Journal of Public Relations Research

Aldoory, Linda

1998 Journal of Public Relations Research

doi: 10.1207/s1532754xjprr1002_01

This study used feminist scholarship to explore leadership in female public relations practitioners and educators. Interviews with 10 women helped illustrate their communication styles, motivations, and meanings for leadership. These women's voices deserve attention due to the concerns about the growing percentage of women entering the field. Results revealed that participants illustrated a mix of 2-way and I-way communication when hypothetically responding to staff. Educators tended to utilize 2-way communication more than I-way and incorporated compromise into conflict resolution. All the participants exhibited assertiveness. empathy for staff, and use of logical rather than emotional arguments.

Hon, Linda Childers

1998 Journal of Public Relations Research

doi: 10.1207/s1532754xjprr1002_02

Public relations planning and evaluation were explored among 32 practitioners and 10 top executives. Practitioners said their goals reflect the priorities of their institution. The CEOs believed public relations' ultimate aim is communicating the image of the organization. Responses showed many practitioners conduct informal evaluation, whereas only a few conduct formal evaluation. This research suggests public relations planning and evaluation are becoming more systematic but are still constrained by lack of resources and difficulty.

Fischer, Rick

1998 Journal of Public Relations Research

doi: 10.1207/s1532754xjprr1002_03

This study examines one of the threats to successful problem solving identified by cognitive psychologists: error induced by the problem solver's use of heuristics. The 3 factors comprising expertise (experience, education, and training) are considered in a controlled experiment involving conjunction-rule problems framed in a public relations context. A novel approach to measuring expertise is used and discussed in this study. Training was found to significantly affect error rate. whereas experience and education, as operationalized in this study, had no effect. Implications for cognitive researchers are discussed. as are more pragmatic concerns for those interested in studying problem solving.