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Learning by leading: Integrating leadership in public relations education for an enhanced value
Public Relations Review 39 (2013) 609–611
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Public Relations Review
Research in Brief
Learning by leading: Integrating leadership in public relations education for an enhanced value Juan Meng ∗ Department of Advertising and Public Relations, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, United States
a r t i c l e
i n f o
Article history: Received 30 May 2013 Received in revised form 15 September 2013 Accepted 20 September 2013 Keywords: Public relations Leadership development Leadership education Pedagogy
a b s t r a c t Twin surveys of senior public relations executives and public relations majors compared perceptual similarities and differences in leadership qualities, skill development sources, and unique features of public relations leadership. The perceptual gap revealed what students believe to be important or less important in the self-actualization process as future leaders. The results offered pedagogical recommendations on how to integrate leadership training in public relations education to prepare students with a sustainable competitive advantage. © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
1. Introduction As the public relations related job market continues to become increasingly competitive, many employers have become more selective and demand more managerial and leadership traits in new hires (Broom & Dozier, 1986; Dozier & Broom, 1995). Organizations are interested in hiring graduates to fill their immediate needs for public relations practitioners along with their future need for communication leaders. Thus, it is important for us to identify the perceptual gaps in desired leadership qualities, leadership skill development sources, and unique leadership features between current (i.e., senior public relations executives) and future leaders (i.e., PR majors who will get into the job seeking and hiring process very shortly). Identifying such perceptual gaps may aid public relations educators in pinpointing the specific types of knowledge, skills, and activities that are of most importance to organizations in order to help PR majors identify sources to sharpen leadership skills and pursue opportunities to enhance individual value as a future leader (Neff, 2002; Thayer, 1986; The Professional Bond, 2006). Therefore, one leading research question guided this study: As collective groups, do significant differences exist between senior PR executives and PR majors regarding their perceptions of desired leadership qualities, leadership development sources, and unique features? If yes, what are these differences? Three ranking questions were used to identify perceptual gaps on investigated subjects. Such comparison can not only enhance our understanding in leadership from current leaders, but more importantly, it can enrich public relations education by integrating leadership training into teaching content and philosophy to prepare PR majors with a sustainable competitive advantage to lead in the rapidly changing profession.
∗ Correspondence to: Department of Advertising and Public Relations, Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-3018, United States. Tel.: +1 706 542 2173; fax: +1 706 542 2183. E-mail address: [email protected] 0363-8111/$ – see front matter © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2013.09.005
610
J. Meng / Public Relations Review 39 (2013) 609–611
2. Research method 2.1. Research design and sample By using an online twin survey, this study called for a sample that was trying to be representative of two separate populations: senior public relations executives, and public relations majors in an upper-division standing. The researcher used a purposive sampling technique in order to maximize the response rate of the study itself. The student sample was recruited from a list of junior and senior PR majors enrolled at three universities in the U.S. (one southeastern public university, one southwestern public university, and one private university located in the Midwest region).1 An initial survey access was made to a combined list of 320 PR majors based on course registration record. Data collection resulted in a final pool of 226 completed surveys, with an actual response rate of 70.63%. The initial independent ANOVA tests did not indicate any significant mean differences across the three sub-groups. Therefore, the researcher combined the three sub-groups as the final student sample. A series of crosstabulation and Chi-square analyses were undertaken to determine if perceptual gaps existed between the two groups. 2.2. Sample profiles For the final sample of the 226 PR majors holding an upper-division standing, 72.1% were seniors (n = 163) and 27.9% were juniors (n = 63). As a typical reflection of the gender distribution in communication programs at the college level, 19.5% were males (n = 44) and 80.5% were females (n = 182). The average age of students was 21.86 with a variance from 20 to 27. The majority of the sample majored in public relations (n = 184; 81.4%), 12.4% in communication (n = 28), and 6.2% in other related majors such as business, marketing, public administration, and sport PR (n = 13). In addition, most students in the sample (n = 170, 75.2%) indicated that they had certain public relations experience through internships, campaign projects, or student organization activities. 3. Results 3.1. Desired leadership qualities For most desired leadership qualities, senior practitioners and PR majors gave different ranks. The top three desired leadership qualities by senior practitioners were (1) strategic decision-making capability (n = 121), (2) ability to solve problems and produce desired results (n = 102), and (3) communication knowledge and expertise (n = 102). For PR majors in an upper-division standing, the top three desired leadership qualities were: (1) ability to solve problems and produce desired results (n = 127), (2) being trustworthy and dependable (n = 106), and (3) relationship-building abilities (n = 98). Chi-square test indicated significant differences between the two groups at the first round ranking (2 = 34.10, df = 9, p < .01) and the second round ranking (2 = 22.95, df = 9, p < .01). 3.2. Desired leadership development sources A less divided gap was identified in the rankings of desired leadership development sources. The analysis showed that both practitioners and PR majors ranked on-the-job experiences (n = 162 for practitioners and n = 166 for students) as the most desired source for leadership skill development. Result also showed that both practitioners and students believed that individual initiatives (n = 133 for practitioners and n = 128 for students) are important for individuals to grow into leaders in the organization. The major difference existed in the third important source: practitioners who have worked in the profession believed that they have learned leadership from examples set by excellent role models (n = 131); while students believed that attending communication skills training programs/workshops/sessions could be an important source for them as young professionals to learn leadership skills (n = 99). Chi-square tests indicated significant differences between the two groups at the first round ranking (2 = 27.73, df = 8, p < .01), the second round ranking (2 = 45.29, df = 8, p < .01), and the third round ranking (2 = 32.05, df = 8, p < .01). 3.3. Unique features of leadership in public relations practice Of 226 students surveyed, 139 (or 61.5%) indicated that they believe leadership qualities in public relations practice are different from leadership in other fields. For public relations practitioners, the top three unique leadership qualities were (1) having a compelling vision of communication for the organization (n = 59), (2) possessing comprehensive knowledge and skills about media and technologies (n = 47), and (3) having the ability to construct messages strategically and to develop comprehensive communication plans (n = 39 respectively). For PR majors, the top three unique leadership qualities were (1)
1 The senior public relations executive sample was recruited by using the database of Heyman Associates, Inc., a PR executive search firm in the U.S. For a detailed description of the sample profiles of this group, please see Meng et al.’s (2012) study for full results.
J. Meng / Public Relations Review 39 (2013) 609–611
611
having the ability to cultivate relationships with key publics (n = 69), (2) having a comprehensive understanding of the needs and concerns of diverse publics (n = 56), and (3) having a compelling vision of communication for the organization (n = 53). Chi-square analyses showed significant differences at the first round ranking (2 = 35.26, df = 9, p < .01) and the second round ranking (2 = 17.93, df = 9, p < .05). 4. Discussion and pedagogical recommendations Overall, the comparison on the three ranking questions helped us revisit desired leadership qualities, development sources, and unique features perceived by senior executives and PR majors (Meng, Berger, Gower, & Heyman, 2012). The results offer some insights for public relations educators to discuss and integrate leadership content and training into undergraduate public relations education. The results can be pedagogically used in many ways, including the following: • As a leadership training situation checklist designed to summarize major leadership qualities, skills, behaviors, traits valued by the profession and provide a foundation to discuss how to apply those leadership principles in each unique communication situation. • As an assessment tool given either before and/or after the presentation of a core undergraduate public relations course, such as public relations management, case studies, and crisis communication. • As the basis for a leadership-related research assignment in which students research and write an analytical report regarding “real-world” situations that mirror the springboard’s leadership situations/scenarios. • As the basis for strategic planning and/or ethical and/or crisis role play assignment in which students role play and discuss the public relations scenarios and what leadership skills and/or behaviors should be applied. • As the platform for class discussion on relevant leadership issues in public relations practice, such as persuasion and strategies, multicultural and global issues, issue management, social media strategies, and leadership in a digital age. • As a set of assessment metrics to be applied to relevant supervised public relations experience in helping students monitor, re-check, and revise their perceptions and behaviors about initiatives, leading roles, and effective communication through internships or group-project-based activities. In any case, these suggestions in combination with the results of this study suggest that the context of leadership training and learning offers a rich opportunity for public relations educators to expand our curriculum and understanding of the connection or disconnection between public relations education and leadership expectation in practice. At a minimum, the researcher hopes that results from this study may help public relations majors prepare themselves for an increasingly competitive job market and for an enhanced education value for their professional career. References Broom, G. M., & Dozier, D. M. (1986). Advancement for public relations role models. Public Relations Review, 12, 37–56. Dozier, D. M., & Broom, G. M. (1995). Evolution of the manager role in public relations practice. Journal of Public Relations Research, 7, 3–26. Meng, J., Berger, B. K., Gower, K., & Heyman, W. C. (2012). A test of excellent leadership in public relations: Key qualities, valuable sources, and distinctive leadership perceptions. Journal of Public Relations Research, 24, 18–36. Neff, B. D. (2002). Integrating leadership processes: Redefining the principles course. Public Relations Review, 28, 137–147. Thayer, L. (1986). Rethinking leadership for public relations. Public Relations Review, 12, 3–12. The Professional Bond: Public relations education and the practice. (2006). Research report published by the Commission on Public Relations Education. http://www.commpred.org/theprofessionalbond/ Retrieved 01.03.12.
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Public Relations Review
Research in Brief
Learning by leading: Integrating leadership in public relations education for an enhanced value Juan Meng ∗ Department of Advertising and Public Relations, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, United States
a r t i c l e
i n f o
Article history: Received 30 May 2013 Received in revised form 15 September 2013 Accepted 20 September 2013 Keywords: Public relations Leadership development Leadership education Pedagogy
a b s t r a c t Twin surveys of senior public relations executives and public relations majors compared perceptual similarities and differences in leadership qualities, skill development sources, and unique features of public relations leadership. The perceptual gap revealed what students believe to be important or less important in the self-actualization process as future leaders. The results offered pedagogical recommendations on how to integrate leadership training in public relations education to prepare students with a sustainable competitive advantage. © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
1. Introduction As the public relations related job market continues to become increasingly competitive, many employers have become more selective and demand more managerial and leadership traits in new hires (Broom & Dozier, 1986; Dozier & Broom, 1995). Organizations are interested in hiring graduates to fill their immediate needs for public relations practitioners along with their future need for communication leaders. Thus, it is important for us to identify the perceptual gaps in desired leadership qualities, leadership skill development sources, and unique leadership features between current (i.e., senior public relations executives) and future leaders (i.e., PR majors who will get into the job seeking and hiring process very shortly). Identifying such perceptual gaps may aid public relations educators in pinpointing the specific types of knowledge, skills, and activities that are of most importance to organizations in order to help PR majors identify sources to sharpen leadership skills and pursue opportunities to enhance individual value as a future leader (Neff, 2002; Thayer, 1986; The Professional Bond, 2006). Therefore, one leading research question guided this study: As collective groups, do significant differences exist between senior PR executives and PR majors regarding their perceptions of desired leadership qualities, leadership development sources, and unique features? If yes, what are these differences? Three ranking questions were used to identify perceptual gaps on investigated subjects. Such comparison can not only enhance our understanding in leadership from current leaders, but more importantly, it can enrich public relations education by integrating leadership training into teaching content and philosophy to prepare PR majors with a sustainable competitive advantage to lead in the rapidly changing profession.
∗ Correspondence to: Department of Advertising and Public Relations, Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-3018, United States. Tel.: +1 706 542 2173; fax: +1 706 542 2183. E-mail address: [email protected] 0363-8111/$ – see front matter © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2013.09.005
610
J. Meng / Public Relations Review 39 (2013) 609–611
2. Research method 2.1. Research design and sample By using an online twin survey, this study called for a sample that was trying to be representative of two separate populations: senior public relations executives, and public relations majors in an upper-division standing. The researcher used a purposive sampling technique in order to maximize the response rate of the study itself. The student sample was recruited from a list of junior and senior PR majors enrolled at three universities in the U.S. (one southeastern public university, one southwestern public university, and one private university located in the Midwest region).1 An initial survey access was made to a combined list of 320 PR majors based on course registration record. Data collection resulted in a final pool of 226 completed surveys, with an actual response rate of 70.63%. The initial independent ANOVA tests did not indicate any significant mean differences across the three sub-groups. Therefore, the researcher combined the three sub-groups as the final student sample. A series of crosstabulation and Chi-square analyses were undertaken to determine if perceptual gaps existed between the two groups. 2.2. Sample profiles For the final sample of the 226 PR majors holding an upper-division standing, 72.1% were seniors (n = 163) and 27.9% were juniors (n = 63). As a typical reflection of the gender distribution in communication programs at the college level, 19.5% were males (n = 44) and 80.5% were females (n = 182). The average age of students was 21.86 with a variance from 20 to 27. The majority of the sample majored in public relations (n = 184; 81.4%), 12.4% in communication (n = 28), and 6.2% in other related majors such as business, marketing, public administration, and sport PR (n = 13). In addition, most students in the sample (n = 170, 75.2%) indicated that they had certain public relations experience through internships, campaign projects, or student organization activities. 3. Results 3.1. Desired leadership qualities For most desired leadership qualities, senior practitioners and PR majors gave different ranks. The top three desired leadership qualities by senior practitioners were (1) strategic decision-making capability (n = 121), (2) ability to solve problems and produce desired results (n = 102), and (3) communication knowledge and expertise (n = 102). For PR majors in an upper-division standing, the top three desired leadership qualities were: (1) ability to solve problems and produce desired results (n = 127), (2) being trustworthy and dependable (n = 106), and (3) relationship-building abilities (n = 98). Chi-square test indicated significant differences between the two groups at the first round ranking (2 = 34.10, df = 9, p < .01) and the second round ranking (2 = 22.95, df = 9, p < .01). 3.2. Desired leadership development sources A less divided gap was identified in the rankings of desired leadership development sources. The analysis showed that both practitioners and PR majors ranked on-the-job experiences (n = 162 for practitioners and n = 166 for students) as the most desired source for leadership skill development. Result also showed that both practitioners and students believed that individual initiatives (n = 133 for practitioners and n = 128 for students) are important for individuals to grow into leaders in the organization. The major difference existed in the third important source: practitioners who have worked in the profession believed that they have learned leadership from examples set by excellent role models (n = 131); while students believed that attending communication skills training programs/workshops/sessions could be an important source for them as young professionals to learn leadership skills (n = 99). Chi-square tests indicated significant differences between the two groups at the first round ranking (2 = 27.73, df = 8, p < .01), the second round ranking (2 = 45.29, df = 8, p < .01), and the third round ranking (2 = 32.05, df = 8, p < .01). 3.3. Unique features of leadership in public relations practice Of 226 students surveyed, 139 (or 61.5%) indicated that they believe leadership qualities in public relations practice are different from leadership in other fields. For public relations practitioners, the top three unique leadership qualities were (1) having a compelling vision of communication for the organization (n = 59), (2) possessing comprehensive knowledge and skills about media and technologies (n = 47), and (3) having the ability to construct messages strategically and to develop comprehensive communication plans (n = 39 respectively). For PR majors, the top three unique leadership qualities were (1)
1 The senior public relations executive sample was recruited by using the database of Heyman Associates, Inc., a PR executive search firm in the U.S. For a detailed description of the sample profiles of this group, please see Meng et al.’s (2012) study for full results.
J. Meng / Public Relations Review 39 (2013) 609–611
611
having the ability to cultivate relationships with key publics (n = 69), (2) having a comprehensive understanding of the needs and concerns of diverse publics (n = 56), and (3) having a compelling vision of communication for the organization (n = 53). Chi-square analyses showed significant differences at the first round ranking (2 = 35.26, df = 9, p < .01) and the second round ranking (2 = 17.93, df = 9, p < .05). 4. Discussion and pedagogical recommendations Overall, the comparison on the three ranking questions helped us revisit desired leadership qualities, development sources, and unique features perceived by senior executives and PR majors (Meng, Berger, Gower, & Heyman, 2012). The results offer some insights for public relations educators to discuss and integrate leadership content and training into undergraduate public relations education. The results can be pedagogically used in many ways, including the following: • As a leadership training situation checklist designed to summarize major leadership qualities, skills, behaviors, traits valued by the profession and provide a foundation to discuss how to apply those leadership principles in each unique communication situation. • As an assessment tool given either before and/or after the presentation of a core undergraduate public relations course, such as public relations management, case studies, and crisis communication. • As the basis for a leadership-related research assignment in which students research and write an analytical report regarding “real-world” situations that mirror the springboard’s leadership situations/scenarios. • As the basis for strategic planning and/or ethical and/or crisis role play assignment in which students role play and discuss the public relations scenarios and what leadership skills and/or behaviors should be applied. • As the platform for class discussion on relevant leadership issues in public relations practice, such as persuasion and strategies, multicultural and global issues, issue management, social media strategies, and leadership in a digital age. • As a set of assessment metrics to be applied to relevant supervised public relations experience in helping students monitor, re-check, and revise their perceptions and behaviors about initiatives, leading roles, and effective communication through internships or group-project-based activities. In any case, these suggestions in combination with the results of this study suggest that the context of leadership training and learning offers a rich opportunity for public relations educators to expand our curriculum and understanding of the connection or disconnection between public relations education and leadership expectation in practice. At a minimum, the researcher hopes that results from this study may help public relations majors prepare themselves for an increasingly competitive job market and for an enhanced education value for their professional career. References Broom, G. M., & Dozier, D. M. (1986). Advancement for public relations role models. Public Relations Review, 12, 37–56. Dozier, D. M., & Broom, G. M. (1995). Evolution of the manager role in public relations practice. Journal of Public Relations Research, 7, 3–26. Meng, J., Berger, B. K., Gower, K., & Heyman, W. C. (2012). A test of excellent leadership in public relations: Key qualities, valuable sources, and distinctive leadership perceptions. Journal of Public Relations Research, 24, 18–36. Neff, B. D. (2002). Integrating leadership processes: Redefining the principles course. Public Relations Review, 28, 137–147. Thayer, L. (1986). Rethinking leadership for public relations. Public Relations Review, 12, 3–12. The Professional Bond: Public relations education and the practice. (2006). Research report published by the Commission on Public Relations Education. http://www.commpred.org/theprofessionalbond/ Retrieved 01.03.12.