testing the clarity of the messages.

They are journalists-in-residence, who value accuracy but decide what information is best to communicate to their publics.

The two-way asymmetrical model considers PR to be scientific persuasion. This model employes social science methods to increase the persuasiveness of messages. PR practitioners use surveys, interviews, and focus group to measure public relations so the organizations can design PR programs that will gain the support of key publics. Although feedback is built into the process, the organization is much more interested in having the public adjust to the organization than the reverse.

The two-way symmetrical model depicts a PR orientation in which organizations and its publics adjust to aech other. It focuses on the social science research methods to achieve mutual understanding and two-way communication rather than one-way persuasion.

In 2001, Grunig created other names for symmetrical model; mixed motives, collaborative advocacy and cooperative antagonism. His intent was to balance self-interest with the interest of others in a give-and-take process that can waver between advocacy and collaboration. He argued that this model was the most ethical because all groups were part of the resolution of problems.

The first three models reflect a practice of PR that attempts through persuasion to achieve the organizational goals while the fourth focus on balancing self-interests and the interest of the other group or public. 


New Model of Symmetry as Two-Way Practice 

This model is used to advances our thinking about the practice of public relations because it considers both the organizations and publics in the public relations situation. Dozier, Grunig and Grunig stressed that in each public relations situation, organizations and their publics would seek to persuade each other as much as possible.

The depiction of public relations placed the organization and its publics on a continuum as figure 1 below:

As pictured above, pure symmetry model technically means the dominant coalition tries to force a public into accepting organization's position. As in the pure cooperation model, the public uses communication to convince the dominant coalition to accept the public's position.

The middle of the continuum is the Win-Win zone in which the organizations and the public use communication to achieve a decision acceptable to both sides.



6. APPROACHES TO CONFLICT RESOLUTION
Conflict resolution is defined as effort to reduce friction between individuals or organizations and publics.

People common understanding of conflict is always involving individual or group actively opposing another's values or goals. In PR context, corporate conflict occurs when a stakeholder moves in a direction different from the organization; producing friction among the parties.

Hence, as PR professionals, an action has to be taken to move the organization and its publics towards resolution. Nine types of conflict resolution strategies and linked with the motives of organization and publics as identified by Plowman, Briggs and Huang are;

i. Contention - Involves one party forcing its position on another.

ii. Cooperation - Both parties work together to reach a mutually beneficial solution.

iii. Accomodation - One party partially yields on its position and lowers its aspirations.

iv. Avoidance - One or both parties leave the conflict either physically or psychologically.

v. Unconditional Constructive - The organizations reconciles the strategic interests of both the organizations and its publics, whether the public follows guidelines or not, even if the other party to the party does not reciprocated.

vi. Compromised - An alternative agreement that stands part way between the parties preferred positions.

vii. Principled - Both parties hold to higher ethics that cannot be compromised.

viii. Win-Win or No Deal - Both parties hold off on any agreement until they are ready for the deal to be struck.

ix. Mediated - Involves use of an outside disinterested parties.

Pioneer of PR : Phineas T.Barnum

Phineas Taylor Barnum or P.T. Barnum was the person who originated many methods to attract public attention. He has always been considered as the master of press agentry, a promoter of endless imagination.

Barnum defined himself as a consummate showman by profession eventhough he was also an author, publisher, philanthropist, and for some time a politician. He embarked on an entertainment career first with a variety troupe called " Barnum Grand Scientific and Music Theater" after he moved to New York in 1835. He started with a method of triggering human curiosities by purchase and exhibit Joice Heath, an almost-paralyzed and blind woman claimed to be 161-year-old. However, autopsy report put her age at 70-80 after her death in 1836.

 In 1842, Barnum introduced his first major hoax known as "Feejee" mermaid. He described his hoax as an advertising material to attract public attention to the Museum owned by Moses Kimball.

In the same year, He introduced the midget General Tom Thumb who was actually 4 years of age but to be stated as 11. By using his natural talent and ability, Tom Thumb was taught to imitate people from Hercules to Napoleon. At the age of 5 years old, he already learnt drinking wine and at the age of 7, he smoked cigars to entertain the publics. Tom Thumb enjoyed his good relationship with Barnum.

There were many more hoaxes promoted by Barnum such as Jenny Lind, the Swedish Nightingale who possessed a very quality soprano voice and the way she projected her voice was earnestness. During his tour with Tom Thumb in England, he become aware of Lind's popularity but first conceded Lind's voice as unmusical. However, he took the risk to pay for Lind's performance in America for 150 nights. He believed that her reputation for morality and philanthropy could be turned to good use in his publicity. Other hoax promoted by Barnum was Jumbo the Elephant.

Barnum never let the truth interfere with his publicity and press agentry techniques. He used publicity to make money, pure and simple. Eventhough he contributed positively to our understanding of the power of publicity, his lack of honesty led to a legacy of mistrust of publicity efforts which is sometimes exist even today.

He died in his sleep at home on April 7, 1891. The London Times fondly called him "a harmless deceiver" because they believed that as long as press agentry is used to promoted circuses, entertainment, and professional sports, its negative potential is limited. However, it could become a threatening if this method is used in bussiness or politics.







Teminologies

Advertising : refer to paid space and time in the media.

Press Agent: One who uses information as a manipulative tool, employing whatever means are available to achieve desired public opinion and action.  

Press Agentry : The publicity produced by a press agent work or skill especially in making a person or thing look more desirable, admirable and successful.

Public : A group of individuals tied together by a sense of common characteristics or responses.

Publicity: Publication of news about an organisation or person for which time or space was not purchased.

Planned Publicity: Publicity that is the planned result of a conscious effort to attract attention to an issue, event or organization.





Source : 
Public Relations: The profession & The Practice by Lattimore, Baskin, Heiman & Toth (4th edition)

wikipedia