Deck 8: Research

Question 1

From plotting a political campaign to promoting a product to confronting a crisis, the first step in solving any public relations challenge is _____________________.

A) to conduct research
B) to plan a programmatic initiative
C) to go with your gut
D) to ask your team what their intuition is

Answer 1

to conduct research

Question 2

Which of the following does NOT pertain to research?

A) what public relations programs should start with
B) a foundation for public relations solutions
C) what several four-step processes to solve problems start with
D) what budgeting for public relations ends with

Answer 2

what budgeting for public relations ends with

Question 3

If public relations practitioners expect to receive support from management for a proposed program, they should expect to share which of the following?

A) their intuition about the desired market segment
B) their instincts about the likes and dislikes of a target audience
C) their data that helps pinpoint which messages are most effective with targeted audiences
D) their positive attitude indicating a proposed message strategy will work

Answer 3

their data that helps pinpoint which messages are most effective with targeted audiences

Question 4

In professional work, research should be applied

A) only during the initial phase.
B) at all phases of a program.
C) only prior to programming.
D) only at the end.

Question 5

The word research commonly conjures up methods, including all EXCEPT

A) interviews.
B) intuitive information.
C) test scores.
D) questionnaires.

Question 6

Which of the following is NOT a guiding principle in setting standards for public relations research?

A) to distinguish short-term outcomes from long-term outputs
B) to use various evaluation techniques to determine effectiveness
C) to distinguish between public relations effectiveness and advertising effectiveness
D) to establish clear program objectives directly to business goals

Question 7

All of the following are true of applied research EXCEPT

A) It is used to solve practical problems.
B) It is used to develop message strategies.
C) It is used to help build theories.
D) It is used to determine whether a program has achieved its objectives.

Question 8

From theoretical research in communications, we have learned that

A) The most persuasive communication comes from multiple sources of moderate credibility.
B) The most persuasive communication comes from multiple sources of high credibility.
C) The less complex a persuasive message is, the less credible it is.
D) The more complex a persuasive message is, the more credible it is.

Question 9

Which of the following is NOT characteristic of secondary research?

A) It is very expensive.
B) It focuses on someone else's primary research.
C) It is referred to as "desk research."
D) It includes online databases.

Question 10

Among the primary forms of public relations research, ________ tend to reveal differences in the ways management and target audiences view communications materials, media, messages, and methods.

A) surveys
B) communication audits
C) published company accounts
D) unobtrusive audits

Question 11

Elements of a survey include

A) a sample.
B) a snapshot of a current condition.
C) an analysis of the hypothesis.
D) a cause and effect.

Question 12

Two essential properties of a random sample are that

A) its selection must be formal and scientific.
B) its selection is based on equality and independence.
C) its selection must be unobtrusive and results-oriented.
D) its selection must be representative of the population and specific target audience.

Question 13

Of the types of random sampling used, ________ sampling is a procedure that surveys different segments of the targeted population.

A) cluster
B) systemic random
C) stratified random
D) simple random

Question 14

A type of random sample that journalists use to elicit ideas and points of views from persons on the street is a

A) convenience sample.
B) volunteer sample.
C) quota sample.
D) cluster sample.

Question 15

Researchers should observe which of the following when designing a questionnaire?

A) Avoid pre-testing.
B) Ask loaded, double-barreled questions.
C) Keep it short.
D) Use only open-ended rather than closed-ended questions.

Question 16

In public relations research, the most frequently used type of convenience sample is the

A) cluster sample.
B) quota sample.
C) stratified sample.
D) focus group.

Question 17

Which of the following techniques does NOT help lead to a higher response rate for a questionnaire?

A) Attach a letter explaining how important the respondents'
B) Avoid sending out reminders to respond.
C) Hand-stamp rather than meter envelopes.
D) Send a follow-up reminder postcard three days after the original questionnaire.

Question 18

Interviews provide

A) a personal, firsthand feel for public opinion.
B) an unobtrusive measure of public opinion.
C) a communications audit.
D) secondhand research.

Question 19

Types of interviews include all of the following EXCEPT

A) focus groups.
B) Delphi panels.
C) communications audits.
D) drop-off.

Question 20

Which of the following involves researchers delivering short questionnaires to people they approach in shopping malls or retail outlets?

A) Drop-Off Interviews
B) Delphi Panels
C) Intercept Interviews
D) Focus Groups

Question 21

Who provided research for an article in The New York Times titled "America's 10 Most Sleep-Deprived Jobs"?

A) Home health aides
B) Sleepy's mattress chain
C) Teachers
D) Lawyers

Question 22

The type of interview in which a select panels of experts is asked repeated waves of questions is a

A) Delphi Panel.
B) Drop-off Interview.
C) Intercept Interview.
D) Telephone Interview.

Question 23

All of the following must be considered during a results analysis EXCEPT

A) reliability.
B) validity.
C) the questionnaire.
D) statistically significant margins of sampling error.

Question 24

A communications audit is designed to help an organization

A) determine the validity of findings from a telephone interview.
B) determine the reliability of findings from TV interviews.
C) determine communications needs, policies, practices, and capabilities.
D) determine the statistical significance of the margins of sampling error

Question 25

Which of the following is a type of unobtrusive method of data collection?

A) Content analysis
B) Intercept Interview
C) Delphi Panel
D) Internet Interview

Question 26

All of the following are characteristics of evaluation EXCEPT

A) using techniques that measure results against established objectives.
B) selecting outcomes randomly.
C) providing data that answers the "accountability questions"
D) reinforcing promises made to management to secure their "buy-in."

Question 27

Which of the following are NOT among the four most common techniques used to measure public relations outcomes?

A) retention and recall measurement
B) awareness and comprehension measurement
C) analysis and synthesis measurement
D) behavior measurements

Question 28

In terms of consumer-generated media, Web analytics measure

A) costs per contact.
B) where visitors are from.
C) how often visitors move beyond the homepage.
D) what portions of sites are ignored.

Question 29

Which of the following is NOT one of the targets of Search Engine Optimization?

A) image search
B) cost per click search
C) local search
D) video search

Question 30

When Janice and her team answer questions like "Why are we on the Web?" and "What are we attempting to communicate?", they are doing which of the following?

A) Establishing objectives
B) Determining criteria
C) Determining benchmarks
D) Selecting the right measurement tool

Question 31

When Janice and her team project the hits a website will receive based on competitive data, they are doing which of the following?

A) Establishing objectives
B) Determining criteria
C) Determining benchmarks
D) Selecting the right measurement tool

Question 32

The only way to ensure that public relations advice for management is headed in the right direction is to base that advice on hard data.

Question 33

Managements prefer that public relations professionals demonstrate how their efforts contribute to overall organizational goals rather than to the bottom line.

Question 34

Research is the systematic collection and interpretation of information to increase understanding.

Question 35

Credit for establishing guidelines for setting standards of research in the field of public relations goes to the Public Relations Society of America.

Question 36

Applied research is neither strategic nor evaluative but instead is theoretical.

Question 37

Theoretical research solves practical problems in public relations.

Question 38

Because of limited budgets, secondary research makes sense when launching a research effort.

Question 39

Content analysis and readability studies are among the unobtrusive research methods used by public relations practitioners.

Question 40

Descriptive surveys are concerned with cause and effect.

Question 41

Cross-sectional sampling is either random or nonrandom.

Question 42

To increase the likelihood that a person responds to a questionnaire, attach a letter explaining how important the respondents' answers are and let them know they will remain anonymous.

Question 43

One of the least frequently used interview types in public relations is the focus group.

Question 44

An intercept interview is a popular approach used to capture consumers' attitudes, perceptions, preferences and behavior.

Question 45

Copy testing is an obtrusive method of data collection.

Question 46

"Outcome"
evaluation includes measurement of messages received by target audiences.

Question 47

The ultimate test of measuring the effectiveness of a public relations effort is attitude measurement.

Question 48

Hits and eyeballs are the most popular terms discussed in assessing the impact of the Web for research.

Question 49

Why is research even more important to public relations practitioners today than it was just a decade ago?

Question 50

Describe and differentiate between output and outcome elements in public relations research.

Question 51

What is a sample? What are the two cross-sectional approaches used, and how many people would you need to sample in a population of 500,000 to arrive at a 5 percent margin of error?

Question 52

Describe a communications audit and explain how it is used.

Question 53

What factors should a public relations firm take into consideration when preparing for Internet evaluation?