PRIMER OF PUBLIC RELATIONS RESEARCH ebook THE GUILFORD PRESS Primer of Public Relations Research SECOND EDITION DON W STACKS THE GUILFORD PRESS New York London © 2011 The Guilford Press A Division of Guilford Publications, Inc 72 Spring Street, New York, NY 10012 www.guilford.com All rights reserved No part of this book may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher Printed in the United States of America This book is printed on acid-free paper Last digit is print number: Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Stacks, Don W Primer of public relations research / Don W Stacks.—2nd ed p cm Includes bibliographical references and index ISBN 978-1-59385-595-6 (hardcover) Public relations—Research I Title HM1221.S78 2011 659.2072—dc22 2010013366 Preface to the Second Edition Almost 10 years have passed since the first edition of the Primer of Public Relations Research was published Over that time, several things have changed the way that public relations professionals understand and conduct practice Four particular changes have arisen to affect public relations practice Each will continue to drive how public relations is practiced and how it is perceived by others over the next 10 years First, new technology has changed and has sped up the practice of public relations This new technology utilizing the Internet and social media has taken many practitioners by storm—it fits their niche of marketing public relations and media relations quite nicely, and they have quickly endorsed it as the way to communicate in the 21st century However, a closer look at this new form of media shows that it really does not present new ways of doing research Indeed, public relations research focusing on message impact and strategy has not changed at all The methods— survey, content analysis, focus group, in-depth interviews—are still the methods The material being coded or asked about—blogs, tweets, and so forth—are still messages that differ little from their traditional media counterparts (newspaper copy, broadcast stories, speeches, interpersonal contacts) What has changed, and changed greatly, is the amount of those messages and the ability to go around the traditional media gatekeeper I not think that the social media are a trend that will go away, but will be data that can be used as part of the total communication milieu, which will include the traditional media for the foreseeable future When I talk to public relations professionals—not the technicians but those who are actively engaged in communication strategy—I often get the question “What are the new methods of data gathering and analyv vi Preface to the Second Edition sis?” My answer is, “The methods and the data have not changed, but the analysis—what the researcher can provide for the strategic communication found in public relations campaigns and programs—has changed, mainly because the amount of time needed to conduct the research and analyze the data has changed, and changed at warp speed.” So, readers of the second edition will note that social media are not covered in a chapter of their own Instead, where appropriate, they are covered as part of the data the methods gather and analyze The second change deals with proving the value of public relations in terms of how investment in the public relations function is returned by business, or the ROI of public relations—business being the organization the public relations function works in and the client-based investment in public relations programs Chapter has been expanded to cover this ROI both theoretically and practically From stating measurable public relations objectives (as introduced in the first edition) to the second edition’s expanded coverage of the research objectives, I discuss how public relations objectives should focus on the overall business objectives and final goal Third, over 30 years of teaching communication and public relations research methods classes have made it clear that readers who understand what data are and how outcomes can be measured with stated reliability and validity better understand the advantages and disadvantages of different research methodologies For the second edition, the coverage of basic statistics and measurement has been moved to the beginning of the book After talking to many college professors and public relations professionals I have found that most are not comfortable with numbers, let alone statistics, or with creating outcome measures that can provide valuable information regarding the ROI question The statistics chapter also introduces the reader to statistical procedures that will be used in covering the different methodologies to collect and analyze data Finally, best practices is a way of life in contemporary strategic public relations, which focuses on how research can be conducted to maximize the contribution of public relations to organizational success The second edition now includes a focus on best practices Readers need to understand how the best-practice approach will make for better research and aid them in evaluating the data and analyses provided by public relations research firms An Instructor’s Manual in RTF format will automatically be e-mailed to all instructors who request a desk copy of this book from Guilford Included in the manual are a test bank with multiple-choice, true–false, short-answer, and essay questions; suggested readings; chapter outlines; and case studies Use some or all of these materials to gauge your students’ retention and comprehension In addition, PowerPoint slides of selected illustrations and other related materials can be found at www.guilford.com/stacksmanual Preface to the Second Edition vii Writing the second edition has not been a solo undertaking I am indebted to four graduate students for a critical review of the first edition and for reading and rereading copy as it was produced I would like to thank MA student Devonie Nicholas and PhD students Koichi Yamamura, Linjuan Rita Men, and Melissa Dodd for their help in producing this edition In particular, I thank Koichi for his insight into needed changes as a first-time public relations research methods instructor I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge the critical appraisals of my ideas by two close friends—David Michaelson of Echo Research, Inc., and Donald K Wright of Boston University I thank Shannon A Bowen of Syracuse University for review and critique of Chapter 5, “Ethical Concerns in Public Relations Research.” I am also indebted to my editor, Kristal Hawkins, and The Guilford Press production team for their professional guidance and critical decision making in getting the second edition to press Thanks also to reviewers Donald K Wright, Dean Kruckeberg, Tina McCorkindale, Ron Anderson, and Marcia DiStaso for their comments, questions, and suggestions DON W STACKS Coral Gables, Florida Preface to the First Edition This book is the product of many years spent attempting to prove that research really does matter in public relations Most books—both text and trade—talk about research as being important, as in the ROPE or RACE models, but very little is said regarding its application in day-to-day practice Over a decade ago in Montreal, Donald K Wright (University of South Alabama) and I packed a room at the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication’s annual meeting discussing the need for research At that meeting we made an argument for a book that would present research (and statistics) in a simple, “primer” way Although the academics demonstrated their desire, no publisher at that time (or for the next 10 years, for that matter) was willing to take a chance on public relations research Instead, the argument was that mass communication or speech communication or sociology research methods books sufficed for the area Over these years this book languished Although it was clear that today’s practitioner needed to understand and interpret research, little was being done to provide both the student and the practitioner with a quick and simple approach to research Further, academic books took rather aesthetic approaches, focusing on science and theory (as appropriate for their interests—to extend the knowledge base of the humanities and social sciences) instead of the bottom line, or establishing how research added to an organization’s or client’s ROI (return on investment) In 1997 Jack Felton of the Institute for Public Relations suggested that what public relations practitioners and students really needed was a “research for dummies” book While this is not a research for dummies book, it is a primer for research It presents in what I hope is simple and ix .. .PRIMER OF PUBLIC RELATIONS RESEARCH ebook THE GUILFORD PRESS Primer of Public Relations Research SECOND EDITION DON W STACKS THE GUILFORD PRESS New... (hardcover) Public relations Research I Title HM1221.S78 2011 659.2072—dc22 2010013366 Preface to the Second Edition Almost 10 years have passed since the first edition of the Primer of Public Relations. .. CONDUCT PUBLIC RELATIONS RESEARCH? WHAT IS RESEARCH? USE OF RESEARCH IN PUBLIC RELATIONS 15 BEST PRACTICES IN PUBLIC RELATIONS 16 SUMMARY 17 CHAPTER Management of Research in Public Relations