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16th BledCom International

Public Relations Research Symposium

CALL FOR PAPERS

General Theme: Culture and Public Relations

“Culture Public Relations. A new approach to

the profession in a global multicultural environment”

Amanda Jane Succi

AJS Connection srl

Via Provinciale 18 - 95026 Acitrezza - Catania – Italy

Tel.: +39 095 7116077 info@ajsconnection.it

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Culture Public Relations.

A new approach to the profession in a

global multicultural environment

Abstract

Culture is powerful. Every one of us believes implicitly in our culture (whichever one it is) and

generally conforms to its tenets. Communication is powerful. Through the skilled use of

communication strategies and tools, change can be accomplished. As culture is critically

important to communication, so communication is important to culture since it is fundamental in

the achievement of mutual understanding.

Key questions: During the moment of communication, how do values and cultural norms affect

communication? Which are the social and cognitive factors able to determine the success of

relational exchange between people? In which way do the context, the type of relationship and

the perceived distance reflect on the communication process? How can we identify specific

barriers, in the communication process, related to differences between people and their

expectations, potentially determining an obstacle to their mutual understanding?

This paper aims to state the importance of binding culture and communication together in

specific public relations programs, and its implications for public relations in both societal and

corporate culture settings. The theoretical part gives general descriptions of the terms culture,

multiculturalism, intercultural relations and cross-cultural communication. The second part

outlines the definition of public relations and its natural core “culture orientation”, expanding on

corporate culture, and the increasing importance of culture public relations in defining relational

spaces through the use of culture as a communication tool.

The paper concludes with the assumption that public relations is culture, since both have the

specific characteristics of dynamicity and change. In fact, culture is not a static phenomenon but

is constantly changing, losing and acquiring new elements and specificities. Pr, at the same time,

is a dynamic profession. It changes in order to fulfill at its best the reason for its existence: taking

care of the understanding between an organization and its many publics, culture being the silent

link.

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Article outline

The paper is outlined in two parts: the first one is concentrated on the theoretic approach of the

subject proposed; the second part is dedicated to the practical application of the idea presented.

Part one - Theoretical overview

1. Culture

2. Culture and evolution

3. Cultural differences and cultural distances

4. Multiculturalism

5. Intercultural relation

6. The importance of Culture worldwide: UNESCO’s commitment and duty

7. Communication and intercultural communication

Part two - Practical approach

8. Defining pr and its link to culture.

9. Corporate culture: cultural organization and communication

10. Practical link between the application of pr and the use of culture as a communication tool.

11. Public relations governs relations, relational spaces and cultural relations.

12. Cultural and territorial pr infrastructure

13. The Euro-Mediterranean example

14. Culture PR: Key elements and factors

Conclusions

References and bibliography

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PART ONE

Theoretical overview

Culture and communication are two extremely complex concepts and fields with many

definitions for both. Although, in this paper, I shall avoid confronting the debate still raging

between sociologists and anthropologists concerning the definition of culture, it is nevertheless

impossible to discuss the relationship between public relations, communication and culture

without introducing the basic meanings and findings regarding the following:

Culture

Cultural evolution and subcultures

Cultural differences and cultural distances

Multiculturalism

Intercultural relation

The importance of Culture worldwide: UNESCO’s commitment and duty

Communication and intercultural communication

1. Culture

From the Latin word cultura stemming from colere, meaning "to cultivate", culture generally

refers to patterns of human activity and the symbolic structures that give such activities

significance and importance.1

Culture is the particular configuration of behaviours, norms, attitudes, values, beliefs and basic

assumptions that differ from society to society. This means that culture is not “objective” in the

sense that phenomena in the natural world are (or seem to be) objective. Culture can look

different depending upon who does the looking, when they look and from what direction. This

makes culture difficult to grasp.2

Among one of the classical definitions of culture the following has been stated by Kroeber and

Kluckhohn: Culture consists of patterns, explicit and implicit, of and for behaviour, acquired and

1 Harper, Douglas (2001). Online Etymology Dictionary

2 Michael J. Rouse-Sandra Rouse “ Business communication. A cultural and strategic approach”, Thomson, 2002.

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transmitted by symbols, constituting the distinctive achievements of human groups … the

essential core of culture consists of traditional ideas and especially their attached values3.

Furthermore, culture has two main aspects which must be taken into consideration: an objective

one and a subjective one. The objective aspect of culture refers to the system of meanings

shared by a social group and piled up during the course of generations. The subjective aspect

refers to the baggage of beliefs, attitudes, self definition, norms, roles and values which an

individual possesses thanks to his/her belonging to a specific culture.4 The elements present in

the subjective culture which are organized around a central theme are defined by Triandis (1996)

“cultural syndromes”,5 which are, as an example, the level of uprightness-laxity or active-passive

activities which are required by a specific culture, such as the tendency to express or avoid

certain emotions, or to give more importance to instrumental aspects or to expressive ones (such

as taking care of social relations). So, culture gives to an individual a cognitive aspect,

represented by a mix of knowledge, and a prescriptive aspect, which is a behavioral guide. The

differences between cultures depend on that part of knowledge or prescriptions not shared and

which distinguishes one cultural group from another.6

Culture in a general sense is human software and know-how, all that is learned in the process of

being human: an open-ended learning, never complete, always in flux and not necessarily bound

to a particular location. Then there are cultures, or forms of emotional and cognitive learning

that occur in social settings such as nations, ethnic groups, localities and cities, which are usually

embedded in religions and civilizations. Cultures interact, clash, or harmonize and are mediated

through culture.7 Cultures can be "understood as systems of symbols and meanings that even

their creators contest, that lack fixed boundaries, that are constantly in flux, and that interact

and compete with one another".8 Symbols provide the limits of cultured thought: members of a

culture rely on these symbols to frame their thoughts and expressions in intelligible terms. In

short, symbols make culture possible, reproducible and readable.

3 Kroeber, A.L, & Kluckhohn, C. Culture: A critical review of concepts and definitions. New York: Random House,

(1952). 4 Angelica Mucchi Faina, Comunicazione Interculturale, Laterza, 2006. 5 Triandis, H.C. The psychological measurement cultural syndromes. American Psychologist, (1996).

6 Angelica Mucchi Faina, Comunicazione Interculturale, Laterza, 2006. 7 Jan Nederveen Pieterse, “Ethnicities and global multiculture”, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers inc., 2007 8 Findley, Carther Vaughn and John Alexander Rothney (2006). Twentieth-century World. Sixth edition, p. 14.

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Culture can also be defined as all the ways of life including arts, beliefs and institutions of a

population that are passed down from generation to generation. In fact culture has been called

"the way of life for an entire society."9 RSAL DECLARATION ON CULTURAL

Above all, culture is not a rationally based belief system, but refers rather to taken-for-granted

beliefs, values, norms, and basic assumptions that have proved useful in adapting to uncertainty

and integration. As such, it includes codes of manners, dress, language, religion, rituals, games,

norms of behavior such as law and morality, and systems of belief. So, whenever and wherever

people come together over time, culture develops. Furthermore, the essence of culture is that it

is10:

Learned

Shared

Interrelated

Adaptive

Which also means that culture is the determinant of the meaning applied to things and actions.

Symbols, in fact, are the basic unit of cultural expression being part of action, behaviour and

communication. Symbolism and culture are key aspects of organizations, and their expression in

an organization context affects the whole of the organization, in particular its communication.

But culture does not mean civilization. It's not necessary to have cities in order to have a culture.

Every society does the best it can with its circumstances. Any given social group, and therefore

the culture that reflects it, is therefore neither more advanced nor more backward than any

other; it is simply the way it is because it works that way. If the circumstances should change due

to environmental change, population pressure, or historical events, then the culture changes.

9 Williams, Raymond. Keywords, "Culture" 10

Michael J. Rouse-Sandra Rouse “ Business communication. A cultural and strategic approach”, Thomson, 2002.

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2. Cultural evolution and subcultures

Culture is not a static phenomenon, it evolves constantly and invisibly. Especially in the age of

information and technology, where it is available a huge amount of data about different cultures,

the interconnection between cultures is greater. Also global migration helps cultures to get into

contact more easily, mix, fuse and generating new cultural flavors. This means that the need of

mutual understanding is increasingly urgent, both in relation to social and business environment.

Man must be prepared to confront culture’s traits and scenarios. Man needs to learn how

culture evolves, what culture means to him and for him, needs to understand its consequences,

needs to evaluate its reasons of existence and power. Again, this must be achieved both in

society and in a business context.

I find that this aspect of culture is the core to the public relations’ process and development. I

believe that public relations is culture in itself, because it cannot accomplish its programs and

projects without culture. If culture did not exist I’m quite sure that neither would public

relations. Everything would be static, predictable, every human being would be identical to

another, there wouldn’t be any kind of conflict or misunderstanding. Everything would be

extremely flat and boring. The opposite of what culture is and of what communication as a social

phenomenon and public relations as a profession are: in constant movement and, therefore,

change.

Subculture

Cultures are not only identifiable as macro blocks, but at the same time present many

subcultures, meaning groups with distinctive characteristics within a larger culture. So, a

subculture is a group of people with a culture (whether distinct or hidden) which differentiates

them from the larger culture to which they belong. If a particular subculture is characterized by a

systematic opposition to the dominant culture, it may be described as a counterculture.

Subcultures are social, with their own shared conventions, values and rituals, but they can also

seem 'immersed' or self-absorbed, another feature that distinguishes them from

countercultures. Subcultures can be perceived as negative due to their nature of criticism to the

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dominant societal standard. In essence, subcultures bring together like-minded individuals who

feel neglected by societal standards and allow them to develop a sense of identity. 11

Large societies often have subcultures, or groups of people with distinct sets of behavior and

beliefs that differentiate them from a larger culture of which they are a part. Subcultures can be

distinctive because of the age, race, ethnicity, class, location, and/or gender of the members. The

qualities that determine a subculture as distinct may be linguistic, aesthetic, religious, political,

sexual, geographical, or a combination of factors. Members of a subculture often signal their

membership through a distinctive and symbolic use of style, which includes fashions,

mannerisms.

The above is applicable in society or in a working environment, especially if we are dealing with

cross-cultural businesses and multinational corporations. So, cultures are externally affected via

contact between societies, which may also produce -- or inhibit -- social shifts and changes in

cultural practices. The cultural and psychological change caused by a long period of contact with

people who belong to different cultural groups is called acculturation12. This is a process

regarding mutual influence which involves many consequences for the dominant group as well as

for the minority one.

War or competition over resources may impact technological development or social dynamics.

Additionally, cultural ideas may transfer from one society to another, through diffusion or

acculturation. Diffusion of innovations theory presents a research-based model of why and when

individuals and cultures adopt new ideas, practices, and products. Related processes on an

individual level include assimilation (adoption of a different culture by an individual) and trans-

culturation, a term coined by Cuban anthropologist Fernando Ortiz in 1947 to describe the

phenomenon of merging and converging cultures.

3. Cultural differences and cultural distances

Cultures can be different not only between continents or nations, but also within the same

company or even family. The differences can also depend on cultural distances.

Cultural distance can be measured taking into consideration a series of aspects, such as

language, the type of social and economic structure, religion, the political system, the level of

11

Dick Hebdige, Subculture the Meaning of Style, (1979). 12

Angelica Mucchi Faina, Comunicazione Interculturale, Laterza, 2006.

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education, the idea of truth, esthetical criteria, and so on. Cultural distance is preeminently (even

if not only) a structural distance. But this could be an effective distance or a perceived distance,

and they may not necessary coincide. The perceived distance is generally malleable, because it

can increase or decrease according to how much the context favours assimilation or contrast.

Language and behavior are among those structural factors which contribute to the perception of

distance or vicinity.13

4. Multiculturalism

The term multiculturalism generally refers to an applied ideology of racial, cultural and ethnic

diversity within the demographics of a specified place, usually at the scale of an organization

such as a school, business, neighborhood, city or nation. Some countries and some international

corporations have official policies of multiculturalism aimed at recognizing, celebrating and

maintaining the different cultures or cultural identities within that society or company to

promote social cohesion.

A multicultural area (which can be a nation, a country, a region, a city, a small town or even a

classroom) is so defined because it brings together many cultures at the same time, in the same

place. But the cultures that are present in a multicultural environment remain separate, like

bubbles in a bathtub: many bubbles in the same water, every bubble touching and pushing the

outside area of the nearest bubble, often bending it, invading it, until it breaks. Similarly this

happens in multicultural areas. People from different cultures will mix, the cultures will mix, but

always maintaining their cultural origin and sometimes generating confusion in the

communication process, breaking possible balances. This is one of the areas that should be taken

care of by public relations.

In society, and in some cases in an organizational setting, multiculturalism is the other aspect of

supranational integration, which tries to reach an equal relationship among the cultures existing

within the same citizenship or context. The debate regarding multiculturalism moves towards the

recognition of equal dignity of group and community cultural expressions which cohabit in a

democratic society. This concept can be expressed in legal language: every human being has the

13

Angelica Mucchi Faina, Comunicazione Interculturale, Laterza, 2006.

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right to grow up in a culture, his or hers own culture, not the one to which a majority tends to

assimilate him/her.

In societal terms, unfortunately, the perception of multiculturalism is blurred by the existence of

other problems, such as the explosion of certain racist episodes and the difficulties of a

multiethnic society, with which multiculturalism often risks being confused.

Simply put, it all depends on the lack of knowledge of each other’s culture, of each other’s self

being, of simple respect for one another. People forget to communicate correctly with each

other, simply because they do not have the knowledge of the power of communication and how,

through it and thanks to it, understanding can be shared. This is where public relations has a very

important role to play in creating understanding through the knowledge and sharing of culture. It

bridges people’s needs to learn to share relational spaces, to understand how to interrelate both

in societal and organizational environment, and to adapt to each other consciously towards true

intercultural relations through cross-cultural communication.

5. Intercultural relation matches intercultural competence

Leaving aside sociological and anthropological concerns regarding intercultural concepts, from

my point of view an intercultural environment is a relational space in which two or more defined

cultures coexist sharing mutual understanding. While multiculturalism shares the relational

space but not the mutual understanding, thus potentially (and in many cases in reality, as media

and experience shows us) triggering human conflict which influences social and organizational

peace, an intercultural relational and space-shared environment is the true focus upon which

public relations should be inspired to take action.

Action which needs to involve all levels both in the social and in the organizational field. In order

to achieve this goal, it is important to gain specific Intercultural competences (or Cross-cultural

competence - 3C), which is the ability for successful communication with people of other

cultures. A person who is interculturally competent captures and understands, in interaction

with people from foreign or different cultures, their specific concepts in perception, thinking,

feeling and acting. This helps to free people from those prejudices and stereotypes which act as

barriers in the intercultural communication process.

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6. The importance of Culture worldwide: UNESCO’s commitment and duty

The importance in focusing on culture, the strength of its diversity, and the need to aim at

cohesion of human kind both in the societal and organizational context, is also taken into great

consideration by Unesco, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization,

which (in the Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity) describes culture as follows: "... culture

should be regarded as the set of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional

features of society or a social group, and that it encompasses, in addition to art and literature,

lifestyles, ways of living together, value systems, traditions and beliefs".14

The Preamble to the Constitution of UNESCO affirms “that the wide diffusion of culture, and the

education of humanity for justice and liberty and peace are indispensable to the dignity of man

and constitute a sacred duty which all the nations must fulfill in a spirit of mutual assistance and

concern” … which furthermore states the importance of “cultural diversity and the exercise of

cultural rights in the international instruments enacted by UNESCO,15 Reaffirming that culture

should be regarded as the set of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional

features of society or a social group, and that it encompasses, in addition to art and literature,

lifestyles, ways of living together, value systems, traditions and beliefs, 16 Noting that culture is at

the heart of contemporary debates about identity, social cohesion, and the development of a

knowledge-based economy, Affirming that respect for the diversity of cultures, tolerance,

dialogue and cooperation, in a climate of mutual trust and understanding are among the best

guarantees of international peace and security, Aspiring to greater solidarity on the basis of

recognition of cultural diversity, of awareness of the unity of humankind, and of the

development of intercultural exchanges, Considering that the process of globalization, facilitated

by the rapid development of new information and communication technologies, though

14

UNESCO. 2002. Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity. Adopted by the 31st

session at the General Conference of Unesco, Paris, 2 November 2001. 15

In Unesco -Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity “Among which, in particular, the Florence Agreement of 1950 and its Nairobi Protocol of 1976, the Universal Copyright Convention of 1952, the Declaration of the Principles of International Cultural Cooperation of 1966, the Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property of 1970, the Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage of 1972, the Declaration on Race and Racial Prejudice of 1978, the Recommendation concerning the Status of the Artist of 1980, and the Recommendation on Safeguarding Traditional Culture and Folklore of 1989”. 16

In Unesco - Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity This definition is in line with the conclusions of the World Conference on Cultural Policies (MONDIACULT, Mexico City, 1982), of the World Commission on Culture and Development (Our Creative Diversity, 1995), and of the Intergovernmental Conference on Cultural Policies for Development (Stockholm, 1998).

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representing a challenge for cultural diversity, creates the conditions for renewed dialogue

among cultures and civilizations, Aware of the specific mandate which has been entrusted to

UNESCO, within the United Nations system, to ensure the preservation and promotion of the

fruitful diversity of cultures, Proclaims the following principles and adopts the present

Declaration …”. Thus demonstrating the global importance of taking care of culture, its effects

and its power in human coexistence and cohesion, both for social and business reasons. Among

the 12 Unesco’s articles stated in the Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity (all of which are

of great importance and value), for the purpose of this paper I found particularly interesting the

following which I directly relate to communication and public relations strategies:

Article 1 - Cultural diversity: the common heritage of humanity

Culture takes diverse forms across time and space. This diversity is embodied in the uniqueness

and plurality of the identities of the groups and societies making up humankind. As a source of

exchange, innovation and creativity, cultural diversity is as necessary for humankind as

biodiversity is for nature. In this sense, it is the common heritage of humanity and should be

recognized and affirmed for the benefit of present and future generations.

Article 2 - From cultural diversity to cultural pluralism

In our increasingly diverse societies, it is essential to ensure harmonious interaction among

people and groups with plural, varied and dynamic cultural identities as well as their willingness

to live together. Policies for the inclusion and participation of all citizens are guarantees of

social cohesion, the vitality of civil society and peace. Thus defined, cultural pluralism gives

policy expression to the reality of cultural diversity. Indissociable from a democratic framework,

cultural pluralism is conducive to cultural exchange and to the flourishing of creative capacities

that sustain public life.

Article 3 - Cultural diversity as a factor in development

Cultural diversity widens the range of options open to everyone; it is one of the roots of

development, understood not simply in terms of economic growth, but also as a means to

achieve a more satisfactory intellectual, emotional, moral and spiritual existence.

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Article 4 - Human rights as guarantees of cultural diversity

The defense of cultural diversity is an ethical imperative, inseparable from respect for human

dignity. It implies a commitment to human rights and fundamental freedoms, in particular the

rights of persons belonging to minorities and those of indigenous peoples. No one may invoke

cultural diversity to infringe upon human rights guaranteed by international law, nor to limit

their scope.

Article 5 - Cultural rights as an enabling environment for cultural diversity

Cultural rights are an integral part of human rights, which are universal, indivisible and

interdependent...

Article 10 - Strengthening capacities for creation and dissemination worldwide

In the face of current imbalances in flows and exchanges of cultural goods and services at the

global level, it is necessary to reinforce international cooperation and solidarity aimed at

enabling all countries, especially developing countries and countries in transition, to establish

cultural industries that are viable and competitive at national and international levels.

Article 11 - Building partnerships between the public sector, the private sector and civil society

Market forces alone cannot guarantee the preservation and promotion of cultural diversity,

which is the key to sustainable human development. From this perspective, the pre-eminence of

public policy, in partnership with the private sector and civil society, must be reaffirmed.

7. Communication and intercultural communication

If communication is the process which sees the exchange of information between two or more

people (Watzlawick), intercultural communication can be considered as the exchange of

information between people who belong to groups or social categories which are holders of

cultures at least partially different. It is a relationship between people who do not share the

same system of meanings. It is therefore evident the necessity to understand the complexity of

the relation exchange and of the communication process.17 The process includes the exchange of

information and messages through an intentional and conscious use of mutually intelligible

17

Angelica Mucchi Faina, Comunicazione Interculturale, Laterza, 2006.

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symbol systems. Even though habits and emotions are part of the communicative process they

are generally regarded as sources of communication that do not involve conscious intention. 18

In communication there are both universal and cultural specifics, and in any case all cultures use

the same forms of communication, obviously adapted to each context and culture:

Oral communication

Written communication

Non verbal communication

What is important for any form or kind of communication is that it must be effective, meaning

that the information must be received as accurately in terms of content and meaning as

intended by the sender.19

At the same time, a correct communication process needs to be bidirectional and symmetrical,

meaning that it triggers a monitored loop system in which the feedback obtained must undergo a

carefully controlled “listening” process. It is a negotiation process necessarily involving

communication which, in turn, is effective when it listens to the publics (stakeholders) being

taken into consideration, helping to improve the communication system and, at the same time,

to change social and corporate organization. The effect of listening to chosen publics helps to

improve social and organizational settings. This gives public relations and its practitioners a much

more important and relevant role than the one existing today.

Part of the difficulty of our profession is to identify and deal with barriers to communication,

which are anything that prevents a message from being received or understood. Barriers are

usually of human origin and can be listed as follows20:

Socio-cultural barriers. Considering that communication always involves other people, it is

important to notice that an individual can be a carrier of culture but one person cannot create

culture, because culture is a group or social phenomenon.

Psychological barriers. These are related to the individual and his/her mental and

emotional state.

18 Maureen Guirdham, Communicating across cultures at work, Palgrave Macmillan, New York, 2005 19

Michael J. Rouse-Sandra Rouse “ Business communication. A cultural and strategic approach”, Thomson, 2002. 20

Michael J. Rouse-Sandra Rouse “ Business communication. A cultural and strategic approach”, Thomson, 2002.

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Organizational barriers. Primarily related to the organization’s structure, culture, patterns

of work and communication flows.

In order to embark in the intercultural communication process it is possible to identify the

following skills and disciplines:

Cross-cultural competence

Language proficiency

Regional /context knowledge

Communication strategy skills and awareness

The above are inextricably linked and their mix will vary depending on the context in which they

are employed. According to Bloom, it represents an effective framework to describe the overlap

area between the first three disciplines: at the receiving and knowledge levels cross-culture

competence can operate with near independence from language proficiency or regional

knowledge, but as one approaches the internalizing and evaluation levels the required overlap

area approaches totality.21 Cross-culture competence is a very important aspect and skill in the

intercultural communication process, but I also believe that cross-culture competence can be a

successful tool only when inserted in a public relations program.

Cross-cultural communication or intercultural communication is therefore the field of study and

the specialized professional area of public relations that looks at how people from differing

cultural backgrounds endeavor to communicate and, at the same time, how it can be

strategically and effectively done. As an example, until some years ago businesses developed

programs to train employees to understand how to act when abroad, focusing primarily on

language gaps. Current cross-cultural training in businesses also includes focus on culture

training, establishing and understanding how people from different cultures communicate with

each other, producing some guidelines with which people from different cultures can better

communicate with each other. But it’s still not enough.

21

BLOOM BS (ed.) (1956) Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, the classification of educational goals – Handbook I:

Cognitive Domain New York: McKay

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Cross-cultural communication is a very complex field and study area. It is a combination of many

other fields, such as anthropology, cultural studies, psychology, communication and

communication strategy.

PART TWO

Practical approach

In this section I discuss how culture and public relations are inevitably linked and necessary to

one another with the help of the following arguments:

Defining pr and its link to culture

Corporate culture: cultural organization and communication

Practical link between the application of pr and the use of culture as a communication tool

Public relations governs relations, relational spaces and cultural relations

Cultural and territorial pr infrastructure

The Euro--Mediterranean example

Culture PR: Key elements and factors

8. Defining pr and its link with culture

Public relations has been defined in many ways by its different National and International

professional association bodies and all declare, even if using different words, the same concept.

The CIPR (UK) states that “… public relations is the planned and sustained effort to establish

good will and mutual understanding between an organization and its publics …”22 The definition

points out the following three aspects:

PR is a discipline or profession which carefully plans its tasks and strategies, meaning that it

is a cause-effect strategic discipline, where planning is carefully taken into consideration as well

as every detail. Therefore, Pr does not relate to casual actions or behaviours.

22

www.CIPR.co.uk – part of the definition of public relations

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Sustained effort clearly indicates that pr obtains its best results on the long term. Certainly

in planning it will be necessary to foresee short term, medium term and long term goals, but

these exist within a more complex and lasting strategic frame.

Mutual understanding includes the knowledge of culture: the organization’s culture, its

public’s culture, the employee’s culture, the market’s or the environment’s culture in which the

organization operates, the public relations practitioner’s culture.

Culture and public relations have in common an evolving existence: culture is imperceptibly but

constantly changing; public relations is also known as a discipline and a profession always

searching for new adjustments. Aren’t we all constantly stimulated to update our professional

knowledge on what and how we can operate competitively in a changing environment? It may

depend on the (unconscious) need to follow change, at the end of which cultural change exists

and must be understood.

9. Corporate culture: cultural organization and communication

The human race has evolved and grown as a result of its ability to organize: we organize

ourselves into families, tribes, clans, ethnic groups, religions, professions, institutions, nations,

etc.23 All organizations are created and organized through a communication process and are

maintained by people communicating with each other.24

Corporate culture. Every organization has its own unique culture or value set. Usually

organizations don't consciously try to create a certain culture. It is in fact created unconsciously,

based on the values of the top management or the founders of the organization. It is formed by

the moral, social and behavioral norms of the organization which in turn is based on the beliefs,

attitudes, and priorities of its members. So, corporate culture exists apart from the awareness of

it by the members of the organization or those in contact with that organization, referring to

stakeholders, publics, etc. It is important to share, to monitor and to measure corporate culture

awareness in order to deal with prejudices and stereotyping, which, as we mentioned before,

represent serious barriers to communication.

23

Michael J. Rouse-Sandra Rouse “ Business communication. A cultural and strategic approach”, Thomson, 2002. 24

Michael J. Rouse-Sandra Rouse “ Business communication. A cultural and strategic approach”, Thomson, 2002.

18

It is also important to understand that corporate culture has two main aspects. The first one

depends on the cultural values that top management decides to have in their corporate mission

and vision, which means that it is the created part of corporate culture. The second aspect is

related to where the company is located, to the culture of its members, to the culture shared

with its stakeholders, to its market and environmental culture. I would define this second aspect

as the part that naturally shapes corporate culture. The first one is foreseeable, the second is not

immediately identifiable. The first one may try on its own to define corporate culture of an

organization, but it will always be unconsciously and invisibly influenced by the second aspect

which must be analyzed, understood and monitored. The two aspects determine the total

corporate culture of an organization. This is where I consider the role of public relations is

important: in defining an intercultural pr program or corporate culture pr plan, where it becomes

essential to analyze, monitor and guide on a long term scale the evolving culture of the

organization, considering its internal and external influence. To achieve this, organizations also

need to open corporate communication channels vertically both up and down the structure as

well as horizontally across the organization, increasing corporate communication and cultural

skills. I believe that firms with strong cultures achieve higher results because employees sustain

focus both on what to do and how to do it. This is carried out through cultural and

communication strategy.

We could also refer to Organizational culture which is defined by Brent Ruben and Lea Stewart25

as the sum of an organization's symbols, events, traditions, standardized verbal and nonverbal

behavior patterns, folk tales, rules, and rituals that give the organization its character or

personality. Ruben and Stewart note that organizational cultures are central aspects of

organizations and serve important communication functions for the people who create and

participate in them. These functions include providing employees with a sense of individual and

collective identity, contributing to the establishment of structure and control within the

organization, aiding the socialization of employees through learning about the customs and

traditions of the organization, and fostering cohesiveness among employees.

25 Brent D. Ruben, Lea P. Stewart Communication and Human Behavior (5th Edition), Allyn & Bacon, 2005.

19

10. Practical link between the application of pr and the use of culture as a communication tool

Public relations must decide to apply cultural aspects for any public relations plan, making

culture a standardized and essential part in communication programs and strategies. It would be

a great mistake for a pr professional not to consider the relevance of culture in the

communicational setting for and in which he/she is working, because public relations needs

culture as a communication tool in order to achieve its goals. But culture represents a special and

unusual kind of tool, which is never the same because of its natural fluid movement. So public

relations needs first of all to understand what culture is as a tool and which aspects can be used

or be useful for pr purposes.

I would distinguish general aspects from specific ones, both for pr and culture. We would find

general or “standard pr principles”, which must be transmitted and applied on a wider or global

scale. In every cultural context it is possible, at the same time, to identify “standard cultural

principles” which are present on a wide scale in the environment focused upon by public

relations. But because within any cultural context (it could be a nation, a town, a company or a

family) we can find subcultures or even slight cultural differences (which create distances), it is

necessary to identify the best pr cultural tools in order to establish, define and plan

communication effectively. Standard pr and culture are therefore linked with specific pr and

cultural tools.

Culture as instrument. Culture must therefore be considered as a set of tools which can be used

in different ways and for different reasons, and where the context assumes a very important role

in determining which cultural instruments will and should be used and which ones must be put

aside. Every situation and every relation can at the same time make certain cultural

environments accessible and increase the probability of their being used during dialogue and

relational interaction.

11. Public relations governs relations, relational spaces and cultural relations.

Public relations creates and maintains the reputation of an organization, where reputation (good

or bad) is the consequence of certain actions through communication. But if reputation is the

consequence of public relations decisions and actions, it means that managing relations is

essential for public relations strategies.

20

So, the core of public relations is to govern relations. These exist in a relational space which

becomes the new focus of public relations practitioners: to build relational spaces with our

publics or stakeholders. This means that the public relator also has the task of enabling people to

interact with the organization, with other publics, in accordance with the relational approach.26

This cannot be done without a clear knowledge of culture and its effects. Which also means that

relations without cultural knowledge of relations cannot be a true core for pr. This is a new

public relations view, because it forces scholars and practitioners to widen the field for pr

professional tasks, competences and application.

12. PR Cultural and Territorial Infrastructure.

If the cultural context is in the hands of pr practitioners, it is necessary to determine what makes

the context. As mentioned before, public relations must take into consideration that it is dealing

on the one hand with general principles, i.e professional characteristics which make pr applicable

in any part of the global arena, and on the other with specific principles (or applications), which

are those variables related to the context and to the territory and which we need to pay

attention to. The two principles, generic and specific, go together and must be drawn up so as to

understand how to apply them in a specific culture or in a certain country.

A public relations territorial infrastructure27 is a frame-work formed by the following elements:

The political system

The economic system

The legal system

Civil society

The socio-cultural system

Media system

It then becomes PR cultural and territorial infrastructure because all the elements listed above

will be differently treated, used and perceived according to the culture and the cultures existing

in a given context or territory.

This means that any organization and its pr’s must be aware of the characteristics of each

variable identified in the same territory or context, as well as knowing the dynamics of those

26

Toni Muzi Falconi, Le relazioni Pubbliche, video libro, Sossella editore, 2008. 27

Toni Muzi Falconi, Le relazioni Pubbliche, video libro, Sossella editore, 2008.

21

phenomena, local and international events which can or could influence and modify the

characteristics of those variables, obviously affecting public relations effectiveness. Culture

dynamics therefore must be considered, monitored and appropriately used.

13. The Euro-Mediterranean example

The importance of using culture and cultures in public relations programs can be explained giving

an interesting example. Supposing that institutions and corporate organizations decided to

develop business or other relations with and within countries of the Mediterranean area. The

enduring “greatness” of the Mediterranean is in the longevity of its cultural “pluri-universes”

developed not within one sea, but within a complexity of seas.28

For the last 10-15 years the Mediterranean area has been taken much more into consideration

than in the past. It is a critical zone because of its major social and cultural differences and

consequent distances, but at the same time its enormous economic potential attracts active

interest from all over Europe. Every day many companies, universities, institutions tie new

relations with other organizations within this area, and even if in comparison to other global

zones the Mediterranean area is not huge, nonetheless it has severe difficulties in creating true

economic development because of the cultural distances and misunderstanding existing today.

Wars and conflicts at present taking place in some of the countries, urgently increase the need

for bridging peaceful and robust relationships through dialogue and communication. In this case I

find that culture is a powerful tool for communication strategy in two different instances: the

first one relating to developing social mutual understanding, among people and citizens, young

and old, through the aid of cultural knowledge. The second relating to the use of culture and

cultural pr tools in preparing business related pr programs and strategies. Both instances (social

and corporate-business) are essential in the achievement of a stronger Mediterranean area (in

full respect of the culture and of the identity of each group and country) and a potentially solid

economic and developing zone, where cooperation and not partnership is needed. This means

triggering multicultural dialogue thanks to specific intercultural relations, and can be carried out

through pr and culture public relations in order to achieve a correct and peaceful cooperation

among countries or those countries which decide to dialogue in a more constructive way.

28

Franco Cassano e Danilo Zolo, L’Alternativa Mediterranea, Feltrinelli, 2007.

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I insert Unesco’s Mediterranean Program as follows:

“The UNESCO General Conference at its 27th session assigned to the Organization a coordinating role for UNESCO's initiatives on the Mediterranean, falling within UNESCO's fields of competence. The Director General has decided to decentralize it to Cairo making it the first major Mediterranean Program operating from the heart of the Arab world. The Program also concentrates on the promotion of three closely linked emblematic activities, conceived as networks:

The Navigation of Knowledge, Network of Historical Naval Dockyards;

The Network of Protected Areas, Parks and Gardens of the Mediterranean;

The Network of Handicrafts. Apart from these working fields, it also insists upon the necessary struggle against digital divide and negative stereotypes in education.

The Program is developing around the following major concerns:

promotion of inter-cultural dialogue;

fostering a culture of peace;

laying foundations for sustainable co-development.

It is guided by the Recommendations of the 1982 World Conference on Cultural Policies in Mexico City and by the principles set out in documents such as the 1992 Rio de Janeiro Convention on Climate Change or the 1995 Carthage Charter on Tolerance in the Mediterranean. It is also guided by the conclusions of the World Commission on Culture and Development (Our Creative Diversity, 1995), and of the Intergovernmental Conference on Cultural Policies for Development (Stockholm, 1998). And it anchors the principles of the Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity adopted by UNESCO in 2001. Furthermore a new Cultural Policies for Development program was approved last autumn by UNESCO’s 30th General Conference.”29

Unesco’s program shows clearly the need of applying Culture Public Relations strategies, skills

and tools in order to achieve the stated goals in the societal context. The same can and should be

considered applicable to all programs (business, institutional, governmental, academic, not for

profit, etc.) which need to be started in this complex area.

14. Culture PR. The key elements and factors

Culture exists because man exists. Public relations also exists because of man’s existence and

capacity to communicate. Therefore culture and public relations are bound to be considered,

studied and applied in an inextricable form. So it could be stated that:

29

www.Unesco.org

23

Public relations is culture

Pr uses culture

Pr needs to understand culture

Culture is multiform as pr is

Without cultural awareness it is impossible to be effective in an International market where

intercultural contacts and relationships governance are more and more frequent than in the

past. This is a new challenge for public relations which must consider the following key factors

for successful Culture PR:

Research methods for communication and culture

Understand verbal and non-verbal codes used to transfer information between people

Awareness on how verbal and non-verbal signals are interpreted differently

Increase listening: Culture is learned by listening to, and observing the behavior of, other

members within a group/context

Increase awareness of how people from different cultures encode and decode messages

differently

Improve Intercultural Communication

Research cultures and communication conventions of those whom they propose to meet

Investigate the culture's perception of your culture

Intercultural competence training and skills

Increase awareness of Internal and external social and corporate complexity

Act in a culturally responsible way

Capitalize diversity as a basis of relationship

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Conclusions

Over the years people tend to behave similarly, showing a standard cultural and behavioural

pattern. But, at the same time, those patterns, develop in new cultural forms. This is what public

relations needs to learn: firstly, the long lasting cultural frame for humans and, secondly, the

specific cultural characteristics which are inherent in a specific moment, context or company,

which are due to evolve quickly and silently. Public relations, because it is the director of the

communication orchestra, has the task of defining the tools necessary to deepen its knowledge

of the silent cultural change. Tools which have the task to evaluate how, why, by whom and in

which direction behaviours and attitudes tend to change in a certain context. Managing this

complicated task, public relations will obtain a more profound knowledge of communication

determination. It would not only be a technical strategy, but a human relational and cultural

strategy driven by profound understanding of culture and cultural change.

25

References and bibliography

Angelica Mucchi Faina, Comunicazione Interculturale, Laterza, Roma, 2006

Franco Cassano - Danilo Zolo, L’alternativa Mediterranea, Feltrinelli, Milano, 2007

Jan Nederveen Pieterse, “Ethnicities and global multiculture”, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

inc., 2007

Laurie J. Mullins, Management and organizational behaviour, FT Prentice Hall, 2005.

Maureen Guirdham, Communicating across cultures at work, Palgrave Macmillan, New York,

2005

Michael J. Rouse-Sandra Rouse “ Business communication. A cultural and strategic approach”,

Phil Clements and John Jones, The Diversity training handbook, Kogan Page, 2006.

Thomson, 2002.

Toni Muzi Falconi, Le relazioni Pubbliche, video libro, Sossella editore, 2008.

Unesco - Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity, 2002

www.cipr.co.uk

www.federculture.it

www.ferpi.it

www.unesco.org