Stephen D. Bruning

Relationships between Organizations and Publics: Development of a Multi-Dimensional Organization-Public Relationship Scale.

Abstract Public relations has long struggled to develop an identity in both scholarship and practice. An increasing number of scholars are adopting the perspective that public relations should be viewed as the management of a relationship between organizations and publics. The current investigation was an attempt to design a multiple-item, multiple-dimension organization-public relationship scale. Results of this investigation show that organizations and key publics have three types of relationships: professional, personal, and community. The organization-public relationship measure developed in this investigation should provide an instrument that can be used to measure þe influence that perceptions of the organization-public relationship have on consumer attitudes, predispositions, and behavior, as well as an opportunity to track changes in organizationpublic relationship perceptions over time. Results of the investigation, conclusions, and suggested applications for future research are presented. Dr. Bruning and Dr. Ledingham are members of the Department of Communication at Capital University, Columbus, OH.

Perceptions of Relationships and Evaluations of Satisfaction: An Exploration of Interaction.

Abstract Increasingly, scholars and practitioners are defining public relations as the management of relationships between organizations and publics. Because relationships can be difficult to measure, public relations practitioners often have struggled to demonstrate the influence that public relations activities have on consumer perceptions, evaluations, and behaviors. The current investigation sought to examine key public members’ perceptions of the personal, professional, and community relationships they have with a bank and to relate those perceptions to evaluations of satisfaction. The results show that key public members’ perceptions of their personal and professional relationships significantly influence evaluations of overall satisfaction with the organization, accounting for 75% of satisfaction variation. A discussion of the implications these findings hold for the study and practice of public relations are provided, a management framework, SMART Public Relations, is suggested, and areas of examination for future research are presented. Dr. Bruning is an associate professor and Dr. Ledingham is a professor of communication at Capital University, Columbus, Ohio.

Relationship Building as a Retention Strategy: Linking Relationship Attitudes and Satisfaction Evaluations to Behavioral Outcomes.

Abstract The practice of public relations historically has focused on managing communications. Within the past 5 years, however, an increasing number of scholars have started to conceptualize the practice of public relations as relationship management, and have centred their research efforts on examining the factors that affect organization–public relationships. Recent research has shown that effectively managed organization–public relationships affect key public member attitudes, evaluations, and behaviors. In the current investigation, 122 participants were surveyed to determine whether student–university relationship attitudes and satisfaction evaluations distinguished those who returned to a university from those who did not. The results show that respondent relationship attitudes differentiate those who returned to the university from those who did not, which provides a quantitative illustration of the benefits of incorporating a relationally-based grounding for the practice of public relations. Implications of the findings, suggestions for managing organization–public relationships, and limitations to the investigation also are presented.

Expanding the organization–public relationship scale: exploring the role that structural and personal commitment play in organization–public relationships

Abstract A number of scholars recently have published scales designed to measure respondent relationship–public relationship attitudes. The scale that was developed by Bruning and Ledingham showed that organization public relationships focus on key public member personal, professional, and community relationship attitudes. The current investigation was an attempt to expand the scope of that scale by including two dimensions of personal relationship commitment—personal and structural—to provide a more complete examination of organization–public relationships. Data were collected from 135 respondents. A factor analysis with a Varimax rotation was computed and showed that organization–public relationships have at least five dimensions: anthropomorphism, professional benefits/expectations, personal commitment, community improvement, and comparison of alternatives. The results are discussed, the implications of the findings for practitioners presented, and the limitations to the investigation reported.

Organization‐public relationships and consumer satisfaction: The role of relationships in the satisfaction mix

Scholars and practitioners long have debated the influence that public relations activities have on consumers. Recently Ledingham and Bruning (1998) reported that the organization‐public relationship variables of trust, openness, involvement, investment, and commitment can be used to predict consumer behavior. The current investigation examined these organization‐public relationship variables in relation to customer satisfaction and found that customer satisfaction is influenced by the relationship that exists between an organization and its key publics. The authors suggest that the relationship between an organization and its key publics should be considered when developing customer satisfaction initiatives and should be included in future models of satisfaction research. Conclusions and future directions for research also are presented.

Examining the role that personal, professional, and community relationships play in respondent relationship recognition and intended behavior

At a time when organizations are being structured to decrease interaction between organizational representatives and key public members, the findings from the current investigation suggest that organization‐public relationships play a role in influencing the behavioral intent of key public members. Specifically, key public members who identify themselves as in a relationship with an organization are more likely to intend to stay with that organization in the face of competition. Because self‐identification of being in a relationship with an organization can influence intended behavior, the investigation also sought to determine those relationship variables that best differentiate those who indicate they are in a relationship with the organization from those who feel they are not or are uncertain. Suggestions fin‐managing organization‐public relationships grounded in interpersonal communication strategies are provided, and arguments for measuring key public member relationship attitudes, evaluations, and intended behaviors are presented.

The role of relationships in public relations: Examining the influence of key public member relational attitudes on behavioral intent

Increasingly, scholars and practitioners define the practice of public relations as relationship management. Scholars recently have demonstrated that relationship attitudes can be used to predict key public member satisfaction and intended behavioral outcomes in the telecommunications, banking, and education industries. The investigation reported herein examines the role that relationships play in influencing respondent behavioral intentions in the insurance industry by surveying 62 clients of a medium‐sized full‐service agency. The results indicated that respondent personal, professional, and community relationship attitudes differentiated those who intend to remain loyal to the agency from those who were not or were undecided. The findings suggest that (a) the practice of public relations should continue to evolve toward the relationship management paradigm, (b) practitioners may wish to re‐conceptualize the measurement of public relations outcomes away from measuring effectiveness based on communication flows and toward measuring the influence that public relations activities have on key public member perceptions, attitudes, evaluations, and behaviors, (c) practitioners can demonstrate accountability and justify programmatic initiatives by focusing on the organization‐public relationship, and (d) the role of public relations within the corporate structure should be expanded to managers of the relationships that affect the organizations economic, social, political, and/or cultural well‐being.

Initiating and reciprocating verbal aggression: Effects on credibility and credited valid arguments

Felsons Impression Management Theory of violence was used to conceptualize a source credibility approach to studying verbal aggression. Research participants listened to a recorded discussion of two speakers arguing a controversial topic. One speaker initiated either a high or low level of verbal aggression and the other speaker either reciprocated or did not reciprocate the verbal aggression. Participants in the control group listened to a discussion containing no verbal aggression. The initiators of verbal aggression were seen as less credible, and had fewer valid arguments credited to them by observers. In comparison, the target of verbal aggression was seen as more credible, and was credited with more valid arguments, when s/he reciprocated a level of verbal aggression. An unexpected finding was that participants overestimated the amount of verbal aggression in the discussion.

Using a relational approach to retaining students and building mutually beneficial student‐university relationships

The practice of public relations at most universities has been relegated to a single office concerned primarily with managing institutional reputation. When public relations is conceptualized as relationship management, however, the role of public relations is expanded to include a campus‐wide approach to initiating, developing, and maintaining relationships with key public members who can affect the institution economically, socially, politically, and culturally. In the current investigation, 164 students were surveyed to determine whether student‐university relationship attitudes differentiated those who indicated they were planning on returning to the institution from those who were not or were undecided. Respondent student‐university relationship attitudes were measured using the Bruning and Ledingham (1999) organization‐public relationship scale, which examines the respondents personal, professional, and community relationship attitudes. Also, focus groups were conducted to define student‐university personal, professional, and community relationships. The results showed that community relationships were strongly related to the criterion and personal and professional relationships were substantially related. Implications of these findings for the practice of public relations, suggestions for managing student‐faculty relationships, and limitations to the investigation are discussed.

Axioms of Relationship Management

Abstract Public relations scholars who have adopted a relationship management perspective have reported that the relationship that exists between an organization and key public members influences key public member perceptions, attitudes, evaluations, and behaviors. Scholars argue that in the relationship management perspective, the role of the public relations practitioner is to support and manage organization-public relationships, not simply transfer information. However, the practice of public relations more typically employs traditional mass communication models rather than true relationship principles. The current investigation extends the axioms of interpersonal communication to an organization-public context, finding that many of the concepts, when adapted slightly, are applicable to an organization-public relationship. Understanding the axioms of organization-public relationship communication should help practitioners develop a clearer conceptualization of the role that communication and relationships play in organizational functioning, and lend more credence to the notion of public relations as relationship management.