The Role of Public Relations in Social Capital

Weiwu Zhang 1 *, Alan Abitbol 2
More Detail
1 Texas Tech University, USA
2 University of Dayton, USA
* Corresponding Author
Online Journal of Communication and Media Technologies, Volume 6, Issue 3, pp. 211-233. https://doi.org/10.29333/ojcmt/2565
OPEN ACCESS   2153 Views   1397 Downloads   Published online: 26 Jul 2016
Download Full Text (PDF)

ABSTRACT

Public relations research has traditionally focused on how public relations efforts make organizations more effective. Recently, scholars have argued for the broader role of public relations in society. That is, how can public relations be used to improve society rather than simply making organizations more effective? Existing studies have emphasized the relationship between internal public relations and organizational social capital. Lack of scholarly attention has been paid to how public relations efforts affect citizens’ social capital in general. To fill the gap in this area, this study examines how different types of public relations efforts contribute to citizens’ social capital. Specifically, this study uses data from the 2010 Pew Internet and American Life Project ‘Social Side of the Internet’ survey to examine the influence of public relations efforts by various organizations in individuals’ social capital. Overall, the analyses suggest that organizations’ face-to-face meetings with their members enhance interpersonal trust and civic engagement, and that organizations’ strategic use of social media boosts civic engagement, whereas strategic communication via email, blogs, and websites decreases civic engagement. This study provides empirical evidence and practical implications for the important role of strategic social media use and interpersonal communication in enhancing social capital.
Keywords: public relations, strategic communication, social media, Internet use, traditional media use, social capital

CITATION

Zhang, W., & Abitbol, A. (2016). The Role of Public Relations in Social Capital. Online Journal of Communication and Media Technologies, 6(3), 211-233. https://doi.org/10.29333/ojcmt/2565

REFERENCES

  • Aiken, M., Vanjani, M., Ray, B., & Martin, J. (2003). College student Internet use. Campus-Wide Information Systems, 20, 182-185.
  • Barber, B. (1983). The logic and limits of trust. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press.
  • Beaudoin, C. E., Thorson, E., & Hong, T. (2006). Promoting youth health by social empowerment: A media campaign targeting social capital. Health Communication, 19(2), 175-182.
  • Bennett, W. (2003). Communicating global activism. Information, Communication & Society, 6(2),143-168.
  • Best, S., & Krueger, B. (2006). Online interactions and social capital distinguishing between new and existing ties. Social Science Computer Review, 24(4), 395-410.
  • Bode, L. (2012). Facebooking it to the polls: A study in online social networking and political behavior. Journal of Information, Technology & Politics, 9, 352-369.
  • Bourdieu, P. (2001). The forms of capital. In M. Granovetter&R. Swedberg (Eds.), The sociology of economic life(pp. 96‐111). Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
  • Boyd, D., & Ellison, N. (2007). Social network sites: Definition, history, and scholarship. Journal of Computer-mediated Communication 13, 210–230.
  • Burke, M., Marlow, C., & Lento, T. (2010). Social network activity and social well‐being.ACM CHI 2010: Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, 1909‐1912.
  • Delli Carpini, M. (2004). Mediating democratic engagement: The impact of communications on citizens’ involvement in political and civic life. In L.L. Kaid (Ed.), Handbook of political communication research (pp. 395-434). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
  • Drew, D., & Weaver, D. (2006). Voter learning in the 2004 presidential election: Did the media matter? Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 83, 25-42.
  • Ehrlich, T. (2000). Civic responsibility and higher education. Westport, CT: Oryx Press.
  • Ellison, N., Steinfield, C., & Lampe, C. (2007). The benefits of Facebook “friends”: Social capital and college students’ use of online social network sites. Journal of Computer Mediated Communication, 12(4),1143-1168. doi:10.1111/j.1083-6101.2007.00367.x.
  • Ellison, N., Steinfield, C., & Lampe, C. (2010, May). Connection strategies: Relationship information and maintenance on social network sites. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Communication Association, Chicago, IL.
  • Grunig, J. E., & Huang, Y. H. (2000). From organizational effectiveness to relationship indicators: Antecedents of relationships, public relations strategies and relational outcomes. In J. A. Ledingham, & S. D. Bruning (Eds.), Public relations as relationship management: A relational approach to the study and practice of public relations (pp. 23–53). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
  • Hallahan, K. (2001). Strategic media planning: Toward an integrated public relations media model. In R.L. Heath (Ed.), Handbook of public relations (pp. 461-470). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
  • Hallahan, K. (2004). “Community” as a foundation for public relations theory and practice. Communication Yearbook, 28(1), 233-279.
  • Hampton, K., & Wellman, B. (2002). The not so global village of Netville. In B. Wellman, & C. Haythornthwaite (Eds), The Internet in everyday life (pp. 345-371). Oxford: Blackwell.
  • Hazleton, V., & Kennan, W. (2000). Social capital: Reconceptualizing the bottom line. Corporate Communications: An International Journal, 5(2), 81-87.
  • Huang, Y. H. (1997). Public relations strategies, relational outcomes, and conflict management (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). University of Maryland,College Park, MD.
  • Jin, B. (2010). Roles of public relations and social capital for communal relationship building: Enhancing collaborative values and outcomes. In Paper presented at the International Communication Association Conference, Singapore.
  • Jin, B., & Lee, S. (2013). Enhancing community capacity: Roles of perceived bonding and bridging social capital and public relations in community building. Public Relations Review, 39(4), 290-292. doi:10.1016/j.pubrev.2013.08.009.
  • Kennan, W., & Hazelton, V. (2006). Internal public relations, social capital, and the role of effective organizational communication. In C. H. Botan & V. Hazelton (Eds.), Public relations theory II (pp. 311-338). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
  • Kennan, W., Hazleton, V., Janoske, M., & Short, M. (2008). The influence of new communication technologies on undergraduate preferences for social capital formation, maintenance, and expenditure. Public Relations Journal, 2(2), 1-21.
  • Kent. M. (2013). Using social media dialogically: Public relations role in reviving democracy. Public Relations Review, 39(4), 337-345. doi:10.1016/j.pubrev.2013.07.024.
  • Kent, M., & Taylor, M. (2002). Toward a dialogic theory of public relations. Public Relations Review, 28, 21-37.
  • Kramer, R. M. (1999). Trust and distrust in organizations: Emerging perspectives, enduring questions. Annual Review of Psychology, 50, 569-598.
  • Kruckeberg, D., & Starck, K. (1988). Public relations and community: A reconstructed theory. New York: Praeger.
  • Leanna, C. R., & Van Buren III. H. J. (1999). Organizational social capital and employment practices. Academy of Management Review, 24(3), 538-555.
  • Leeper, K. (1986). Public relations: Ethics and communitarianism. Public Relations Review, 22, 163-179.
  • Leeper, R. (2000). In search of a meta theory of public relations: An argument for communitarianism. In R. L. Heath (Ed.), Handbook of public relations (pp. 93-104). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
  • Lin, N. (2001). Building a network theory of social capital. In N. Lin, K. Cook, &R. Burt (Eds.), Social capital theory and research (pp. 3‐30). New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers.
  • Luoma-aho, V. (2005). Faith-holders as social capital of Finnish public organizations. Jyvaskyla, Finland: University of Jyvaskyla Press.
  • Luoma-aho, V. (2006). Intangibles of public organizations: Trust and reputation. In V. Luoma-aho & S. Peltola (Eds.), Public organizations in the communication society (pp. 11-58). Jyvaskyla, Finland: University of Jyvaskyla Press.
  • Luoma-aho, V. (2009). On Putnam: Bowling together-applying Putnam’s theories of community and social capital to public relations. In O. Ihlen, M. van Ruler, & M. Fredriksson (Eds.), Public relations and social theory: Key figures and concepts (pp. 231-251). New York: Routledge.
  • McLeod, J. M., Scheufele, D. A., & Moy, P. (1999). Community, communication and participation: The role of mass media and interpersonal discussion in local political participation. Political Communication, 16, 315-336.
  • McLeod, J. M., Scheufele, D. A., Moy, P., Horowitz, E. M., Holbert, R. L., Zhang, W., Zubric, S., & Zubric, J. (1999). Understanding deliberation: The effects of discussion networks on participation in a public forum. Communication Research, 26, 743-774.
  • Nie, N. (2001). Sociability, interpersonal relations, and the internet reconciling conflicting findings. American Behavioral Scientist, 45(3), 420-435.
  • Nielsen, R. (2011). Mundane Internet tools, mobilizing practices, and the coproduction of citizenship in political campaigns. New Media & Society, 13(5), 755-771. doi:10.1177/1461444810380863.
  • Obar, J., Zube, P., & Lampe, C. (2012). Advocacy 2.0: An analysis of how advocacy groups in the United States perceived and use social media as tools for facilitating civil engagement and collection action. Journal of Information Policy, 2. 1-25.
  • Orbell, J., & Dawes, R. M. (1991). A “cognitive miser” theory of cooperators’ advance. American Political Science Review, 85, 515-528.
  • Park, N., Kee, K., & Valenzuela, S. (2009). Being immersed in social networking environment: Facebook groups, uses and gratifications, and social outcomes. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 12(6), 729-733.
  • Pasek, J., More, E., & Romer, D. (2008). Realizing the social internet? Online social networking meets offline social capital. Journal of Information Technology & Politics, 6(3-4). 197-215.
  • Patrick, J. (1998). Building communities from the inside out: A path toward finding and mobilizing a community’s assets. Chicago: ACTA Publications.
  • Paxton, P. (1999). Is social capital declining in the United States? A multiple indicator assessment. American Journal of Sociology, 105(1), 88-127.
  • Putnam, R. (1995a). Bowling alone: America’s declining social capital. Journal of Democracy, 6, 65-78.
  • Putnam R. (1995b) Tuning in, tuning out: The strange disappearance of social capital in America. PS: Political Science & Politics, 28(4), 664-683.
  • Putnam, R. (2000a). Social capital: Measurement and consequences. Canadian Journal of Policy Research, 2(1), 41-51.
  • Putnam, R. (2000b). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community. New York: Simon & Schuster.
  • Rainie, L., Purcell, K., & Smith, A. (2011). The social site of the Internet. Pew Internet & American Life Project. http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2011/The-Social-Side-of-theInternet.aspx.
  • Shah, D., Cho, J., Eveland, W., & Kwak, N. (2005). Information and expression in a digital age modeling Internet effects on civic participation. Communication Research, 32(5), 531-565. doi:10.1177/0093650205279209.
  • Sommerfeldt, E. (2012). Networks of social capital: Extending a public relations model of civil society in Peru. Public Relations Review, 39. 1-12. doi:10.1016/j.pubrev.2012.08.005.
  • Sommerfeldt, E. (2013). The civility of social capital: Public relations in the public sphere, civil society, and democracy. Public Relations Review, 39 (4), 280-289. doi:10.1016/j.pubrev.2012.12.004.
  • Sommerfeldt, E. J., & Taylor, M. (2011). A social capital approach to improving public relations’ efficacy: Diagnosing internal constraints on external communication. Public Relations Review, 37(3), 197-206.
  • Stamm, K. R., Emig, A.G., & Hesse, M.B. (1997). The contribution of local media to community involvement. Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, 74, 97107.
  • Steinfield, C., Ellison, N. & Lampe, C. (2008). Social capital, self-esteem, and use of online social network sites: a longitudinal analysis. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 29, 434-445.
  • Steinfield, C., Ellison, N., Lampe, C. & Vitak, J. (2012). Online social network sites and the concept of social capital. In F. Lee, L. Leung, J. Qui, & S. Chu (Eds.),Frontiers in new media research (pp.115-131). New York: Routledge.
  • Taylor, M. (2009). Civil society as a rhetorical public relations process. In R. Heath, E.L. Toth, & D. Waymer (Eds.), Rhetorical and critical approaches to public relations II (pp. 76-91). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
  • Taylor, M. (2010). Public relations in the enactment of civil society. In R. Heath (Ed.), The Sage handbook of public relations (pp. 5-15). Los Angeles, CA: Sage.
  • Taylor, M. (2011). Building social capital through rhetoric and public relations. Management Communication Quarterly, 25, 436–454. doi:10.1177/0893318911410286.
  • Taylor, M., & Doerfel, M. (2003). Building interorganizational relationships that build nations. Human Communication Research, 29(2), 153-181.
  • Taylor, M., & Kent, M. (2000). Media transitions in Bosnia: From propagandist past to uncertain future. Gazette, 62, 355-378.
  • Wellman, B., Hasse, A., Witte, J., & Hampton, K. (2001). Does the Internet increase, decrease, or supplement social capital? Social networks, participation, and community commitment. The American Behavioral Scientist, 45(3),436-459.
  • Willis, P. (2012). Engaging communities: Ostrom's economic commons, social capital and public relations. Public Relations Review, 38(1), 116-122. doi:10.1016/j.pubrev/2011.08.016.
  • Wimmer, R. D., & Dominick, J. R. (2006). Mass media research: An introduction. Belmont, CA: Thomson Learning.
  • Valenzuela, S., Park, N., Kee, K. (2008, April). Lessons from Facebook: The effect of social network sites on college students’ social capital. Paper presented at the 9th International Symposium on Online Journalism, Austin, TX.
  • Valenzuela, S., Park, N., & Kee, K. (2009). Is there social capital in a social network site?: Facebook use and college students’ life satisfaction, trust, and participation. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 14, 875-901. doi:10.1111/j.10836101.2009.01474.x.
  • Vitak, J., Zube, P, Smock, A., Carr., Ellison, N., & Lampe, C. (2011). It’s complicated: Facebook users’ political participation in the 2008 election. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 14(3). 107-114.
  • Zhang, W., & Seltzer, T. (2010). Another piece of the puzzle: Advancing social capital theory by examining the effect of political party relationship quality on political and civic participation. International Journal of Strategic Communication, 4(3), 155-170. doi:10.1080/15531180903415954.
  • Zuniga, H., Nakwon, J., & Valenzuela S. (2011). Social media use for news and individuals’ social capital, civic engagement and political participation. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 17(3).319-336. doi:10.1111/j.1083-6101.2012.01574.x.