This is PR 11th Edition Newsom, Turk and Kruckeberg Chapter 5 Theoretical Underpinnings for PR.

This is PR 11th Edition Newsom, Turk and Kruckeberg

Chapter 5

Theoretical Underpinnings for PR


PR Theory

• Borrowed from– Organizational and management theory– Political theory– Communication theory– Persuasion theory

• All have roots in sociology and psychology with some connection to math, biology and physics


Four Sociological Theories

• Help us understand how people respond to mass and specialized communication– Structural functionalism– Evolutionary perspective– Social conflict – Symbolic interactionism


Five Psychological Approaches

• Often used in studies on the effects of mass communication– Neurobiological– Comparative– Behavioral– Psychoanalytic – Cognitive


Two Persuasion Models

• Help us to understand how people interpret messages– Sociocultural paradigm– Psychodynamic


Organizational Theory

• Based on general systems theory: parts of system are interrelated function as a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts

• Theoretical concept can be found in works of Hegel

• Cultural approach looks at development, impact of organization’s culture

• Critical approach examines sources of power and control in an organization

• Postmodern approach focuses on post 1960s


Communication and Behavioral Theory

• Behavioral models, theories replacing communication models and theories as core underpinning of PR

• Behavioral models suggest PR is social science

• Behavioral models suggest PR communication must focus on direct, personal and not mass appeals

• Behavioral models shift objective and focus away from communication model’s emphasis on creating or retaining awareness to creating and retaining a behavioral response

• Behavioral models really asymmetrical even though PR “best practices” are symmetrical

Symmetrical Behavioral Model

• Gauge existing levels of awareness• Investigate responses in attempt to create, raise

or sustain awareness• Measure latent readiness to act• Monitor responses to triggering event• Evaluate behavior to determine why particular

action was taken



Winning People Over

• Three basic ways to get people to do what you want:– Power: use authority, implied or overt

threat of compulsion– Patronage: as crude as bribery, as

delicate as celebrity endorsement– Persuasion: using communication to win

people over


Steps in Persuasion Process

• Presenting• Attending• Comprehending• Yielding• Retaining • Acting


PR and Persuasion

• Frequently used to change opinions• Most critical factor in opinion change is

information or the lack thereof• Critical how information is presented or

withheld• Access to information and selective use of it

combines tools of power and persuasion


Personal Persuaders

• Organizations and significant others who exercise leverage over others

• Involves recognition and acceptance of their authority


Impersonal Persuaders

• Less potent and influential than personal persuaders

• Mass media editorials and advertisements• Information disseminated by educational

and government institutions• Content of entertainment

Framing

• Sometimes attributed to art• Definitions abound• Agreement focuses on three elements: selection,

emphasis, connection of information to lead readers/viewers to a particular conclusion

• PR practitioners frame issues



Opinion Makers and News Managers

• May be someone who creates an event that becomes news when it happens and is covered

• May be someone who focuses media attention on an event that might be otherwise overlooked


Propaganda and Persuasion Appeals

• Name calling• Glittering generalities• Transfer• Testimonials• Plain folks• Bandwagon• Card stacking• Emotional stereotypes• Illicit silence• Subversive rhetoric


Propaganda

• Not necessarily negative• Nothing inherent about propaganda that

prevents it from being used to change attitudes and behavior constructively

• Propagandists try to teach people what to think, while educators try to teach people how to think


Cantril’s Laws

• Events affect opinion• Demands for action are a common

response once opinion is formed• People will become involved out of self

interest• People seek leaders for issues around

which opinion develops• Reliability is difficult to assess


Cialdini’s Self-Persuasion Elements

• Consistency: once they commit to a position, people are more likely to perform behaviors consistent with that position– Draws on Festinger’s theory of cognitive

dissonance– Draws on Rokeach’s theory of beliefs, attitudes

and values• Reciprocity: people are influenced by a sense that

they “owe” or are beholden to others• Social validation: people are more influenced to

behave in a certain way


Cialdini’s Self-Persuasion Elements (cont.)

• Authority: people are more willing to follow the suggestions of someone considered a legitimate authority

• Scarcity: people want items and opportunities that are viewed as scarce or dwindling


Earl Newsom’s Persuasion Principles

• Identification: people will relate to an idea or opinion if they see it having a direct effect on them

• Suggestion of action: people will respond to ideas that are accompanied by a proposed action by the sponsor of the idea or if the recipients themselves propose it


Earl Newsom’s Persuasion Principles (cont.)

• Familiarity and trust: people are unwilling to accept ideas from sources if they don’t trust or know them

• Clarity: people need to clearly understand the meaning of an idea before they can be persuaded to accept it


Opinion Leaders

• Vocal activists• Opinion leaders, both mass media and

individuals• Power leaders: government officials,

legislators, others who have power to take actions

• Increasingly it is the power leaders who have the most influence


Persuasion Strategies

• Stimulus-response• Cognitive• Motivational• Social appeal• Personality appeal


Impediments to Persuasion

• Cognitive dissonance could occur: sometimes less social persuasion produces more attitude change because people feel they have freely chosen a particular opinion or behavior

• Truth is personal: much “truth” is circumstantial, subjective so the same “truth” may be interpreted differently by different individuals


Media Theories

• Lasswell’s Theory: who says what in which channels to whom with what effect– Ignores feedback

• Source is the “who”– Credibility, expertise generally important– People tend to believe sources that are like

them or who they want to be like– People also tend to seek authority in sources– Source characteristics can be negated if a

message lacks quality, plausibility


Media Theories (cont.)

• Messages are the “what”– The content has consequences– So does the way it is presented (telling both sides,

linking the familiar to the unfamiliar)– Repetition generally increases learning– Always tell people what they are expected to think

or do– Present something of value to the public and be

compatible with the public’s mindset– Each message needs a purpose



– Each message should appeal to some need or interest in the audience such as Maslow’s hierarchy of needs:• physical needs• safety• love• self-esteem• self-actualization



– Each message needs texture: color, design, movement, sound that appeal to the intended audience

– Message language must mean the same thing to the audience as it does to the source and must have maximum impact on the viewer or listener: no jargon, maximum clarity, maximum emotional impact

– Messages are increasingly globally accessible, cultural considerations, different values are increasingly important



• Media are the channels– Complexity of message influences choice: print handles

complexity best, video best for simple messages– Some messages involve their audiences more: computers

interactively involve, TV passively involves– Media orientation of public most critical factor to consider

in choosing a channel: uses and gratifications research essential

– Knowing not just who receives the channel but who pays attention to it and remembers it is important

– Knowing which channels are considered credible also should be a factor in choosing the right medium



• Receivers are the “to whom”– Sometimes messages must be adjusted to minimize

differences between the source and receivers– If messages are “tuned out” they are not really received– Messages must be encoded into something personally

meaningful to an intended receiver– Distortions, distractions, noise must be taken into account– Symbols must be chosen carefully to be sure they have

intended meaning to the receivers– Receiver stereotypes must be taken into account both in

terms of how they influence encoding and decoding of messages


Media Theories (cont.)• Response to a message is the “with what effect”

– How people respond is a function of anticipation, expectations and assumptions

– Comprehension and acceptance of messages must occur before a receiver can fashion a response

– Some receivers will respond to group dynamics in fashioning their response

– Others will strive to reduce discrepancies or cognitive dissonance

– Some people take behavior cues from external causes, while others respond to internal causes

– All opinions, attitudes and actions are affected by family, friends, informal work groups and formal groups, so no message “works” in isolation from these influences


Models of Information Processing

• Information processing is critical in communication: models that predict behavior successfully are especially useful in a public relations communications campaign

• Grunig’s model of publics and how they seek and process information is significant

• Publics range from active to inactive, and their behavior ranges from seeking information to just processing it


Models of Information Processing (cont.)

• Individuals are more likely to seek and process information if they think it will help them solve a problem and if they are personally involved

• Those who are constrained are less likely to either seek or process information


Diffusion Process

• Awareness (presenting)• Information( attending)• Evaluation (comprehending)• Trial (yielding)• Adoption (retaining)• Reinforcement ( retaining)

This is PR 11th Edition Newsom, Turk and Kruckeberg Chapter 5 Theoretical Underpinnings for PR.

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