2009 PROCEEDINGS - Public Relations Society of America
2009 PROCEEDINGS - Public Relations Society of America
2009 PROCEEDINGS - Public Relations Society of America
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that public relations was an exceptional—more ethical and socially oriented than other<br />
occupations—pr<strong>of</strong>ession.<br />
The sense <strong>of</strong> pride about the pr<strong>of</strong>ession is one <strong>of</strong> the components <strong>of</strong><br />
pr<strong>of</strong>essionalism, along with a practitioner’s willingness to promote the image <strong>of</strong> the<br />
pr<strong>of</strong>ession and pursue qualities and ideals within the pr<strong>of</strong>ession (VanZandt, 1990). The<br />
students’ pride about public relations was noticeable in many reports. As an example, a<br />
participant, explaining what “leadership in PR” means to her, wrote: “To me it means<br />
being successful and hard-working, caring and self-motivated person. It means being<br />
good as your job” (italic is added).<br />
In general, participants’ reports appeared to be in accordance with Bowen’s<br />
(2007) statement, “In the public relations discipline, ethics includes values such as<br />
honesty, openness, loyalty, fair-mindedness, respect, integrity, and forthright<br />
communication” (p. 3). The fact that students indicated only three categories <strong>of</strong> terminal<br />
values (Wisdom, A comfortable life, and Social recognition) as important values for PR<br />
leaders might be explained by the fact that the number <strong>of</strong> instrumental values a person<br />
possess is several times more than the number <strong>of</strong> terminal values (Rokeach, 1973).<br />
However, as the author noted, “One mode <strong>of</strong> behavior may be instrumental to the<br />
attainment <strong>of</strong> several terminal values; several modes may be instrumental to the<br />
attainment <strong>of</strong> one terminal value” (p. 12). Overall, participants perceived PR leaders as<br />
noble individuals who are ethical, responsible, motivated, caring, empathetic, respected,<br />
and charismatic.<br />
Conclusion<br />
The findings <strong>of</strong> this study contribute to an understanding <strong>of</strong> the image <strong>of</strong> the<br />
public relations pr<strong>of</strong>ession and leadership held by public relations majors. Student<br />
respondents appear to perceive public relations as an occupation that is somewhat<br />
superior to other pr<strong>of</strong>essions. Although their views were skewed toward the “glamorous”<br />
(Bowen, 2003) aspect <strong>of</strong> PR practitioners’ careers, an important finding is that students<br />
regard public relations as an inherently ethical and society-oriented practice. In addition,<br />
their interpretations <strong>of</strong> the pr<strong>of</strong>essional leadership suggest that participants thought about<br />
leaders as transformational leaders, who motivate and inspire “by providing meaning and<br />
challenge to their followers’ work” (Bass, 1998, p. 5).<br />
The intertwining <strong>of</strong> the two kinds <strong>of</strong> perceptions—public relations is more<br />
prestigious and more ethical than other pr<strong>of</strong>essions—might indicate that these students<br />
possess an idealized understanding <strong>of</strong> the pr<strong>of</strong>ession. This finding contradicts previous<br />
research: Bowen (2003) found that new or potential PR majors had negative perceptions<br />
<strong>of</strong> the field. Besides the fact that Bowen’s (2003) and present studies were concerned<br />
with different research questions, another explanation for the discrepancy between the<br />
two findings is that 57 percent <strong>of</strong> participants <strong>of</strong> the present study were juniors and<br />
seniors, who had had a few specialized courses in public relations before they<br />
participated in the survey.<br />
If this explanation is correct, it might be suggested that public relations education<br />
can have an impact on students with respect to overcoming their negative perceptions <strong>of</strong><br />
the pr<strong>of</strong>ession. However, the participants <strong>of</strong> the study were not surveyed in their first year<br />
at the university, and the authors are careful about drawing any conclusions about the<br />
effectiveness <strong>of</strong> public relations education.<br />
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