Communication Commons^™

I Need Help: Help Seeking Behaviors, Communication Anxiety And Communication Center Usage, C. Leigh Nelson, Toni S. Whitfield, Michelle Moreau

Basic Communication Course Annual

A web-based survey of 357 respondents enrolled in basic communication courses was conducted to examine communication center usage, communication apprehension, and help seeking behaviors. There was no significant difference between students who attended the communication center and those who did not in their communication apprehension and help seeking behaviors. There were significant correlations between help seeking behaviors and communication apprehension. Demographics, communication apprehension, and communication center usage and awareness predicted multiple types of help seeking behaviors.

Author Biographies

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Ethics Of Using Product Samples As A Public Relations Tactic In The Blogosphere., Catherine Chesne

Theses

Public relations used to be only concerned with traditional media but with the rise of new media and new trends in communication there has been a shift in the public relations media environment. This study aims to look at the ethics of using product samples as public relations tactic in the blogosphere.

A qualitative research design was chosen, and semi structured and online interviews were used to carry out pnmary data collection. Interviewees were selected from both public relations and blogging backgrounds, to get a full understanding into their insight and experience of the research topic.

The research findings show …

Assessing The Impact Of Social Media On The Museum And Cultural Sector : A Public Relations Perspective, Ciara Murray

Theses

Public relations strategies and tactics have helped Irish business and Irish organisations to effectively meet their goals for decades. However, museums are now also benefiting from public relations practices .Effective public relations strategies have become important to museums in order to utilise social media and to open up access to their collections.

Many museums are non-profits and they have a unique set of communication concerns that force them to engage with multiple publics in order to operate efficiently and achieve success. A fter conducting with PR professionals working in the museum around Ireland this paper analyzes how public relations is …

Diy Pr: How Independent Music Artists Use Online Social Networks For Public Relations Purposes, Martina Lawless

Theses

Significance of the study: Independent musicians are a huge part of the Irish music industry and yet they are the part that do not have the backing of a record label. This means independent musicians need to look at cheap or even free ways to promote themselves to existing fans and potential new fans. With the emergence of social networks musicians both signed and independent have the tools necessary to engage in a new form DIY PR. The purpose of this study is to look at the different ways that social networks have helped musicians in recent years, but also …

The Use Of Public Relations Tactics In Two Nationwide Fundraising Campaigns In Nonprofit Organisations In Ireland. A Case Study Analysis, Arlene Hogan

Theses

This study aims to analysis the use of public relations in two of Ireland’s nonprofit organisations and their national fundraising campaigns. The two charities chosen were The Mater Foundation and its national fundraising campaign called The Heart Appeal and the second charity is The Irish Heart Foundation and its national campaign called Happy Heart Weekend. The questions that the author will be looking to find are the importance of having PR as part of a nonprofit nationwide fundraising campaign, what PR tactics do these charities use to publicise their national fundraising campaigns in question and does communication play a strategic …

How Do Political Organisations Maintain Relationships With Their Publics: A Public Relations Perspective, Aisláinn Maye

Theses

Significance of the study: Political Parties need to diversify ways of communicating with publics. Times are changing and more people focusing on what our public representatives are doing and how active they are within their communities. Looking outside traditional methods of communication is necessary and the use of successful public relations and communications strategies with graduates can contribute to the overall effectiveness of a political party or political representative in times of election.

Approach: The research took place in two stages. The first was an extensive literary review and looking a sources of information like reports, publications and journal articles. …

What Public Relations Strategies Connacht Rugby Are Using To Engage With Their Stakeholders And How They Are Developing Their Brand In A New Market From A Pr Perspective., Bridget Ryan

Theses

There has been an increased interest from academies, PR professionals and industry professionals in the importance of effective and media in the role of sports PR. This study aims to contribute to the understanding of how PR strategies are utilised within the sports industry, concentrating on its effectiveness on an emerging sports brand such as that of Connacht Rugby.

A qualitative research design was chosen, and the primary methods used to gather the data were semi-structured interviews with communication Professionals from the PR industry and key staff members of Connacht Rugby all who play a role within the PR strategy …

An Analysis Of The Importance Of Evaluation In Campaigns, And The Use Of Social Media And Public Relations For Non-Profit Organisations, David Crowley

Theses

“No human race is superior; no religious faith is inferior. All collective judgements are wrong. Only racists make them ”.

Elie Wiesel (a writer, professor, and political activist) (Wiesel).

In recent months, events occurring in sport involving Luis Suarez, John Terry and Michel Morganella (Swiss athlete sent home from Swiss Olympic team after a racist tweet) have drawn attention to the continual issue of racism in sport and its stubborn refusal to listen to the calls of countless progressive campaigns. Irish sport seems to not be exempt from racist behaviours, such as Eamon Zayed, Lee Chin both suffered abuse on …

Online Public Relations And Issues Management, Maebh Fahy

Theses

This is a study into online issues management for Public Relations. It focuses on key themes related to the issues management process such as reputation management and two-way symmetrical communication.

The project highlights how Web 2.0 technologies and social media platforms have impacted strategic public relations. It focuses on media relations, transparency, engagement and monitoring and the how these tools are integrated into social media by public relations professionals.

Primary and secondary resources have been used in this project to provide insights into the chosen field of study.

Primary research carried out was in the form of semi-structured interviews and …

Getting To 40 Weeks: Constructing The Uncertainty Of Due Dates, Sarah Cornelia Vos

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

In the United States as many as 15% of births occur before 39 weeks because of elective inductions or cesarean sections. This qualitative study employs a grounded theory approach to understand the decisions women make of how and when to give birth. Thirty-three women who were pregnant or had given birth within the past two years participated in key informant or small group interviews. The women’s birth narratives and reflections reveal how they construct the uncertainty of their due dates and how this construction influences their birth decisions. Problematic integration theory is used to analyze this construction and identify points …

Organizational Communication, Social Media, And Sensemaking During A Cascading Crisis: Tokyo Disney And The 2011 Japan Earthquake/Tsunami/Nuclear Crisis, Holly Ann Roberts

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

This study examines the connection between organizational crisis communication and sensemaking. In particular, the research focuses on messages of instructing, adjusting and reputation management and the use of social media in distributing these messages through and by the Tokyo Disney Resort during the earthquake/tsunami/nuclear crisis that hit Japan in 2011. Case study methods are used to analyze news coverage, Twitter and YouTube videos, informed by personal interviews and documentation related to the crisis and the Tokyo Disney Resort. The analysis found that the Tokyo Disney Resort provided messages of instructing, adjusting and reputation management in order to effectively foster the …

Battle For Control: How Venture Capitalists Affect The Development Of Businesses, Jeffery Neil Wacaster

Honors Theses

In my new podcast series, I interview business leaders to determine the affect of venture capital on the entrepreneur. First, I interview a serial startup entrepreneur to find out the true nature of venture capital, how to go about getting it, and how it affects the creative process. Next, I interview a blogger who thinks that venture capital can be very detrimental to business startups, and get his perspective on related issues.

The interviewees:

1. Michah Baldiwn a) current CEO of Grahic.ly b) He and his team have raised over $350 million dollars of startup money

2. Peter Ireland a) …

Utah And The Civil War Press, Kenneth L. Alford Ph.D.

Faculty Publications

A discussion of how Mormons were treated in the national press during the American Civil War with an emphasis on polygamy, statehood requests, loyalty, and Brigham Young.

This chapter was originally published (and reprinted in "Civil War Saints" with permission):

Kenneth L. Alford, “Utah and the Civil War Press.” Utah Historical Quarterly 80, no. 1 (Winter 2012): 75–92.

“Choking The Channel Of Public Information”: Re-Examination Of An Eighteenth-Century Warning About Copyright And Free Speech, Edward L. Carter

Faculty Publications

The U.S. Supreme Court in Eldred v. Ashcroft gave First Amendment importance to the topic of copyright history. In measuring whether Congress has altered the “traditional contours” of copyright such that First Amendment scrutiny must be applied, federal courts—including the Supreme Court in its 2011 Term case Golan v. Holder—must carefully examine the intertwined history of copyright and freedom of the press. The famous but misunderstood case of Donaldson v. Beckett in the British House of Lords in 1774 is an important piece of this history. In Donaldson, several lawyers, litigants, judges, and lords recognized the danger posed …

Adding Glamour To Theory: Experiencing Theory In The Basic Course In Interpersonal Communication, Thomas Joseph Socha

Communication & Theatre Arts Faculty Publications

Focusing on the use of popular magazines in interpersonal communication instruction, this paper argues that such magazines can provide a rich source for application and criticism of interpersonal communication processes in everyday life. The first section of the paper reviews research and criticism dealing with the content of magazine articles that offer advice on interpersonal relationships and related topics, noting that such research and criticism are rare in the field. The second section provides a framework for integrating popular literature into the interpersonal course by discussing three methods of integration: critique application, discussion application, and role-play application. The third section …

An Introduction To Prayer Research In Communication: Functions, Contexts, And Possibilities, E. James Baesler

Communication & Theatre Arts Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A Plaguing Militainment: Ideology, Metaphor, And Interpellation In Thq's "Homefront", Brendan G.A. Hughes

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

Upper Level Administrators: Communication With Students Via Social Media, David Adam Arnold

Masters Theses

The present qualitative study was executed by interviewing five upper level administrators at a four-year public institution in the Midwest in order to explain their current understanding of social media technologies, and in what ways they were currently using social media to connect with millennial students. Previous research has been done on millennials' use of technology and social media in the university setting; however, little research has focused on way non-millennial upper level administrators are using social media in order to purposefully engage students in a meaningful way. Themes from categories identified during one-on-one interviews indicate that upper level administrators …

Computer-Supported Peer Review In A Law School Context, Kevin D. Ashley, Ilya Goldin

Articles

Legal instructors have been urged to incorporate peer reviewing into law school courses as a way to provide students much needed feedback. Peer review can benefit legal education, but only if law school instructors adopt peer review on a large scale, and for that, computer-supported peer review systems are crucial. These web-based systems orchestrate the mechanics of students submitting written assignments on-line and distributing them to other students for anonymous review, making it considerably easier for instructors to manage.

Beyond the problem of orchestrating mechanics, however, a deeper obstacle to widespread acceptance of peer review in legal education is the …