Deck 11: Step One: Defining Public Relations Problems

Question 1

Which one of the following represents all that is known about a situation?

A)Exploratory methods
B)Stakeholder analysis
C)Scientific methods
D)Communication audit
E)Situation analysis

Answer 1

E

Question 2

Which one of the following does NOT describe "research"?

A)Talking
B)Listening
C)Welcoming change
D)Trying to do things better
E)Scanning the environment

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Which one of the following informal research methods may help public relations practitioners detect negative rumors about the organization before they spread too far?

A)Organizing community forums
B)Analyzing newspaper content
C)Monitoring social media
D)Reading field reports
E)Observing personal contacts

Answer 3

C

Question 4

The objective application of set procedures for determining what is being reported in the media is which one of the following?

A)Communication audit
B)Ombuds officer
C)Advertising equivalency
D)Content analysis
E)Field report

Question 5

Samples of unknown representativeness are typically the major problem with which one of the following research methods?

A)Situation analysis
B)Stakeholder analysis
C)Exploratory methods
D)Communication audit
E)Scientific methods

Question 6

Studies of public relations practitioners show that participation in management increases when they engage in which one of the following activities?

A)SWOT analysis
B)Professional accreditation
C)Research
D)Continuing education programs
E)Writing clinics

Question 7

Which one of the following is NOT required in useful problem statements?

A)Having concrete measures
B)Suggesting realistic solutions
C)Describing the current situation about the problem
D)Being based on objective research
E)Summarizing what is known

Question 8

Which one of the following best describes a "secondary analysis" approach to gathering information?

A)Data gathered by researcher
B)Data gathered from panel studies
C)Data gathered from referrals
D)Data gathered from content analyses
E)Data gathered by someone else

Question 9

The "internal factors" portion of the situation analysis often includes which one of the following?

A)Community focus group results
B)Strategy suggestions
C)Communication audit
D)List of media contacts
E)Consumer survey results

Question 10

Which one of the following represents a systematic documentation of an organization's communication behavior?

A)Situation analysis
B)Stakeholder analysis
C)Communication audit
D)Scientific methods
E)Exploratory methods

Question 11

The problem definition process is initiated by which one of the following?

A)The crisis begins.
B)The data are analyzed.
C)Solutions are discussed.
D)Someone feels the need.
E)The publics are defined.

Question 12

Which one of the following is typically an example of an "informal research" technique?

A)Key informant interviews
B)RDD telephone surveys
C)Mailed questionnaires
D)Content analysis
E)Random sample surveys

Question 13

Which one of the following is typically the first step on the checklist for starting a research project?

A)Determining how much the research project will cost
B)Establishing what information is needed and how it will be used
C)Describing who is going to do each of the steps in the process
D)Deciding what type of survey will be done before moving forward
E)Clearly establishing that you have the skills to do the research B

Question 14

Which of the following would be included in a "stakeholder analysis"?

A)How people are affected by organizational policies and actions
B)What people know, how they feel and what they do related to the problem
C)Who is involved and how they are affected in the situation
D)All of the above
E)None of the above

Question 15

Which one of the following informal research methods has the advantage of generating open, spontaneous, and detailed discussions among people about subjects of interest to the organization?

A)Advisory committees
B)Call-in telephone lines
C)Key informant interviews
D)Focus groups
E)Online surveys

Question 16

Informal research methods are good at which of the following?

A)Describing how people are affected by organizational policies and actions
B)Describing what people know, how they feel and what they related to problem
C)Describing who is involved and how they are affected in the situation
D)Describing the impact of the program on the target publics
E)None of the above

Question 17

Which one of the following helps determine the relative priority of target publics in the program strategy?

A)Stakeholder analysis
B)Exploratory methods
C)Clippings of print media coverage
D)Communication audit
E)Benchmark data on competitors

Question 18

What is (are)the major reason(s)more research is not used in public relations program planning, monitoring, and evaluation?

A)Lack of funds
B)Lack of research skills
C)Lack of management pressure
D)Both A and C
E)Both B and C

Question 19

If public relations is to be a part of the rational problem-solving process in organizations, then planning will be based upon which one of the following?

A)Intuition and artistic judgment
B)Best available evidence
C)Data from PRSA
D)Years of similar past experience
E)The client's perceptions of the problem

Question 20

Which one of the following methods dominates public relations research?

A)Secondary analysis of data
B)Informal
C)Survey
D)Formal
E)Content analysis

Question 21

Which one of the following is the biggest disadvantage of mail surveys?

A)Increasing postage costs
B)Interviewer bias
C)Lack of control over who responds
D)Time delays in returning surveys
E)Lack of anonymity

Question 22

Which one of the following research techniques best allows tracking opinion change over time?

A)Secondary analysis
B)Panel study
C)Advisory committees
D)Personal contacts
E)Key informants

Question 23

When is the proper time to use research in a public relations campaign?

A)In the beginning, before taking any action
B)In the middle, to test messages and actions and to track progress
C)At the end, to evaluate the campaign's effectiveness
D)All of the above
E)None of the above D

Question 24

Which research method offers the advantages of high response rates, great flexibility in dealing with respondents, and good control of questions?

A)In-person interviews
B)Focus groups
C)Panel study
D)Content analysis
E)Secondary analysis