1,721,085 research outputs found
The good, the bad and the ugly: learning lessons from the UK’s COVID-19 communication
Full text linkThe COVID-19 pandemic has had an enormous impact globally, affecting economies and societies as a result of the health impacts of the virus itself and also the policy decisions made amidst uncertainty (Smith et al. 2020). Attempts to control the spread of the virus have had to be carefully managed by national governments against negative impacts on economies and public freedoms (Wright et al. 2021). However, the effectiveness of such actions, assessed in terms of infection rates and public opinion, has varied. For instance, consider the variation in disease burden between New Zealand, where disease burden was low and the country was able to achieve COVID-19 elimination ( Jefferies et al. 2020), against that of the United Kingdom, which has been one of the countries hardest hit by COVID-19, as measured by infection rates, deaths and lost economic production (Worldometer 2021). Effective and timely communication and leadership are central to the suc- cessful management of the COVID-19 pandemic, playing an important role in the complex relationship between scientific knowledge and individuals’ beliefs and behaviours. In this vein, it could be argued that messaging about the COVID-19 outbreak by national governments could have played, and will continue to play, a critical role in limiting the spread of disease. However, attempts to inform and educate the public about COVID-19, and the effective prevention measures that should be followed, can be impacted by the volume of information available and the prevalence of misinformation, especially online. This is because we live in a world of information overload, whereby informa- tion is shared across multiple platforms, by numerous people and organisations, and there are multiple interpretations of the same information (Bettis-Outland 2012). Therefore, ensuring the information that the public receives is true, complete and accurate is a challenge (Wiesenberg and Tench 2020). It is also relevant to consider other factors that can affect compliance with information, such as trust and confidence in the communicator (Spiegelhalter 2017; Tur- cotte et al. 2015). To assess the UK government’s communication management of the COVID-19 crisis, and the public’s perceptions of this communication and the DOI: 10.4324/9781003184669-15 152 Ralph Tench and Gemma Bridge communications from other platforms and sources, two online surveys were developed. In this chapter, we discuss the results of both surveys. We also discuss implications of the research and highlight how communication professionals could adapt to become more effective communicators when sharing informa- tion related to the COVID-19 pandemic, and future health crises
Sceptical Employees as CSR Ambassadors in Times of Financial Uncertainty
Full text linkThis chapter offers new insights into the understanding of internal (employee) perceptions of organizational corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies and strategies. This study explores the significance of employees’ involvement and scepticism upon CSR initiatives and focuses on the effects it may have upon word of mouth (WOM) and the development of employee–organisation relationships. Desk research introduces the research questions. Data for the research questions were gathered through a self-completion questionnaire distributed in a hardcopy form to the sample. An individual’s level of scepticism and involvement appears to affect the development of a positive effect on employees’ WOM. Involvement with the domain of the investment may be a central factor affecting relationship building within the organization, and upon generation of positive WOM. The chapter offers a conceptual framework to public relations (PR) and corporate communications practitioners, which may enrich their views and understanding of the use and value of CSR for communication strategies and practices. For-profit organisations are major institutions in today’s society. CSR is proffered as presenting advantages for (at macro level) society and (micro level) the organization and its employees. Concepts, such as involvement and scepticism, which have not been rigorously examined in PR and corporate communication literature, are addressed. By examining employee perceptions, managers and academic researchers gain insights into the acceptance, appreciation and effectiveness of CSR policies and activities upon the employee stakeholder group. This will affect current and future CSR communication strategies. The knowledge acquired from this chapter may be transferable outside the for-profit sector
European Communication Monitor 2018. Strategic communication and the challenges of fake news, trust, leadership, work stress and job satisfaction. Results of a survey in 48 Countries
No full textBesides key trends like fake news, the ECM 2018 survey explores communications’ contributions to organisational success as well as the work environment for communication professionals in Europe. Work engagement and stress, job satisfaction and its drivers as well as the status of leadership in communication units are explored. Moreover, the longitudinal development of strategic issues in the field, and characteristics of excellence are in the focus of the 12th edition. The European Communication Monitor 2018 is based on almost 3,100 communication professionals in 48 countries. Detailed analyses are available for 22 countries and different types of organisations (companies, non-profits, governmental, agencies)
Social Media: the Wild West of CSR Communications
Full text linkPurpose - The central argument that this paper posits is that traditional media of old presented a clear, ordered world of communication management for organisations to extol their CSR credentials. In contrast to this, new Web 2.0 social media is increasingly being used by activists and hactivists to challenge corporate communication CSR messages and does so by highlighting instances and examples of Corporate Social Irresponsibility (CSI) (Jones, Bowd and Tench, 2009; Tench, Sun and Jones, 2012). Design/methodology/approach - The paper reports on research data from the European Communication Monitor 2010, 2011 and 2012 (http://www.communicationmonitor.eu/) and draws on work already published in this area (Tench, Verhoeven and Zerfass, 2009; Verhoeven et al, 2012; and Zerfass et al, 2010, 2011) to illustrate the unruly unregulated Web 2.0 social media communication landscape in Europe. A range of literature is drawn on to provide the theoretical context for an exploration of issues that surround social media. Findings - In late modernity (Giddens, 1990) communication comes in many guises. Social media is one guise and it has re-shaped as well as transformed the nature of communications and the relationship between organisations and their stakeholders. Originality/value - Communicating CSR in the Wild West of social media requires diplomatic and political nous, as well as awareness and knowledge of the dangers and pitfalls of CSI. The data reported on in this paper illustrates well the above points and sets out scenarios for future development of corporate communication of CSR through, and with social media
Quid pro quo? : Dutch and German Consumer Responses to Conditional and Unconditional Corporate Giving Initiatives in Advertising
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126677.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Open Access
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Mapping communication management competencies for European practitioners ECOPSI an EU study
No full textThis paper and its findings suggest there is little organised life-long learning in public relations and communication management in Europe. Consequently senior communication practitioners believe there are major failings in the capabilities related to our profession which if not addressed will serve as significant challenges for European organisations over the next 10 years. Longitudinal research further suggests the role of practitioners is changing and they require many more competencies to be successful in their communication roles (Zerfass et al., 2007- 2013). These are some of the observations and conclusions drawn from and supported by an extensive review of theory and practice emerging from the ECOPSI Programme (European Communication Professional Skills and Innovation), which is the largest European Union funded project of its kind to report into strategic communication until now (Tench et al 2012, 2013a, 2013b). There are on-going gaps and deficiencies in the development of the individuals as well as broad variation in how practitioners identify needs and access appropriate interventions. This presents numerous opportunities for deeper and on-going professional training and development to build consistency and support good practice in moving away from a hands-on, learning on-the-job approach to more focused knowledge acquisition and development. The ECOPSI programme is a two-year research project exploring the competencies required by communication professionals in Europe. This innovative programme is a partnership of six leading European universities in communication research and education located in Germany, Netherlands, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey and the UK as well as the European Association of Communication Directors (EACD). The two-year programme is led by Leeds Metropolitan University and is the first and largest to be funded by the European Union. The study provides in-depth insights into the competencies needed for four communication roles through the Communication Role Matrix: internal communication, crisis communication, social media and chief communication officer (CCO). The Communication Role Matrix captures what it is a communication professional does and the requirement necessary to perform the role successfully by identifying the knowledge, skills (hard and soft) and personal attributes for each role (Tench et al 2013a). This paper: (1) analyses the construction and perceptions about the Communication Role Matrix; (2) highlights current contemporary issues faced by the industry; and (3) presents the transference of knowledge from ECOPSI to the professional field through the Portal (for) Advancing Communication Expertise (p4ace) along with a self-diagnostic tool aimed to engage practitioners in continued professional development
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
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