Theory and Structure of Public Relations
Code: 104776 ECTS Credits: 12| Degree | Type | Year |
|---|---|---|
| 2503868 Communication in Organisations | OB | 1 |
Contact
- Name:
- Ileana Lis Zeler
- Email:
- ileana.zeler@uab.cat
Teaching groups languages
You can view this information at the end of this document.
Prerequisites
No prerequisite is necessary.
Objectives and Contextualisation
- To explore the discipline from its theoretical foundations, conceptualisation, and historical origins.
- To understand the professional dimension of the activity both in Spain and internationally.
- To familiarise yourself with the different areas of specialisation in the field of public relations.
- To acquire knowledge of the basic tools used in public relations.
- To understand the fundamental ethical principles for practising the profession within organisations.
Competences
- Act with ethical responsibility and respect for fundamental rights and duties, diversity and democratic values.
- Act within one's own area of knowledge, evaluating sex/gender-based inequalities.
- Determine the structure and functions of the technological and economic context of organisations.
- Differentiate the principal theories on communication in organisations, which underpin knowledge of the discipline and its different branches.
- Display the ability to lead, negotiate and work in a team.
- Establish communication objectives, and design and apply optimal strategies for communication between organisations and their employees, clients and users, and society in general.
- Introduce changes in the methods and processes of the field of knowledge to provide innovative responses to the needs and demands of society.
- Search for, select and rank any type of source and document that is useful for creating messages.
- Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
- Students must develop the necessary learning skills to undertake further training with a high degree of autonomy.
- Take account of social, economic and environmental impacts when operating within one's own area of knowledge.
- Work in compliance with professional codes of conduct.
Learning Outcomes
- Accept disagreement and show no disrespect to other persons, groups or institutions for reasons of race, gender, disability, etc.
- Adapt to new situations in a constantly changing work environment.
- Analyse the indicators of sustainability of academic and professional activities in the areas of knowledge, integrating social, economic and environmental dimensions.
- Communicate using language that is not sexist or discriminatory.
- Critically analyse the principles, values and procedures that govern the exercise of the profession.
- Cross-check information to establish its veracity, using evaluation criteria.
- Explain the theories that characterise persuasive communication in the field of public relations activity.
- Find what is substantial and relevant in documents within the subject.
- Generate creative ideas in the workplace.
- Identify situations in which a change or improvement is needed.
- Identify the social, economic and environmental implications of academic and professional activities within one?s own area of knowledge.
- Prepare communication actions aimed at the internal and external clients of an organisation.
- Present the organisation's messages orally when this is necessary.
- Propose projects and actions that are in accordance with the principles of ethical responsibility and respect for fundamental rights and obligations, diversity and democratic values.
- Propose projects and actions that incorporate the gender perspective.
- Recognise the different professional categories and functions of those intervening in an organisation, in order to apply the best public relations techniques for each case.
- Show initiative and leadership skills.
- Use the public-relations techniques learnt to disseminate oral and written information about organisations to specific audiences.
- Work independently to solve problems and take strategic decisions on the basis of the knowledge acquired.
Content
Unit 1: Public Relations: Origins, Foundations, Conceptualisation
Unit 2: Fundamental Concepts and Elements of Public Relations
Unit 3: Origin and Evolution of Public Relations
Unit 4: Management Models of Public Relations
Unit 5: The Profession and its Development in Organisations
Unit 6: Areas of Specialisation in Public Relations
Unit 7: Principles and Ethics of Public Relations Professionals.
* The content of the course will be sensitive to gender perspective aspects.
The detailed schedule with the content of the units will be presented on the first day of the course. It will also be uploaded to the Virtual Campus where students will find the course syllabus.
Activities and Methodology
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type: Directed | |||
| Lecture and practices sessions | 96 | 3.84 | 17, 7, 9, 12, 16, 13, 18 |
| Type: Supervised | |||
| Tutorials, oral presentation of assignments | 8 | 0.32 | 7, 12, 16, 19, 18 |
| Type: Autonomous | |||
| Readings, preparation of practices and tests, completion of assignments | 174 | 6.96 | 2, 6, 17, 9, 12, 16, 19, 8 |
For this subject, there are planned activities conducted through lectures and practical sessions, supplemented with autonomous student work, including both group and individual activities, as well as supervised activities such as group tutorials, oral presentations of assignments, and assessment activities.
Lecture sessions involve the presentation of theoretical concepts of the subject, while practical sessions include practical exercises, case studies, and/or group activities aimed at assimilating the presented theoretical aspects.
Students will have access to complementary materials related to the teaching units on the virtual campus. These materials should be read and reviewed for the completion of the educational activities.
Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.
Assessment
Continous Assessment Activities
| Title | Weighting | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Final project | 25% | 3 | 0.12 | 1, 5, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 11, 10, 12, 14, 15, 13 |
| Practical activities | 35% | 15 | 0.6 | 2, 5, 3, 17, 11, 14, 15, 16, 19, 8, 18 |
| Theoretical exams | 40% | 4 | 0.16 | 2, 5, 3, 4, 17, 11, 10, 16, 19, 8, 18 |
The assessment system for the subject is based on the following criteria:
-
Activity A: Theoretical tests (40% of the final grade). To pass the subject, the tests must be passed with a grade equal to or higher than 5.0 (mandatory requirement).
-
Activity B: Completion and presentation of practical activities (35% of the final grade). If the practical activities are not presented on time and in the correct form, a grade of 0.0 will be given. The overall grade for criterion B will be obtained from the average of the grades of the practical activities.
-
Activity C: Completion and presentation of the final project (25% of the final grade). If the final project is not presented on time and in the correct form, a grade of 0.0 will be given.
A (40%) + B (35%) + C (25%) = 100% FINAL GRADE
To pass the subject, it is mandatory to obtain a grade equal to or higher than 5.0 in each of the assessment criteria (A, B, and C).
Re-evaluation
a) Students will have the right to retake the subject if they have been assessed in all the activities, whose weight is a minimum of 2/3 of the total grade of the subject and have obtained at least a 3.5 weighted average grade for the subject.
b) Theory can only be retaken if the student has obtained between 3.5 and 4.9 in the theoretical test grade. The recovery test will consist of a theoretical knowledge assessment exam.
c) Students who have received a D in one of the practicals, either because they have failed or have not presented it (as long as it is for duly accredited and accepted reasons by the teaching team), will have the option to retake it during the period established ad hoc. The recovery of each practical will consist of solving a communication case or problem (date, time, and place to be determined).
d) The final project of the subject (25%) is anassessable work that cannot be retaken, as it is practically impossible to complete another work of this nature within the available time.
This subject does not allow a single assessment system.
Plagiarism
In the event that a student commits any irregularity that may lead to a significant variation in an assessment act, this assessment act will be graded with 0, regardless of any disciplinary process that may be initiated. If several irregularities occur in the assessment acts of the same subject, the final grade for this subject will be 0.
Bibliography
- Aced, Cristina (2018). Relaciones Públicas 2.0. Cómo gestionar la comunicación corporativa en el entorno digital. Editorial UOC.
- Arceo, José Luis (Coord.) (2004) Las Relaciones Públicas en España. Madrid: McGraw-Hill.
- Castillo, Antonio (2009) Relaciones Públicas: teoría e historia. Editorial UOC. Libro electrónico de Antonio Castillo (Libro de RRPP)(Ant_Castillo)-pdf
- Costa, Joan (2009). El DirCom hoy. Barcelona: Costa PuntoCom.
- DIRCOM (2024). Código Ético de DIRCOM. Disponible en https://www.dircom.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Codigo_Etico_Dircom_.pdf
- Fernández, Manuel y Román, Yolanda (2007). Deontología de las Relaciones Públicas y la Comunicación: Análisis Comparativo de los Principales Códigos. En Rodríguez Patrón, Aida (Coord.) Tendencias Actuales en las Relaciones Públicas (pág. 121-135).
- Grunig, James y Hunt, Todd (2003): Dirección de Relaciones Públicas. Barcelona: Gestión 2000.com.
- Míguez, M. (2010). Los Públicos en las Relaciones Públicas. Barcelona: Editorial UOC
- Noguero, A. (1990) Relaciones Públicas e Industria de la Persuasión. ESRP-PPU.
- Oliveira, Andrea; Capriotti, Paul y Zeler, Ileana (2019). Investigación de los públicos en los modelos de planificación estratégica de comunicación, Sphera Publica, 2(19), 21-35.
- Palencia-Lefler i Ors, Manuel (2011): 90 Técnicas de Comunicación y Relaciones Públicas. Madrid: Profit.
- Wilcox, Dennis L., Cameron, Glen T. y Xifra, Jordi (2012). Relaciones Públicas. Estrategias y Tácticas (10ma ed.). Mexico: Pearson
- Xifra, Jordi (2003). Teoría y Estructura de las Relaciones Públicas. Madrid: McGraw-Hill.
- Xifra, Jordi (2011): Manual de Relaciones Públicas e Institucionales. Madrid; Tecnos.
Software
No specific computer program is required for this assignment.
Language list
| Name | Group | Language | Semester | Turn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (SEM) Seminars | 71 | Spanish | annual | afternoon |
| (SEM) Seminars | 72 | Spanish | annual | afternoon |
| (TE) Theory | 7 | Spanish | annual | afternoon |