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Editorial Record: Original draft submitted on November 22, 2017. Accepted July 29, 2018. Final edits completed January 19, 2019. First published online January 31, 2019.
This study was funded by the Plank Center for Leadership in Public Relations, but the Center did not have a role in the research process.
Authors
Kenon A. Brown, University of AlabamaDamion Waymer, North Carolina A&T UniversityZiyuan Zhou, University of Alabama
Abstract
The current study contributes to the public relations scholarly literature that addresses issues related to the diversity pipeline into the public relations profession. Specifically, the authors seek to determine if public relations students believe that race and gender affected their educational experiences and social development during their collegiate careers. The findings suggest that both race and gender appear to play a significant role in students’ undergraduate public relations experiences, with White respondents and female respondents expressing more positive experiences educationally and socially than underrepresented racial and ethnic persons (UREP) and male counterparts, respectively. Practical recommendations for recruiting and retaining underrepresented students within the major are provided based on the findings.
Keywords: diversity, public relations professional pipeline, race, gender, public relations education
Racial and Gender-Based Differences
in the Collegiate Development of Public Relations Majors: Implications for
Underrepresented Recruitment and Retention
More than a decade ago, the Public Relations Coalition, an alliance of 23 industry-related organizations, conducted its first diversity benchmark survey. That survey of senior communication managers revealed that the industry needs improvements in recruiting and retaining women and underrepresented racial and ethnic persons (UREPs) (Grupp, 2006). In the early part of this decade, public relations leaders listed diversity recruitment and top-talent employee acquisition as their top priorities (Berger, 2012), and nearly a decade later, Fortune magazine senior editor Ellen McGirt (2018) is trying to answer the same question: Why is public relations so white? Contemporary public relations practitioners see the advantages of creating a diverse workforce, and as such, these leaders have lamented the lack of diversity and have prioritized diversity in public relations (O’Dwyer, 2018). However, progress in the area of increasing the number of underrepresented racial and ethnic persons (UREPs)[1] working in the profession of public relations has been slow—despite the fact that agencies have attempted to build a pipeline of diverse practitioners. Some would argue that the issue begins in college (underrepresentation in the student body), only to be magnified in practice (see Brown, Waymer, Fears, Baker, & Zhou, 2016; Brown, White, & Waymer, 2011).
With this position in mind, the authors designed this study to examine the collegiate experience of public relations students from an educational and social perspective to uncover any differences students might experience based on their race or gender. The study helps identify areas of need, concern, and opportunity that could improve the academic, professional, and social development of members from underrepresented groups. Such an effort could potentially increase the chances of members from the underrepresented groups entering the profession and advancing to management positions. The authors hope that this study’s findings help facilitate more underrepresented practitioners entering the field of public relations by honing in on recruiting and retaining these groups into the undergraduate major.
LITERATURE REVIEW
The Impact of Racial Diversity in Public Relations
While
racial diversity recruitment and retention efforts seem well-intentioned,
finding examples of ways that the industry has put into practice measurable
objectives for increasing UREPs is far more challenging. As indicated
previously, the majority of senior communications managers articulated that the
industry needs improvement in UREP representation at all levels (Berger, 2012;
McGirt, 2018; O’Dwyer, 2018). In fact, the some board members of the LAGRANT
Foundation, a nonprofit established (in part) to increase the number of UREPs
in the fields of advertising, public relations, and marketing, highlight their
frustration with the current state of affairs stating that the lack of diversity
is “completely intolerable” (Vallee-Smith, 2014, p. 3).
Despite
the fact that the people representing these UREP groups constitute around 36%
of more than 300 million people in the United States (U.S. Census Bureau,
2011), the number of people in public relations from these underrepresented
groups falls considerably short of reflecting demographics of the general
population. For example, a 2010 census of the Public Relations Society of
America’s (PRSA) 22,000 professional members showed that only 14% of the
organization’s membership self-identified as Hispanic, Black, and/or
Asian/Asian American (Nguyen, 2015). The aforementioned 14% statistic
represents a 100% increase (doubling) of the percentage of PRSA members from
underrepresented groups since 2005 Nguyen, 2015). In short, racial representation in the public
relations industry remains skewed; the Harvard
Business Review recently reported that the racial/ethnic composition of the
public relations industry in the United States is 87.9% white, 8.3% African
American, 2.6% Asian American, and 5.7% Hispanic American (Chitkara, 2018).
In
sum, the profession of public relations continues to be a “lily-white” field of
women (Vardeman-Winter & Place, 2017). This can be deemed a problem of the
profession for various reasons. First, research shows that some
underrepresented publics, Latinx populations, during times of risk or crisis
(e.g., hurricanes, chemical plant explosions, acts of terror), prefer to hear
such news from people similar to them (Heath, Lee, & Ni, 2009). Therefore,
a practitioner’s diversity might be the difference in underrepresented publics
receiving and accepting vital safety alerts and messages intended for them in
times of risk and crisis. Second, practitioners’ social-cultural identities
likely affect how they perform as public relations practitioners and the
messages they create for vast groups of people (Curtin & Gaither, 2007;
Vardeman-Winter & Place, 2017; Waymer, 2012b), so it is imperative that
organizations continue to prioritize a diverse public relations workforce and
make it a visible, high-level, organizational objective. To address these
diversity issues, it is equally important that the public relations industry,
like other professions, such as engineering, intentionally work with K-12 and
higher education institutions to increase diversity in schools in hopes of
increasing racial and ethnic diversity in the profession (Waymer & Brown,
2018).
Diversity in Public Relations: The Underrepresentation of
Men in the Profession and Classroom
While women attend college more overall than men at rates of about 57% to 43% respectively (Kena et al., 2015), an even greater gap exists when comparing the percentage of women and men majoring in the communication subspecialty of public relations. Reports have indicated that for more than two decades there are more women than men pursuing a public relations major—whereby women constitute more than 80% of the students in many PR programs (Bardaro, 2009; Daughtery, 2014); the gap is even greater for the public relations profession with a difference of 85% to 15%, women to men respectively (see Khazan, 2014; Sebastian, 2011). Yet, when considering the imbalance in the distribution of men and the positions they hold in the profession, a paradoxical state becomes apparent. Men dominate top spots, while women are clustered at the bottom (see Pompper & Jung, 2013; Yaxley, 2012). Furthermore, men in the field continue to earn about $6,000 more than women (even when tenure, job type, education, field of study, location, and ethnicity are held constant) (Chitkara, 2018). Indeed, despite their underrepresentation in the field of public relations, men still represent 80% of upper management positions (Sebastian, 2011) and earn more money.
Scholars argue that the paradox of men constituting the numerical minority in the profession of public relations yet holding the majority of power positions in the industry can be explained by (mis)perceptions (Choi & Hon, 2002; Grunig, Toth, & Hon, 2001). Men are perceived as being more apt to self-promote, to be assertive, and to network with other power players, compared to women who are perceived to be more suited for micro-managing duties, efficiency, and sensitivity (Grunig, Toth, & Hon, 2001). These misconceptions have dire consequences as Dozier, Sha, and Shen (2013) found that participation in management decision-making was a key factor contributing to pay inequity between women and men in public relations. Despite these prevailing misconceptions and pay disparity, women are making strides in the profession and experiencing positive change in opportunities for senior-level advancement. For example, “Barri Rafferty of Ketchum was appointed the first woman global CEO among the top 10 public relations agencies. Edelman made Lisa Ross, who is black, president of the company’s Washington, DC office,” and in April 2018, “WPP, the parent of Burson-Marsteller and Cohn & Wolfe, named Donna Imperato the CEO of the newly merged agencies, Burson Cohn & Wolfe” (Chitkara, 2018, para 5).
Even
with these recent noteworthy promotions of women to top leadership roles in the
public relations industry, men still constitute a numerical minority in the
profession. Moreover, when students have been asked about positives and
negatives of their undergraduate, pre-professional socialization experiences,
many women have lamented the fact that their classmates were almost exclusively
women (Waymer, Brown, Fears, & Baker, 2018). To address these diversity
issues, it is equally important that the public relations industry, like other
professions, intentionally work with K-12 and higher education institutions to
increase the representation of men studying the subject in school in hopes of
increasing men’s representation and diversity in the profession, a suggestion
consistent with insights gleaned from previously presented public relations
education scholarship (Rawlins, VanSlyke Turk, & Stoker, 2012).
The Importance of Educational Experience for Career
Preparation
While
it is important to increase the racial and ethnic diversity and number of men
in the public relations field, all of these efforts would be futile if students
were not prepared academically, socially, and professionally to enter the
industry. To pinpoint the overall skills that students entering college are
expected to master across programs, Conley, Drummond, DeGonzalez, Rooseboom,
and Stout (2011) conducted a national survey of more than 1,800 faculty members
representing 944 courses at 1,897 institutions. The researchers found that
top-ranked skills, regardless of subject area, included speaking and listening,
reading comprehension, writing, and problem-solving. Other important factors
the researchers noted related to developing an overall comprehension of life
skills and a mature persona. These can be measured in the form of students
adopting effective study habits, managing time efficiently, taking ownership of
learning, and demonstrating a variety of cognitive strategies, such as
collecting, analyzing, and interpreting information, formulating and relaying
ideas, and developing the ability to become more accurate, precise,
open-minded, and creative.
The Key to Employability model (Pool & Sewell, 2007) has provided additional insight into the importance of the educational experience of college students and students’ preparation for entering entry-level positions. The model builds from five components that provide a foundation for students to adequately reflect and evaluate their readiness for becoming hired within their chosen career fields, which in turn affects their self-efficacy, self-confidence, and self-esteem: (1) career development learning, (2) experience related to work and life, (3) degree-subject knowledge, understanding, and skills, (4) generic skills, and (5) emotional intelligence. While knowledge about the career field is obviously an important part of any academic program, the hard skills included in this area are suggested as only one part of academic preparation (Pool & Sewell, 2007). Pool, Qualter, and Sewell (2014) discuss that a lack of employment opportunities after graduation can be influenced by a deficiency in competencies related to the remaining areas (i.e., “soft” skills and work-based knowledge), which includes a lack of skills that are more likely to be learned in a controlled professional setting (i.e., internships, practicums). These include demonstrating competency and professionalism, demonstrating abilities to cope with uncertainty and pressure situations, developing self-monitoring and time-management skills, and becoming self-confident, responsible, and adaptable.
Because
of the importance of gaining skills through educational experiences, whether it
is in the classroom or through professional settings, examining the racial and
gender differences in these experiences can help provide insight into areas of
needed improvement in order to increase diversity through increasing collegiate
success for underrepresented groups. Therefore, the following research
questions are posed:
RQ1: Are there differences in public relations students’ educational experiences as they progress in the major based on their racial background?
RQ2: Are there differences in public relations students’ educational experiences as they progress in the major based on their gender?
The Importance of Social Development for Career Preparation
Research has been conducted regarding the social development and involvement of students who participate in extracurricular activities on a college or university campus. Previous research examined the correlation of student involvement and its direct effect on students’ social development and future career success. For example, Wenger (1998) developed and expanded the Communities of Practice Theory, and this is a useful theoretical framework for people studying the importance of developing social skills (Farnsworth, Kleanthous, & Wenger-Trayner, 2016; Wenger, 1998). Simply stated, communities of practice are groups of people who engage in a process of collective learning in a shared domain of human endeavor. Typically, this group shares a common concern or passion for something the group does and learns to do better through interacting regularly. This would presume that the social learning process is more effective when people are like-minded individuals and share common interests or passions. In sum, socially engaging with a community of members sharing similar interests is beneficial to the individual’s social learning and development, which can enhance the potential of future career success (Farnsworth et al., 2016; Wenger, 1998). This is directly applicable to enrichment activities for students that are sponsored by organizations such as Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA).
Several
scholars in various disciplines explore social development and career
preparedness for learners (see Bronfenbrenner, 2009; Kolb, 2015; Stahl, Dobson,
& Redillas, 2018; Wenger, 1998). Most of these works draw from and extend
the seminal work of Vygotsky (1978), who found that social interaction,
especially with those who are more knowledgeable about a subject matter, plays
an integral role in the process of development—both socially and academically.
Whether it be experiential learning (Kolb, 2015) or studying the importance of
“demonstration schools,” which are
communities of learning and applied research inquiry that exist in an
integrative designed space (Stahl et al., 2018), they all relate to and extend
Vygotsky’s (1978) notion of the “more knowledgeable other” (MKO).
Vygotsky
theorized that interactions with and exposure to such MKO individuals is vital
to one’s social development. The MKO concept has clear implications for
professional student organizations, such as PRSSA or social organizations like
fraternities and sororities that provide students with invaluable leadership
experiences. The fact that many departments require students to participate in
internships (a form of experiential learning from an MKO) is a testament to the
continued applicability of these concepts.
By drawing from diverse theoretical traditions of involvement and social development, one can infer that an important part of college or university students’ success is contingent upon their participation in extracurricular activities that are relevant to their career choice or interests. In sum, research supports the premise that being involved in extracurricular activities is a positive investment for students.
The
benefits of such participation enable students to gain higher levels of
self-esteem, self-confidence, and leadership abilities, which are all essential
skills to master before entering the professional working world (Astin &
Sax, 1998; Maruyama, Furco, & Song, 2018). Extracurricular activities also
provide college and university students with a network of peers and
professionals who share common interests and goals. Students that are involved
have the opportunity to gain real-world experiences, which essentially serve as
a form of preparation for their futures (Hardin, Pate, & Bemiller, 2013). Students
also have the opportunity to work in team settings and foster the ideas of
commitment and responsibility while ultimately developing a work ethic. Several
research studies in journalism, mass communication, and public relations
support this line of research, suggesting the essential nature of
extracurricular activities to student development and success (Nadler, 1997;
Todd, 2009; Waymer, 2014).
Because
of the importance of developing social skills through interactions with peers,
educators, and current professionals, examining the racial and gender
differences in these experiences can also provide insight into areas of needed
improvement at the collegiate level to increase diversity. Therefore, the
following research questions are posed:
RQ3: Are there differences in public relations students’ social development as they progress in the major based on their racial background?
RQ4: Are there differences in public relations students’ social development as they progress in the major based on their gender?
METHOD
This study extends the work of Waymer, Brown, Fears, and Baker (2018); those authors used interviews and other qualitative approaches to uncover themes related to a diverse sample of young professionals and their collegiate experiences, specifically their educational experiences and social development. Based on those findings, the current authors designed this survey for current public relations majors to uncover racial and gender differences in public relations majors’ collegiate experiences. To measure these differences, an online questionnaire was distributed through the use of Qualtrics, a web-based survey research company.
Participants
A convenience sample of 294 current public relations majors was collected from eight colleges and universities: 48 males (16.3%) and 246 females (83.7%). Table 1 provides a description of the eight colleges and universities and the number of participants from each one.
The majority of the sample was white (196 participants, 66.7%), with 28 African-American participants (9.5%), 49 Hispanic or Latinx participants (16.7%) and 21 participants of other races (7.1%). The average age of the participants was 22.3 (SD = 3.57). All students were of at least junior standing and had completed a Public Relations Writing course, or the equivalent, in their curriculum.
Table
Region
Type
Participants
Southeast
Four-Year Public University
87
Midwest
Four-Year Private University
38
Midwest
Four-Year Private Liberal Arts
College
27
Southeast
Four-Year Private Liberal Arts
College
33
Southeast
Four-Year Public University
21
West
Four-Year Public University
36
West
Four-Year Public University
22
Northeast
Four-Year Private Liberal Arts
College
30
Variables
Researchers created a seven-point Likert scale to measure aspects of students’ collegiate experiences based on qualitative research conducted previously by the authors (Waymer, Brown, Fears, & Baker, 2018). The scale items (provided in Appendix A) measured the degree to which the participant agreed with the statements provided. An exploratory factor analysis with a Varimax rotation was conducted to group the scale items, and three factors were extracted: (a) classroom educational experiences, (b) on-the-job educational experiences, and (c) social experiences. Appendix B provides the factor loadings for each scale item, with 51.07% of the variance explained by the three scales. Because the depth of the study relied on specific aspects of students’ collegiate experiences, not a composite satisfaction score for students’ educational and social experience, scale items were analyzed as individual variables. Cronbach’s (1951) alpha was used to measure the reliability of the scales, and all scales were considered reliable (Classroom α = 0.828, On-the-Job α = 0.864, Social α = 0.872).
Questionnaire and Procedure
Once IRB approval was granted, the questionnaire was uploaded to Qualtrics. The researchers contacted representatives from a national sample of universities that offer public relations as a major. Representatives interested in participating in the study were given a web address to distribute to their students. Participants that completed the questionnaire were entered into a drawing to win either a $50 or $100 VISA gift card.
Students that visited the distinct web address were directed to a five-part questionnaire. Section A provided the informed consent form and screening questions. Participants that were not of at least junior standing and participants that had not completed the Public Relations Writing course or its equivalent did not proceed to the questionnaire. Sections B and C provided the collegiate experience scale items. Scale items in each section were randomized to prevent priming effects. Section D provided a thank-you statement and demographic questions. Section E prompted students to provide an email address for the VISA gift card, as well as any additional information for contacts that are providing extra credit for participating in the study.
Once it was designed, the questionnaire was reviewed by a panel of public relations professionals and scholars. Once revisions were made, the survey was pretested among 30 students. The pretest data was used to edit question order and language, as well as make any functional changes. Statistical analyses of the data were computed using IBM SPSS Statistics, version 21.
RESULTS
A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used to analyze the research questions. RQ1 asked if there were differences in public relations students’ educational experiences based on their racial backgrounds. The MANOVA revealed significant differences among the 18 statements addressing classroom and on-the-job educational experience between white respondents and UREP respondents (Wilks’ Lambda = 0.872, F (1, 292) = 2.25, p = 0.003, ηp2 = 0.13). Further analysis revealed significant differences in 6 of the 18 statements addressing educational experience:
The project-based
courses I have taken in college prepared me for my professional goals [MW = 5.95 (SDW = 0.97); MU = 5.68 (SDU = 1.24)] [F (1, 292) = 4.18, p = .042].
I have been able to find
multiple internship opportunities [MW
= 4.95 (SDW = 1.7); MU = 4.48 (SDU = 1.82)] [F (1, 292) = 4.86, p = .028].
I am actively involved
in student organizations that have helped my professional development (i.e.
PRSSA, Ad Team, Bateman, etc.) [MW
= 4.57 (SDW = 2.21); MU = 4.01 (SDU = 1.86)] [F (1, 292) = 4.66, p = .032].
I have been provided
opportunities to gain leadership experience from the organizations I joined [MW = 5.52 (SDW = 1.68); MU = 5.09 (SDU = 1.67)] [F (1, 292) = 4.17, p = .042].
The professionals I have
met in college gave me valuable insight into the PR profession [MW = 5.66 (SDW = 1.38); MU = 4.91 (SDU = 1.64)] [F (1, 292) = 17.21, p < .001].
I regularly seek career
advice from a public relations professional [MW = 4.73 (SDW
= 1.67); MU = 4.26 (SDU = 1.8)] [F (1, 292) = 5, p = .026].
RQ2 asked if there were differences in
public relations students’ educational development based on their gender. The
MANOVA revealed significant differences among the six statements addressing
social development for males and females (Wilks’ Lambda = 0.873, F (1, 292) = 2.23, p = 0.003, ηp2 = 0.13). Further analysis
revealed significant differences in 11 of the 18 statements, with females
having a higher level of agreement than males in all 11 statements:
The writing-intensive
courses I have taken in college prepared me for my professional goals. [MM = 5.21 (SDM = 1.50); MF = 5.76 (SDF = 1.04)] [F (1, 292) = 9.74, p < .01].
The project-based
courses I have taken in college prepared me for my professional goals [MM = 5.44 (SDM = 1.44); MF = 5.95 (SDF = .97)] [F (1, 292) = 9.28, p < .01].
My previous courses
helped me understand the importance of ethics and codes of conduct for my
profession [MM = 5.42 (SDM = 1.37); MF = 6.04 (SDF = .96)] [F (1, 292) = 14.67, p < .001].
My previous courses
taught me how to effectively manage communication on social and digital media
platforms [MM = 4.90 (SDM = 1.78); MF = 5.44 (SDF = 1.35)] [F (1, 292) = 5.84, p < .05].
I have been able to find
multiple internship opportunities [MM
= 4.06 (SDM = 1.69); MF = 4.94 (SDF = 1.73)] [F (1, 292) = 10.39, p < .01].
Other organizations,
besides PR and communication-related organizations, have provided me
opportunities to practice my professional skills [MM = 4.54 (SDM
= 1.77); MF = 5.34 (SDF = 1.64)] [F (1, 292) = 9.23, p < .01].
I have been provided
opportunities to gain leadership experience from the organizations I joined [MM = 4.88 (SDM = 1.65); MF = 5.47 (SDF = 1.68)] [F (1, 292) = 5.1, p < .05].
I have been able to
build a professional network of PR and communication professionals [MM = 4.00 (SDM = 1.89); MF = 4.87 (SDF= 1.63)] [F (1, 292) = 10.8, p < .01].
The professional network
I am developing in college will be beneficial for my career [MM = 5.02 (SDM = 1.55); MF = 5.54 (SDF = 1.38)] [F (1, 292) = 5.57, p < .05].
The professionals I have
met in college gave me valuable insight into the PR profession [MM = 4.65 (SDM = 1.85); MF = 5.56 (SDF= 1.39)] [F (1, 292) = 15.45, p < .001].
I regularly seek career
advice from a public relations professional [MM = 4.10 (SDM
= 1.68); MF= 4.66 (SDF= 1.73)] [F (1, 292) = 4.25, p < .05].
RQ3 asked if there were differences in
public relations students’ social development based on their racial
backgrounds. The MANOVA revealed significant differences among the six
statements addressing the social development of White respondents compared to UREP
respondents (Wilks’ Lambda = 0.816, F
(1, 292) = 3.7, p = 0.001, ηp2
= 0.07). Further analysis revealed significant differences in five of the six
statements addressing social development.
I have been comfortable
interacting with other students in the classroom [MW = 6.2 (SDW
= 1); MU = 5.9 (SDU = 1.37)] [F (1, 292) = 4.74, p = .03].
I have been comfortable
interacting with other students in PR and communication-related student
organizations [MW = 5.94 (SDW = 1.27); MU = 5.58 (SDU = 1.46)] [F (1, 292) = 4.67, p = .032].
I have built a strong
support group of fellow PR students (i.e. study group, social group, etc.) [MW = 5.4 (SDW = 1.71); MU = 4.84 (SDU = 1.84)] [F (1, 292) = 6.83, p = .009].
Interacting with other students in PR classes is important to me [MW = 5.81 (SDW = 1.3); MU = 5.46 (SDU = 1.53)] [F (1, 292) = 4.25, p = .04].
Other students seemed to value my contributions in a PR setting (classes, student organizations, group projects, etc.) [MW = 5.82 (SDW = 1.13); MU = 5.44 (SDU = 1.47)] [F (1, 292) = 6.11, p = .014].
RQ4 asked if there were differences in
public relations students’ social development based on their gender. The MANOVA
revealed significant differences among the six statements addressing social
development for males and females (Wilks’ Lambda = 0.954, F (3, 290) = 2.320, p =
0.033, ηp2 = 0.05) Further analysis revealed significant
differences for four of the six statements, with females having a higher level
of agreement than males in all four statements:
I have built a strong
support group of fellow PR students (i.e. study group, social group, etc.) [MM= 4.71 (SDM = 1.85); MF = 5.31 (SDF = 1.74)] [F (1, 292) = 4.75, p < .05].
Interacting with other
students in PR classes is important to me [MM
= 5.23 (SDM = 1.69); MF = 5.78 (SDF = 1.31)] [F (1, 292) = 6.553, p < .05].
Interacting with other
students in PR and communication-related student organizations is important to
me [MM = 5.19 (SDM = 1.83); MF= 5.65 (SDF = 1.42)] [F (1, 292) = 3.929, p< .05].
Other students seemed to
value my contributions in a PR setting (classes, student organizations, group
projects, etc.) [MM = 5.19
(SDM = 1.63); MF = 5.79 (SDF = 1.15)] [F (1, 292) = 9.508, p< .01].
DISCUSSION
The
authors surveyed 294 current undergraduate public relations students. The
authors sought to determine if race, gender, or both constructs affected public
relations students’ educational and social experiences during their collegiate
career. The findings suggest that both race and gender play a significant role
in students’ undergraduate public relations experiences.
Findings
showed that UREPs were less likely to build a professional network of PR, build
a strong support group among other public relations students, and experience
comfort interacting with other students in the classroom and in extracurricular
activities. These findings have implications for increasing the presence of
UREPs in the public relations profession—especially if access to a professional
network (or even a social network of peers) is a means for students to gain
entry into the profession.
Significant
differences between men and women were also found. Women were more likely than
males to experience greater satisfaction in both their educational and social
experiences, with results showing that females typically get more out of
classroom experiences, have more opportunities to network and intern, and gain
more valuable leadership experiences. Perhaps the most telling finding is that
UREP respondents and male respondents felt that their peers valued their
contributions in a PR setting less than their white respondents and female
counterparts. These findings along racial and gender lines have implications
for UREP recruitment and retention into the discipline of public relations. If
targeted strategies are developed to help increase social development for males
(an underrepresented group in the major), as well as UREPs, then their
satisfaction with the major increases.
When
taking the findings on gender into account and coupling them with the preceding
findings on race, these findings continue to support the fact that that
majority status (white students and female students, in this case) plays a
significant role in students’ ability to build social and professional networks
and find greater success in the curriculum. The silver lining and key finding,
however, is that the negative effects associated with numerical minority status
appear to be mitigated if students are able to find and take advantage of
adequate means of social development. With that said, greater efforts should be
made by public relations education administrators and faculty to ensure that
men and UREPs are provided and encouraged to pursue key social development
activities. We recognize that this recommendation is idealistic for the
following reasons: (1) PR professors are likely taxed with teaching, service,
and research obligations; therefore, asking them to inform men and UREPs of
specific opportunities might be an unrealistic request. (2) PR professors also
have very little say over who registers for their classes, making control over
the composition of their classes difficult. Thus, a more feasible strategy
might be to talk to men and UREPs who are already in PR classes, and then
incentivize them to then encourage peers in these demographic groups—through
word-of-mouth—to join them in the public relations courses. The gender and
racial/ethnic diversity of the public relations profession depend on such
proactive strategies and tactics. The discipline needs to practice what it
teaches. Setting clear, definable, and measurable goals and objectives is a
cornerstone of public relations campaigns courses, and that knowledge should be
transferred to address diversity issues in the student body, which is the
pipeline to the discipline.
Recommendations for Public Relations Educators
Based on the findings, the researchers provide six practical recommendations for educators to help progress racial and gender diversity in the field. First, males and UREPs, once in the major, must be informed of the opportunities available to gain professional experience and guidance. Based on the responses to the survey, White students overall (regardless of gender) indicated higher success levels in professional network building. Similarly, female students (regardless of their race or ethnicity) indicated higher success levels in professional network building. White students and female students constitute a numerical majority in the public relations major. Because of this disparity, males and UREP students must be better informed of their opportunities for professional growth.
Second, diversity must start at the classroom level in order for emerging practitioners to embrace diversity at the professional level. Based on the responses to the survey, students in the aforementioned racial and gender numerical majority groups indicated that they have strong peer support groups. Moreover, these students also indicated higher levels of comfort interacting with other peers and students in comparison to UREP and male students. Finally, when compared to UREP and male students, students in the racial and gender numerical majority also indicated that other students are more likely to value their contributions in class and in service. There is an obvious disconnect here, and professors, instructors, and advisors must work to increase diversity in the classroom composition and more holistically embrace diversity education via the curriculum, classroom content, and discussions. This could work by weaving difficult discussions about identity and diversity into mainstream public relations courses, by recruiting males and UREP students to join extracurricular groups, as well as by making groups for classroom projects more diverse.
Third, communities of practice and experiential learning are powerful ways to reinforce learning and for students to develop a sense of belonging as they learn. Programs could create Bateman case study competition teams or host PRSSA activities that might be attractive for men and equally attractive for UREPs. In this way, having students wrestle with the public relations challenges that might resonate with them, such as the recent protest cookout case in Oakland, CA (see Holson, 2018), could attract students because they can learn strategies and tactics to address potential issues of interest.
Fourth,
diverse professionals must be more visible to all public relations majors, and
they should be asked to proactively mentor and network with male and UREP
students. Males and UREP students scored lower in “agreement that they have
built a network of professionals” and “seek career advice regularly from
professionals” compared to their counterparts. These differences illustrate a
need for a more visible presence of UREP and male professionals, as well as a
need for these professionals to be more willing to mentor and network with male
and UREP students.
Fifth, colleges and universities should help proactively
encourage socialization among students of different genders and racial
backgrounds. Results showed that male students, compared to their female
counterparts, and UREP students, compared to their white counterparts, not only
felt less comfortable interacting with other students, but also did not see the
importance of interacting with other students. Providing subtle opportunities
to have students of diverse backgrounds interact could help combat these
issues, such as creating diverse groups for group projects and leadership
committees for extracurricular groups.
Finally, professors and instructors must proactively discuss racial and gender differences related to the public relations industry in the classroom (see Waymer, 2012a; Waymer & Dyson, 2011). Both UREP and male students scored less in agreement than their counterparts in the dimension of “Other students seem to value my contributions in a PR setting.” Part of this could stem from a lack of substantial focus in the classroom on the racial and gender disparities in the industry. Discussing these differences in major courses could help to balance classrooms and remove this stigma of disrespect.
Limitations and Future Research
This study only considered race and gender as factors for increasing diversity. Obviously, there are other cultural and social factors that play a part in building a diverse profession. Studies that look at other forms of diversity (e.g. disabilities, sexual orientation, international origins) could offer more insight into this need. In addition, this survey treated all non-White races and ethnicities as one group. Future studies should attempt to gather a larger sample size and a more racially/ethnically representative sample in order to examine specific differences among races and ethnicities and pinpoint specific challenges and issues facing these groups as well—as opposed to grouping them into one category.
This study only looked at students that were advanced in the public relations major, targeting students that have taken at least PR Writing. It would be helpful to interview or survey incoming students to see if there are initial challenges that they face while adjusting both to college and to the public relations major.
This study also gathered respondents from predominantly White institutions (PWIs). Future research should compare the underrepresented populations at these institutions to similar populations at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). There could be potential differences in the educational and social development among students at these two types of institutions. In addition, it would be interesting to see the educational and social development among White students at HBCUs to see if they experience the same issues that underrepresented students experience at PWIs.
Despite these limitations, this study uncovers substantial racial and gender differences in the development of public relations students and helped identify areas of growth to improve the diversity of the profession’s workforce. It is the hope of the researchers that these findings will help provide insight into the best ways to recruit and retain a more diverse group of majors, which would proactively increase diversity in the public relations field
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Appendix A
Scale Items: Collegiate Development
Classroom Educational Experience
A1: The writing-intensive courses I have taken in college prepared me for my professional goals.
A2: The project-based courses I have taken in college prepared me for my professional goals.
A3: My previous courses helped me
understand the importance of ethics and codes of conduct for my professional.
A4: My previous courses taught me
how to conduct research properly.
A5: My previous courses taught me
how to effectively manage communication on social and digital media platforms.
A6: My previous courses taught me to
honor the uniqueness of each individual.
A7: My previous courses taught me
the importance of cultural sensitivity and inclusion.
A8: My previous courses taught me
the basics of business and financial literacy.
On-the-Job Educational Experience
P1: I have been able to find
multiple internship opportunities.
P2: I am actively involved in
student organizations that have helped my professional development (i.e. PRSSA,
Ad Team, Bateman, etc.)
P3: Other organizations, besides PR
and communication-related organizations, have provided me opportunities to
practice my professional skills.
P4: I have been provided
opportunities to gain leadership experience from the organizations I joined.
P5: I have taken advantage of the
professional development opportunities that my school or department provided
(i.e. workshops, resume and portfolio help, etc.)
P6: I’ve had exposure to
professionals in the public relations field through visits to agencies or
corporations, or interactions during campus visits.
P7: I have been able to build a
professional network of PR and communication professionals.
P8: The professional network I am
developing in college will be beneficial for my career.
P9: The professionals I have met in
college gave me valuable insight into the PR profession.
P10: I regularly seek career advice
from a public relations professional.
Social Development
S1: I have been comfortable
interacting with other students in the classroom.
S2: I have been comfortable
interacting with other students in PR and communication-related student
organizations.
S3: I have built a strong support
group of fellow PR students (i.e. study group, social group, etc.)
S4: Interacting with other students
in PR classes is important to me.
S5: Interacting with other students
in PR and communication-related student organizations is important to me.
S6: Other students seem to value my
contributions in a PR setting (classes, student organizations, group projects,
etc.)
Appendix B
Factor Loadings for Collegiate
Development Scales
Factor
A Factor B Factor C
Classroom On-the-Job Social
A1 0.664
A2 0.578
A3 0.636
A4 0.672
A5 0.647
A6 0.709
A7 0.662
A8 0.690
P1 0.648
P2 0.572
P3 0.647
P4 0.733
P5 0.591
P6 0.591
P7 0.706
P8 0.668
P9 0.621
P10 0.577
S1 0.680
S2 0.723
S3 0.771
S4 0.839
S5 0.773
S6 0.686
Eigenvalue 2.029 7.469 2.758
% Variance 8.46 31.12 11.49
Universities Used in the Study
[1] For a discussion of why “UREP” is used as opposed
to “minority,”
which is a term under attack in various disciplines, or even the more
politically correct “African American,
Hispanic, Asian, Native American” (AHANA),
which does not account for persons that are the by-product of interracial UREP unions or other UREP groups that might encounter
racism in the United States such as Arab Americans, see Waymer (2013).
The internet and social media’s powerful influence on
today’s communication landscape has been a game changer for public relations,
and it has opened an opportunity for the chief communication officer (CCO). As
Ragas and Culp note, “You cannot not
communicate” in our lighting fast, interconnected world. How an organization
responds, however, is often rife with hidden obstacles just waiting to trip up
even the most experienced professionals. One word can make all the difference,
as the authors point out, citing United Airlines’ passenger-dragging fiasco and
their use of the jargony word “reaccommodate” in their clumsy apology. Today’s
uber-scrutiny of organizational messages and actions doesn’t leave room for
much error. Ragas and Culp’s new book seeks to shed light on how CCOs manage
and inspire (“woo”) their organizations strategically.
Point of View
Ragas and Culp are public relations faculty in the College
of Communication at DePaul University in Chicago. In 2014, they wrote Business Essentials for Strategic
Communications: Creating Shared Value for the Organization and its Stakeholders.
This text provided students with the essential “Business 101” knowledge, including
financial statements, the stock market, public companies, corporate disclosure,
governance, social responsibility, and reputation.
Their new text, Mastering
Business for Strategic Communicators: Insights and Advice from the C-suite of
Leading Brands, continues their premise that today’s modern communication
student needs to understand business in order to help organizations communicate
effectively. Where their first book gave students a solid business foundation,
this book takes the reader into the mind of the senior communication
professional.
Format
Following the book’s table of contents is a list of 46
communication professionals representing corporate, agency, higher education,
and philanthropic organizations. Contributors include communication executives
from General Electric, General Motors, Edelman, MillerCoors, Starbucks,
Southwest Airlines, and Levi Strauss & Co. to name just a few. Guest
contributors give their take on their organization’s DNA such as history,
culture, structure, products/services, and challenges, all within the sphere of
communication. Contributors give their views on the phrase “business acumen”
and how it applies to their personal work success.
Structure
In Part 1, the chapter “Advising ‘The Room Where it
Happens’: The Business Case for Business Acumen,” presents the book’s justification for what follows. Ragas and
Culp quote Bob Feldman, co-founder and principal of PulsePoint Group, that
“basic business skills are still required,” and “the need for basic leadership
skills is stronger than ever” (Feldman, 2016, as cited in Ragas & Culp, p.
6). Feldman noted that to get a seat at the table, professionals would be
judged on their professional “stature, business acumen and performance” (p. 7).
Each chapter represents one organization and a mix of
executives, including its CCO. Executives are featured in boxed interviews
called “Career Spotlight” and “C-suite View,” which focus on career advice and
supplemental information.
Part II, titled “Communications, Business Acumen and the
C-Suite” (chapters 2-4), presents Weber Shandwick’s Gary Sheffer, senior
corporate strategist, who details the challenges of General Electric’s complex
acquisition deal of the French company Alstom; MillerCoor’s Peter Mario, chief
public affairs and communications officer, explains why he decided he needed to
hone his business acumen and go back and get an MBA.
Part III, titled “Finance and Investor Relations” (chapters 5-6), includes Kathryn Beiser, a former communication executive for Discover Financial Services, explaining how “numbers need a storyteller” to explain to investors and other stakeholders the company’s strategy and accomplishments in its financial filings (p. 52). Carole Casto, vice president of marketing and communications for Cummins, Inc., details some of the key investor relations communication activities—quarterly earnings releases, annual meeting of shareholders, and the analyst day.
Part IV, “Human Resources and Employee Engagement” (chapters
7-9), provides a much-needed look at this employee-focused practice area. Often
forgotten or lopped off due to time restraints, this section explains how
communication practitioners at Starbucks work closely with their “partners”
because customers say the positive human interaction is the main reason for
return visits (p. 69). For this reason, company culture is important. Corey
duBrowa, former senior vice president, global communications for Starbucks,
says Starbucks’ partners often identified key issues early, which helped
Starbucks address them earlier. Anne Toulouse, vice president, global brand
management and advertising at Boeing, offers her experience of working with HR
and communications. She advises practitioners to get a mentor and “pull deep
knowledge” (p. 85) about your field.
Part V, “Corporate Strategy, Innovation and Legal” (chapters
10-13), features a journalist’s transition into corporate communication for
Southwest Airlines. Another chapter deals with the importance of strategy in
business and provides some sage advice from a Walgreens Boots Alliance
communication executive to make sure your assumptions are right (p. 109). Mark
Bain of Upper 90 Consulting gives a brief introduction to the legal department
and why communication professionals should interact with the legal staff.
Additional sections include Part VI, “Marketing, Brand, and
Data Analytics” (chapters 14-16); Part VII “Social Responsibility and
Transparency” (chapters 17-19); and Part VIII “Communication and Corporate
Transformations” (chapters 20-22). Part IX sums up the book with Ragas and Culp
providing observations and conclusions about the contributors’ advice (Chapter
23).
The book also provides readers with short biographies of contributors,
resources on business acumen, a glossary, and an index, which are useful.
Recommendations
For public relations programs that provide a business
foundation, this book is valuable because it reinforces basic terminology and
business concepts from a CCO perspective. It’s conversational in tone and is a
quick read. It tells us how top communication professionals view their roles
and duties in today’s organizations. It
would be a good supplemental textbook at the undergraduate or master’s level
for strategic communication or public relations courses that introduce or focus
on leadership and management concepts such as a case study course.
If you are looking for detailed information about how communication executives accomplish specific strategy or tactical tasks, you’ll need to find another alternative. It does not show, for example, how research contributes to strategic planning and implementation of tactics or how to form effective fast-acting social media teams. Instead, the book discusses the strategy, counseling and leadership side of managing the public relations function—all important to understand. The sidebar “C-Suite Views” that discussed CEO expectations for their CCO or what it takes to succeed in the role were particularly interesting.
The book’s design could have benefitted from a more readable
typeface for the “C-suite View” sidebar features., and the black-and-white
photos of contributors are somewhat hazy.
Overall, it is exciting to see a book like this one, and I
hope this is just the beginning. For years, our field has discussed the need
for developing business IQ and understanding the expectations of professional
communicators within the C-Suite. Here is a book that does both.
In an age of misinformation and fake
news, the role of public relations professionals increasingly includes guiding
organizations toward transparency, integrity, and ethics. In addition, professionals
are taking stock of their own personal ethical decision making, as they
encounter ethically murky situations in the work world. In the book Public Relations Ethics: Senior PR Pros Tell
Us How to Speak Up and Keep Your Job, authors Dr. Marlene Neill, APR,
assistant professor at Baylor University, and Amy Barnes, APR, associate
professor at University of Arkansas, Little Rock, offer advice for today’s
public relations professionals. The book addresses important questions about
providing ethical counsel, leveraging personal influence to persuade
leadership’s ethical decision making, and deciding when to walk away from a
job.
Packed with research and interviews with senior professionals, the book brings together decades of research on public relations ethics and presents it in an accessible way that’s useful for practitioners, researchers, and students. Moving from topic to topic, the book offers a map for someone who is building personal influence as an ethics counselor or someone who is currently facing an ethical dilemma. Frequent stories and quotes from the profession give the reader a good sense of how professionals understand and address ethical issues. It is clear that the authors have spent years in public relations practice and bring that experience, along with their strong research skills, to this topic. Chapters wrap up with a summary of
the key points and “Questions to Ponder” that give the reader an opportunity to
reflect on their own experiences and how they may match (or not) the experiences
shared in the book.
Ethical
Principles and Ethics Counsel
The first chapter of the book
introduces basic ethical concepts and explains more advanced ethical
principles, establishing the purpose and value of the book to public relations.
It then argues the need for public relations to be the ethical conscience of
the organization, stating that the department’s unique position as a boundary
spanner and environmental scanner lends it to this role. However, the authors
argue, being an ethical conscience is a challenging position. “This role takes
courage as it often involves providing less-than-welcome advice to people who
may outrank you” (p. 14). The rest of the book helps instruct readers about how
to prepare for and implement this role.
Role
of the Ethics Counselor
Having established the need for
ethics counsel and argued that public relations is uniquely qualified for the
role, the book moves on to answer the next important question: “So what can
public relations do to earn respect so that their counsel is valued?” (p. 19).
Chapter 2 explains how “power” and “influence” help fuel successful advocacy
and how public relations professionals need to have influence in order to act
as counselors to senior management. Internal organizational structures and
personalities can create barriers to influence in public relations. One of the
most important ways to build influence is through building relationships and
coalitions as discussed in Chapter 3. As the authors point out, internal
collaborations can raise challenges for the ethics counselor, and this chapter
offers suggestions for addressing these challenges.
Advice
from Senior Professionals
Sometimes the best way to make an
ethical decision is to hear what others have done. Chapter 4 allows the voices
of senior professionals to guide the reader through the process of building and
leveraging influence to advocate for an ethical cause. The professionals share
their struggles and the outcomes (good and bad) of their own attempts to offer
counsel. In an interesting twist, the chapter also looks at how gender might
influence the way public relations professionals engage strategies to influence
management. The results of a study of PRSA Fellows and Page Society members
found that male and female leaders find different strategies to be more
successful. The chapter wraps up by sharing strategies to avoid when offering
ethics counsel.
Chapter 5 builds on the advice in
Chapter 4, and the authors dig deeper into the issue of leveraging allies and
coalitions to advocate for an ethical cause. Insights offered in this chapter
aid the readers in understanding the political dynamics of organizational
settings. These include suggestions to help identify influencers within an
organization and ways to gain access to current coalitions. As the chapter
says, “Being politically savvy also means knowing who sits on influential
committees and how decisions are made in an organization” (p. 59).
When Ethics Counsel Fails
Chapter 6 begins by making an important observation, “Sometimes ethics counsel falls on deaf ears” (p. 67). What if an ethics counselor implements the strategies recommended in this book but is unable to convince management to reconsider an ethical decision? According to the authors, three options exist: drop the issue, appeal to someone else, or find another job. How to decide which is the best option is the subject of Chapter 6. By offering examples and principles to consider, the authors help the reader clarify the importance of the issue they are addressing and how best to move forward. When should a professional consider rocking the boat or becoming a whistleblower, as the chapter title suggests?
Practical
Advice for Ethics Counselors
So how does a professional prepare
to become an ethics counselor? Chapter 7 offers many suggestions, including
mentorship and training. The authors argue that one role of ethics counselors
is creating an ethical culture in an organization by communicating values,
building structures that encourage ethics, and rewarding ethical behavior.
Chapter 8 defines ethical culture and explains its value for the organization.
In Chapter 9, the authors share practical guidance that would help new public
relations professionals perform more successfully in any organizational
setting. These nuggets of advice come from senior practitioners and range from
“young professionals need to build business literacy” (p. 101) to “leadership
involves listening to the concerns of various stakeholders” (p. 112). The book
wraps up (Chapter 10) with suggestions for engaging with ethics topics every
day. These bits of advice include reviewing codes of ethics, reading case
studies and blogs, and talking to others about ethics. This is good advice
especially for young professionals, and the last two chapters make this book
not only a reference for senior practitioners but also a good source of
information for young practitioners alike.
Recommendation
Who can benefit from reading this
book? Faculty, including both teachers and researchers, would appreciate this
book. At only 140 pages, it could easily be added to a reading list for a
graduate or undergraduate course on ethics. The writing is clear, and topics in
the book follow logically, allowing those who have not worked in the field to
understand the importance of ethics. Researchers will appreciate the way the
authors weave together decades of research on public relations ethics and demonstrate
how it translates to real-world practice. The book also identifies areas where
more research is needed.
I don’t think I’m exaggerating when
I say all senior public relations professionals should read this book. In a
communication environment ruled by social media, organizations that are caught
acting in unethical ways will experience public reprimands with far-reaching
consequences. Preventing mistakes like this begins by creating a culture of
ethics within the organization that allows employees to raise ethical issues
when they see them. This book offers excellent advice to both senior and junior
professionals that would help create such an environment.
Overall, this is an excellent,
well-researched book, and it presents professional dilemmas and solutions in a
way that resonate as authentic. I would strongly recommend this book to
students who are preparing for the work world or public relations professionals
who want to improve the effectiveness of their ethical counsel.
Disclaimer:
The Arthur W. Page Center for Integrity in Public Communication, directed by
Denise Bortree, partially funded the authors of this book; however, the Center
does not financially benefit from its publication, including any sales of the
book.
Editorial Record: Original draft submitted to JPRE August 11, 2018. Manuscript
accepted for publication September 12, 2018. Final edits completed January 21, 2019.
First published online January 31, 2019.
Authors
Daradirek “Gee” Ekachai, Marquette UniversityYoung Kim, Marquette University
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to examine how a format of a syllabus influences student motivation and engagement in a public relations course and students’ impression of the course and course instructor. This study conducted focus group interviews and a lab experiment with undergraduate student at a large university in the Midwestern United States to examine how a format—design or length—of a PR course syllabus can affect student motivation, engagement, and impression of the course and course instructor. Results from the two focus group interviews were mixed, but students’ preferences were geared toward the long version of the visually appealing syllabus. Findings from the experimental study show no effect of syllabus design on student engagement. However, the visually appealing syllabus had an effect on student motivation, and its short version produced positive impressions of the course and course instructor.
Keywords: course syllabus, syllabus designs, student engagement, impression on course and instructor, public relations education
Does Your PR Course Syllabus Excite, Intrigue, and Motivate Students to Learn? Syllabus Designs and Student Impressions of the PR Course and the Course Instructor
Scholars have paid special attention to how teachers can engage college students in the classroom and have called for more research to advance theory and best practices (Mazer & Hess, 2016, p. 356). Instructional scholars have suggested that teachers be agile in creating and adapting course curriculum, especially the course syllabus, to engage college students in the classroom (Hosek & Titsworth, 2016). It is argued that the course syllabus can provide a first impression that may directly influence the interests and motivation of college students, possibly leading to their engagement throughout the semester (Ludy, Brackenburg, Folkins, Peet, & Langendorfer, 2016).
Despite a growing
body of public relations education research, public relations scholars have not
paid much attention to the importance of a course syllabus design and its
implications or effects on student learning. Recently, public relations
educators and professionals have recognized the importance of visual
communication in public relations practice and education. Richard Edelman
(personal communication, June 21, 2012), president and CEO of Edelman, called
for “more informative visuals” and “visual representation of information” at
the Edelman Academic Summit. Academics have also noted the importance of visual
communication in PR education and student learning (Gallicano, Ekachai, &
Freberg, 2014; Sisson & Mortensen, 2017). Hence, it is more appropriate for
PR educators, in order to practice what they preach, to consider whether or not
they should include visual elements in their course syllabus to interest,
motivate, and engage students.
By conducting two studies—focus group interviews (Study I, N = 10) and an experimental study (Study II, N = 81), this study aims to examine the extent to which the design of a PR course syllabus could influence student motivation and engagement in a PR course, as well as students’ impressions of the course and course instructor.
LITERATURE REVIEW
A syllabus is typically seen as a legal document or a contract between an instructor and the students concerning the overall plan of the course, course objectives, student learning outcomes, course expectations, class activities, assessments, and course policies (Fornaciari & Dean, 2014). If the syllabus contents are carefully crafted to create conceptual unity, then they can engage students (Canada, 2013). A syllabus can set a tone for the students and create first impressions on the first day of class that might inspire them to further engage for the rest of the semester (Ludy et al., 2016).
According to Fink
(2012), a course syllabus plays a variety of functions, such as a communication
mechanism, a planning tool for instructors, a course plan for students, a
teaching tool or resource, an artifact for teacher evaluation, and evidence for
accreditation. Many of these functions are more or less instructor-oriented.
Therefore, more attention and research should be spent on how to construct and
design a syllabus to motivate and engage students (Ludy et al., 2016). With this
in mind, this study seeks to understand how syllabus design influences
students’ engagement, motivation, and course impression.
Student Engagement and Course Syllabus
Student disengagement is one of the utmost concerns for educators and has been linked to deviant behavior at school, low academic achievement, and absences (Harris, 2008). To enhance student engagement, scholars have paid special attention to using visual images in the classroom. The findings indicate that using visual images in the classroom can stimulate active learning and enhance student engagement, appeal to students’ attention (Liu & Beamer, 1997), increase their interests (Rankin & Hoaas, 2001), and boost satisfaction and participation (Hagen, Edwards, & Brown, 1997), leading to pleasant classroom experiences (Ulbig, 2010). Visual images can also enhance the classroom experience by helping students better understand abstract concepts (Levin, Anglin, & Carney, 1987). Results from an experimental study by Ulbig (2010) suggest that the use of visual images in class presentations imparted by an instructor increased student classroom engagement and student attitudes about the course in general.
Following similar rationales from such studies, other scholars have placed more efforts on how the format or design of the course syllabus (i.e., visually appealing or text-oriented syllabus) impact student interest and engagement. Palmer (2009) offered suggestions on how to use a course syllabus to set a tone of engagement by suggesting required contents in the syllabus: clear, specific learning outcomes; class format; student behavioral expectations; and professional behavioral expectations. Canada (2013) agreed, stating that a well-crafted syllabus can serve as an initial point of engagement for college students by using plain and direct language, friendliness, and humility to appeal to college students. Thus, the format can convey the instructor’s style, voice, or enthusiasm to the students, leading to student engagement (Hockensmith, 1988).
To better grasp the effects of syllabi arrangement on student engagement, Ludy et al. (2016) conducted qualitative and quantitative surveys that compared student perceptions of a text-rich contractual syllabus and a graphic-rich engaging syllabus and found that a visual or graphic-rich syllabus can benefit instructors who seek to gain favorable initial course perceptions by students. Their study concludes that while students reacted positively to both designs, students judged the visual syllabus to be more appealing, comprehensive, and suitable to student engagement than the traditional contractual syllabus (i.e., text-oriented syllabus; Ludy et al., 2016). Applying previous research reviewed on student engagement and syllabus design, this study proposes the following hypothesis:
H1: Those who read a visually appealing syllabus will be more likely to engage in a PR course than those who read a text-oriented one.
Student Motivation and Syllabus
It is imperative that instructors understand the underlying components of motivation as they pertain to student engagement (Oblinger, 2003). While similar to engagement, motivation remains its own separate variable (Appleton, Christensen, Kim, & Reschly, 2006). Motivation has been conceptualized as the direction, intensity, and quality of one’s energies (Maehr & Meyer, 1997), answering the question of “why” for a given behavior (Appleton et al., 2006), belonging (Goodenow, 1993), and competence (Schunk, 1991). Simply put, motivation is tantamount to a student’s ability to engage with the course information (Appleton et al., 2006).
According to Wigfield and Eccles’ (2000) model of motivation, student motivation and engagement stem from the intrinsic knowledge of responsibility, which means that students must value the course syllabus to become motivated and engaged by it. Therefore, the combination of a student’s value of the course and the perception of his or her likelihood to succeed leads to higher levels of motivation (Wigfield & Eccles, 2000). However, many students enter higher education with a lack of academic responsibility, which suggests the belief that instructors are responsible for students’ learning outcomes and desires should be met (Buckner & Strawser, 2016).
With regard to the association between students’ motivation and the course syllabus, Bishop (2006) argued that facilitating student ownership over course materials increases student creativity and motivation. Nilson (2010) also asserts, a syllabus might not only be “the road map for the term’s foray into knowledge but also a travelogue to pique students’ interest in the expedition and its leader” (p. 33). In addition, scholars agreed that student-friendly explanations (e.g., explanation of course assignment and a list of campus resources) and warm and friendly language on the syllabus can increase student motivation to learn (Richmond, Slattery, Mitchell, & Morgan, 2016).
Recently, Ludy et al. (2016) also found that visually appealing syllabi highlighted with different colors and underlining or bold print leads students to be more motivated to learn the course than text-oriented or contractual-style syllabi. In this regard, scholars suggest that students’ intrinsic motivation should be taken into consideration when crafting syllabi (Fornaciari & Dean, 2014). Based on the literature about student motivation, this study examines the extent to which the syllabus design (visual-oriented vs text-oriented) influences student motivation to learn in the PR course. The following hypothesis is posited:
H2: Those who read a visually appealing syllabus will be more likely to be motivated in the PR course than those who read a text-oriented one.
Impression of Course, Instructor and Syllabus
Researchers have examined how the course syllabus affects students’ impressions of the course, as well as impressions of the instructors (e.g., Jenkins, Bugeja, & Barber, 2014). Matejka and Kurke (1994) argued that the course syllabus conveys a first impression on the first day of class; it is a statement of preliminary work that instructors put into the course. Furthermore, Saville, Zinn, Brown, and Marchuk (2010) conducted an experimental study that compared a brief version of the course syllabus (e.g., a two-page document with general course information on course objectives, exams, and policies) with a more detailed version (e.g., a six-page document with additional information on course objectives, exams, and policies) and found that the detailed version resulted in higher student impressions of the instructor’s effectiveness.
Grounded on Saville et al.’s (2010) findings, Jenkins et al. (2014) conducted an experimental study and found that including different kinds of syllabus information may influence initial impressions of the instructor. They suggested that “a lengthier or more detailed syllabus is not necessarily more beneficial; the addition of restrictive course policies is critical” (Jenkins et al., 2014, p. 133). In addition, Ludy et al. (2016) corroborated the previous research by finding that a more-detailed syllabus increased students’ positive impressions of the instructor. However, they did not find impact of the visually engaging syllabus on the impression of the instructor. Therefore, this study proposes the following hypothesis to provide further evidence about whether the syllabus design impacts students’ impression of the course and the course instructor:
H3: Those who read a visually appealing syllabus will be more likely to have a positive impression of the course (H3a) and the course instructor (H3b) than those who read a text-oriented one.
Effects of Syllabus Length
The length of a syllabus (i.e., how much information should be included) has received much attention from scholars (Becker & Calhoon, 1999; Saville et al., 2010). In general, scholars agree that a detailed syllabus is better than a brief one because the detailed syllabus provides students with important course information and influences students’ perceptions of teaching effectiveness (Fink, 2012; Richmond et al., 2016). In particular, a detailed syllabus could communicate that a teacher cares about his or her students—one quality of effective teachers (Buskist, Sikorski, Buckley, & Saville, 2002)—but a less-detailed syllabus could lead students to have a negative perception that a teacher is not interested in students’ learning or is not approachable (McKeachie, 2002). Subsequent studies also indicate that a lengthier syllabus can influence the positive impressions of instructor effectiveness (e.g., approachable, creative, effective communicator, enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and prepared; Jenkins et al., 2014; Ludy et al., 2016). Specifically, Saville et al. (2010) suggested that a detailed syllabus serves a communicative function, providing students with information about a course, as well as a motivating function, encouraging students to do well in the course.
Despite the benefits of having a detailed syllabus, other research indicates that students tend to either ignore or have difficulty remembering a great portion of syllabi (Smith & Razzouk, 1993; Thompson, 2007) and tend to get bogged down in details (Leeds, 1992). Fornaciari and Dean (2014) also argued that the length of andragogy syllabi has “shifted from long contractually detailed to short[er] and more flexibly constructed” to optimize adaptability for student learning (pp. 712-713). Thus, there has been mixed evidence in previous studies.
Moreover, there is no study that examined the possible moderating role of syllabus length on the effects of a visually appealing syllabus. To fill the research gap, this study proposes the following research questions regarding main and interaction effects of syllabus design and length on student engagement, motivation, and impression:
RQ 1: How will the length of a syllabus affect student engagement in the PR course?
RQ 2: How will the length of a syllabus affect student motivation in the PR course?
RQ 3: How will the length of a syllabus affect student impressions of the course (RQ3a) and the course instructor (RQ3b) in the PR course?
RQ 4: How will the length of a syllabus moderate the effect of syllabus design on students’ engagement in the PR course?
RQ 5: How will the length of a syllabus moderate the effect of syllabus design on students’ motivation in the PR course?
RQ 6: How will the length of a syllabus moderate the effect of syllabus design on students’ impression of the course (RQ6a) and the course instructor (RQ6b) in the PR course?
METHODS AND RESULTS
To
test the hypotheses and research questions above, two studies—two focus group
interviews (Study I: FGIs) and one experimental study (Study II)— were
conducted. One public relations elective course was chosen for the course
syllabus because the course has a large enrollment, thus more participants
could be recruited. In addition, since
it is an elective course, the psychological pressure required to take the
course for graduation can be controlled.
The designs of the course syllabus with recommended features were
crafted based on previous research, and two different design
formats—contractual (i.e., text-oriented) and engaging (i.e.,
visually-appealing)— were used (e.g., Ludy et al., 2016).
Study I – Focus Group
Interviews (FGIs)
FGIs Methods
Procedures
Researchers often rely on focus groups to collect data from multiple individuals simultaneously to discuss perceptions, ideas, opinions, and thoughts on certain issues. Focus groups are also used to explore issues before a questionnaire for a quantitative research study is developed (Krueger & Casey, 2014). Therefore, the purposes of the focus group interviews (FGIs) in this study were (1) to obtain detailed information about individual and group perceptions and opinions about the syllabus and (2) develop the stimuli for an experimental study (Study II). Researchers recruited participants using announcements in college courses, flyers, and social media posts.
After agreeing on the consent form about the purpose, procedures, statement of privacy, and benefits, students participating in the focus group sessions received $15 gift cards as compensation. A trained moderator conducted both focus groups. Five participants were recruited for each FGI session (N =10). The FGI sessions took place in a quiet and comfortable room. Complimentary beverages and snacks were provided.
Two FGI sessions were conducted and voice-recorded with students enrolled in communication courses related to strategic communication (e.g., advertising and public relations) at a large university in the Midwestern United States. The information of the course instructor, especially the name, was hypothetically created based on random selection from the list of popular names over the last 100 years, provided by The United States Social Security Administration (www.ssa.gov), in order to avoid the effects of previous experiences or relationships with the actual instructors. Other information on the syllabus (e.g., course goal, objectives, and policies) was presented the same as it was in the actual class.
After completing a demographic questionnaire, participants were asked what contents or information they typically looked for in a syllabus and how many times a semester they would refer back to that syllabus. They were then presented with four different versions of the International Advertising and Public Relations syllabus: short and long versions of text-oriented syllabi, and short and long versions of visually appealing syllabi. The short version of text-oriented and visually appealing design contained four pages that included general course information (i.e., description, instructor name and contact information, and office hours), course goals, learning objectives, required readings/textbooks, course requirements (names of assignments and grade scales), and a course schedule. The eight-page long version of the text-oriented and visually appealing syllabi added the following parts to the short version: detailed assignment descriptions, deadlines, and course policies (i.e., assignment submission, professionalism, attendance, communication, academic integrity and other campus resources such as the counseling center and disability center). The text-oriented version was crafted only using black and white colors. For the visually appealing versions, images relating to the course and assignments were highlighted with different colors and styled with bold and underlined lettering based on previous research (Ludy et al., 2016). The first page of each design type is provided in the appendices.
Each participant received the four versions of the syllabus in random order of length and design. After reviewing all four versions, students answered questions about their impression or reaction towards the different designs, their motivation to take the course, their levels of interest and engagement in the course based on each design, their preference among the four designs, and their impression of each course instructor.
FGIs Results
Participants. Among the total participants (N = 10), there were six females. The average age was 21.9 (SD = 2.18). The majority of participants were white (60%, n = 6), followed by Asian or Asian American (30%, n =3), and Black or African-American (10%, n = 1). Regarding class standing, seven students (70%, n =7) were seniors, two were sophomores (20%, n = 2), and one was a graduate student (10%, n =10). Most of them were majoring or minoring in public relations and advertising or communication-related areas (e.g., media studies) (70%, n = 7), and others were sociology (10%, n =1) and business (20%, n = 2) majors.
Analysis. The focus group interviews were transcribed, yielding 45 pages of typed, double-spaced transcripts. The transcriptions did not include observational or non-verbal cues, such as facial expressions, speech tones, pronunciation, or pauses reflected in the interviews. This analysis relied on a constant comparative method to interpret the transcribed interview texts for key concepts or themes that emerged from the questions posed (Lincoln & Guba, 1985). Attempts were made to find key concepts for syllabus design and length preferences, students’ motivation and engagement in the course, and their impressions of the course and instructor.
General results on syllabus. Students
said they have received syllabi with text-oriented designs in most courses they
have taken, many with more than five pages. Some mentioned that the visual
syllabi mostly came from lower-level courses, while the text-oriented syllabi
were from upper-level classes.
When asked what students looked for in the syllabus, most agreed that they looked for the course description, weekly calendars, due dates, textbook information, exams, quizzes, grading breakdowns, attendance policies, class assignments, and papers, if any.
On the first day of class when most of the class time was spent on the syllabus, students said they expected instructors to explain all class expectations. As one mentioned, “I don’t think I actually go read the syllabus besides the class schedule or reference to the assignments. I like having the expectations explained to me by the teacher on the first day.” After the first day of class, students said they would refer back to the syllabus (frequently for some students) when they needed to check on weekly class activities, assignments, and due dates.
Design and length preferences. Most participants preferred the visual design, and some liked the long version over the short one. They commented that the long syllabus with all the information is more “professional” and “looked important.” Although they would keep the syllabus length of eight pages, they wanted the most important parts of the syllabus (such as assignments, class projects, or grading policy) to be on the first few pages. They would not read all pages at first but would know all of the information was there in the long syllabus. One student commented on the visual design of the syllabus: “I like this one because it’s colorful. If you got lots of these on the table, you can find that easier. And I like that the highlights and the words are a little bit bigger than the text one.”
When asked whether they would like to get a short syllabus with additional handouts on assignments provided later, students said they prefer to have an “all-in-one” syllabus with detailed descriptions of all assignments over getting separate handouts. Students pointed out: “That (separate handout) is going to be lost or be thrown out. I’m going to lose it anyway” and “I like keeping the length, and I like keeping the project descriptions and stuff like that in the syllabus because it’s easy to reference.” Another student said:
Here is the thing about the long one: it tells you all the stuff that you have to do…. When I was doing the group project, I would literally have the syllabus on half of my computer screen, so I know I was going through all the components and stuff.
An additional student agreed and explained the reasons for the preference:
I like the long one more. The short one doesn’t have all the information. The short version has all the links, but if you type in all the links, it’s more of a pain to do than if you have the information written in front of you already.
But a few students in both focus group sessions expressed that the long version of the text-oriented syllabus “stressed me out,” “is cluttered,” and is “so much information.” These students prefer a concise version with links to additional information, such as university policies that can be found on a website.
Motivation and engagement. Most students in both sessions commented that, while the visual design of the syllabus looked appealing and interesting, their motivation to learn and engage in class is not based on the syllabus design only. They voiced that it depends on the teacher’s attitude and enthusiasm on the first day of class. Student feedback on this was represented by the following quotes:
“It’s about the professor’s personality, course contents, and a lot of things. Sometimes they just give you very simple, not so appealing syllabus, but the class is amazing.”
“I don’t think my motivation in the class is going to be based on the syllabus. If the teacher passes the syllabus and was super-excited, then I’ll probably be motivated to come to the class.”
But one student differed and perceived that the visually-appealing syllabus reflected the instructor’s efforts to motivate students. She explained, “They want to make sure you are going to learn something out of the class. And they kind of took the time, so you should take the time to care for the class too.”
Impression of the course and the instructor. Students mentioned that the visual design of the syllabus indicated that the instructor spent time and effort on the syllabus, meaning they care and want students to be successful. Some said that teachers who hand out the visual syllabus are probably more creative and “trying to get a different perspective.” One student remarked: “If the professor gives me a syllabus like this (visual), I’m like, ‘Oh, we’re going to be friends. We will have so much fun this semester.’”
One student noted that she preferred either of the visual designs—four or eight pages—because they indicated that the instructor put time and effort into creating the syllabus.
I think the visually appealing one shows that the professor took time and cares about your success in the class…I mean if I’m handed the 4-page black and white, no pictures versus this one and it’s the same class just taught by a different professor, I’m taking this professor over this one because it shows that they actually care about students.
Some students further noted that the short version of the text-heavy syllabus with no pictures could be interpreted that the teacher was uncaring. One student commented: “They had to hand you a syllabus, this is what you get. Figure it out. Got a problem, let me know. Have a nice day.”
On the other hand, the text-oriented syllabus might convey the seriousness of the course for some students. One student noted that the text-only syllabus made her feel like “I need to work. This teacher means business, and you don’t want to mess around in this class.” For her, the visual designs with colors and graphics made her think that she can “slack off a little bit” and it would be all right to “get away with missing a few assignments.”
In sum, the results from the two focus group interviews showed that most students liked the visually appealing syllabus. However, they did not provide a clear answer in terms of the length of the syllabus and the effect on students’ engagement and motivation in the course. At any rate, most students reported positive impressions of the course and the course instructor when they read the visually appealing syllabus, regardless of the length. To find clearer results with reliable statistical significance, we conducted further analysis through an experimental study.
Study II –
Experimental Study
After conducting two FGIs, an experimental study was conducted with the students who did not participate in the FGIs. All sessions of the experimental study took place in a lab setting, equipped with tables and computers that allowed students to read the printed syllabus and answer the questions online.
Experimental Study Methods
Participants. Through announcements in college courses, e-mail, flyers, and social media posts, 83 individuals were recruited from undergraduate communication courses at a large university in the Midwestern United States. Deleting two cases with missing data resulted in a total of 81 participants for data analysis (N = 81). All subjects participated in the experimental study voluntarily and received $10 gift cards as compensation. Ages ranged from 18 to 31 years old, with an average age of 20.83 (SD = 2.41). Nearly 90% (n = 73) were female, and 10% (n = 8) were male. The majority of participants (82.7%, n = 67) were White, 7.4% (n = 6) were Hispanic/Latino, 6.2% (n =5) were Asian/Asian-American, and 3.7% (n = 3) were other races (e.g., Native American). The senior students were dominant (51.8%, n = 42), followed by sophomores (19.8%, n = 16), juniors (18.5%, n = 15), and freshmen (9.9%, n = 8).
Procedures. This study used a 2 (design: text-oriented or visually appealing) x 2 (length: short or long) between-subjects experimental design. The same stimuli from the FGIs were used in the experimental study because all participants in the two FGIs confirmed syllabus contents, design, and length in terms of ecological validity.
The questionnaire for the experimental study was created on Qualtrics. After signing a consent form, student participants were randomly assigned to one of the four experimental conditions, produced by a cross combination of syllabus design (text-oriented or visually appealing) and syllabus length (short or long). According to each condition, a printed version of a syllabus, as a stimulus, was provided for the participants. After reading each type of syllabus, the participants answered questions measuring dependent variables: motivation, engagement, and impression of the course instructor.
A pre-test (N = 21) was conducted to check the procedure (e.g., stimulus manipulation and randomization) and other issues (e.g., clarity of questions), and there was no issue in the pre-test. The main test (N = 81) was conducted by the same procedure confirmed in the pre-test.
Measures. Multiple items in the
experimental study were used for each variable and measured on a 7-point
Likert-type scale (1= not at all to 7 = very much). All items for main
variables were adopted from previous research.
The 17-item instrument to measure student engagement is from Schaufeli, Salanova, González-Romá, and Bakker (2002), consisting of vigor with 6 items (Cronbach’s α = 0.87) (e.g., after reading the syllabus, I would feel strong and vigorous when I am studying or going to this class), five items related to dedication (α = 0.85) (e.g., after reading the syllabus, my studies in this class would inspire me), and six items about absorption (α = 0.90) (e.g., after reading the syllabus, I feel happy when I am intensely studying for this class). All dimensions were combined into one construct for engagement.
Motivation
was measured by one item (i.e., how likely the syllabus motivates student
interest in the course), adopted from Ludy et al. (2016).
Student impression was measured in two aspects––impression of the course syllabus and impression of the course instructor. Adapting Saville et al.’s (2010) measures for Syllabus Detail and Students’ Perceptions of Teacher Effectiveness, the impression of the course syllabus was measured with two items (α = 0.89; the syllabus is easy to read and understand, and the syllabus is easy to navigate and find information). The impression of the course instructor was assessed by the students’ feelings about the instructor’s characteristics and expertise (i.e., teacher effectiveness) based on the syllabus (Ludy et al., 2016). Six items (e.g., the course instructor is enthusiastic) measuring the impression of the instructor’s characteristics (α = 0.86) and four items (e.g., the course instructor is knowledgeable) measuring the impression of instructor expertise (α = 0.86) were used in this study.
Demographic
information, including gender, race, major, and school year (class
identification), were gathered at the end of the experiment.
Experimental Study Results
Manipulation checks. Randomization was successful as each condition was all balanced. Each group was almost an equal size, and demographics in each group (e.g., major, race, and school standing) were all balanced without any significant differences at 0.05 (p > 0.05). The manipulation of syllabus design was successful, as intended. To check the manipulation of design and length, the following question was used: “the syllabus provides detailed explanation of obligations for both instructor and student in text-rich design with black and white,” and participants were asked to provide an answer on a 7-point scale (1 = strongly disagree, 7 = strongly agree). The independent samples T test revealed that there was a significant difference in the mean scores for the text-oriented version (M = 6.39, SD = 1.02) and visually appealing syllabus (M = 4.18, SD = 2.43) conditions, t(79) = 5.38, p = 0.00. The manipulation for length was checked through the independent samples T test. The result demonstrated that those who received the long version (M = 5.80, SD = 1.86) were more likely to report “the detailed explanation of obligations for both instructor and student” (i.e., course policy) than others who received the short version (M = 4.80, SD = 2.33), t(79) = 2.13, p = 0.03.
For the length manipulation check, participants were also asked to provide answers to true or false questions about one of the course policies (i.e., late assignments are accepted without any penalty), which was included only in the long version. Those who received the long version (n = 76, 93.8%) were more likely to answer true than others who read the short version (n = 5, 6.2%). There was significant difference between two groups, (1) = 5.20, p = 0.02. Overall, the analyses demonstrated that participants perceived different length and design among conditions as expected.
Testing hypothesis. H1 hypothesized that a visually appealing-syllabus would have a more positive effect on student engagement, and RQ1 and RQ4 asked how the length of a syllabus would affect or moderate the effect of syllabus design on student engagement in a PR course. To test H1 and answer RQ1 and RQ4, a two-way between-groups analysis of variance (ANOVA) was run by using SPSS Statistics 24 for the different effects of syllabus design and length on engagement. For the engagement, any significant main and interaction effects were not found. Differences of visually appealing and text-oriented design (F(1, 77) = 0.09, p = 0.77, Partial Eta Squared (η2) = 0.00), short and long length (F(1, 77) = 0.58, p = 0.48, η2 = 0.00), and an interaction term of design*length (F(1, 77) = 0.84, p = 0.36, η2 = 0.00) did not reach statistical significance in terms of engagement in the course. Therefore, H1 (a more positive effect of a visually appealing-syllabus on student engagement) was not supported.
For the student motivation by different syllabus design and length, H2 predicted that a visually appealing syllabus would have a more positive effect, and RQ2 and RQ5 asked how the length of syllabus would affect the motivation or moderate the effect of syllabus design. ANOVA was conducted again and revealed that there was a significant difference only for design, F(1, 77) = 8.29, p = 0.01, η2 = 0.10. Participants who received the visually appealing design (M = 4.93, SE = 0.30) were more likely to be motivated in the course than others who received the text-oriented design (M = 3.70, SE = 0.30). Therefore, H2 (a more positive effect of a visually appealing syllabus on student motivation) was supported. There was neither a main effect for length nor interaction effect of length and design for student motivation.
Regarding the impressions of the course, H3a suggested that a visually appealing syllabus would have a more positive effect, and RQ3a and RQ6a asked how the length of a syllabus would affect the impression of the course or moderate the effect of a syllabus design. ANOVA yielded that there was a significant difference only for length, F(1, 77) = 4.65, p = 0.03, η2 = 0.06. The shorter syllabus (M = 5.87, SE = 0.27) was more positively associated with impressions of the course syllabus than the longer one (M = 5.01, SE = 0.27). Hence, H3a (more positive effect of a visually appealing syllabus on the impression of the course) was supported.
For the impressions on the course instructor, H3b suggested that a visually appealing syllabus would have a more positive effect, and RQ3b and RQ6b asked how the length of a syllabus would affect the impression of the course instructor or moderate the effect of a syllabus design in the impression of the instructor in a PR course. To test H3b and answer RQ3b and RQ6b, multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was conducted because there were more than one dependent variable that was conceptually correlated. Impressions for instructor characteristics and experts were measured separately. When there is more than one dependent variable, a MANOVA analysis is preferred over a series of ANOVAs because a MANOVA has an advantage of “the protection against inflated Type 1 errors” caused by conducting multiple ANOVAs independently (Tabachnick & Fidell, 2013, p. 246). Prior to conducting a MANOVA test, a Pearson correlation (r) analysis among the variables for the impression with two factors (r= 0.50, p < .001) was conducted to justify the use of a MANOVA analysis (Tabachnick & Fidell, 2013). Preliminary assumption testing was conducted to check for normality, linearity, univariate and multivariate outlier, homogeneity of variance-covariance matrices, and multicollinearity, with no serious violations noted.
There were the main effects, as well as interaction effect with statistical significance. Specifically, significant differences were found between text-oriented and visually appealing designs, F(2, 76) = 13.65, p = 0.00; Wilks’ Lambda (λ) = 0.74, Partial Eta Squared (η2) = 0.26, between short and long lengths, F(2, 76) = 6.98, p = 0.00; λ = 0.84, η2 = 0.16, and the interaction term of design and length, F(2, 76) = 8.13, p = 0.00; λ = 0.82, 2 = 0.18, for the combined impressions of the course instructor.
When the results for the dependent variables, impressions for the course instructor characteristics and experts were considered separately, significant differences were found only in the impressions on the characteristics of design: F(1, 77) = 13.46, p = 0.01, η2 = 0.15, and length: F(1, 77) = 7.65, p = 0.01, η2 = 0.90. There was no significant difference found for the impressions of the course instructor experts. The mean scores indicated that those who read the visually appealing syllabus were more likely to have a positive impression of instructor characteristics (M = 5.13, SE = 0.18) than those who read the text-oriented syllabus (M = 4.20, SD = 0.18). Also, those who read the short version of the syllabus were more likely to perceive instructor characteristics positively (M = 5.00, SD = 0.18) than those who read the long version of the syllabus (M = 4.31, SD = 0.18). Thus, H3b (more positive effect of a visually appealing-syllabus on the impression of the course instructor) was partially supported.
Regarding RQ6b, in addition, the interaction effect of design and length was found only in the impression of instructor characteristics, F(1, 77) = 8.75, p = 0.00, η2 = 0.10. Those who read the visually appealing syllabus were more likely to have a positive impression of the instructor characteristics when they read the short version (M = 5.85, SD = 0.26) than when they had long version (M = 4.40, SD = 0.26). Post-hoc comparisons using the Bonferroni test indicated that the mean differences (M = 5.85 and M = 4.40) of visually appealing syllabi were significantly different at the significance level of 0.01 (p = 0.004). However, the mean differences of those who read text-oriented syllabi were not significantly different regardless of the length differences–the short version (M = 4.22, SD = 0.25) or the long version (M = 4.17, SD = 0.26) (See Figure 1).
Figure 1.
Interaction effect for design × length
for the student impression of the course instructor characteristics.
DISCUSSION
This study aimed to examine the extent to which a format or a design of a PR course syllabus influences student engagement and motivation for the course and the impressions of the course and the course instructor. Two studies—focus group interviews and an experimental study—revealed that (1) the design and length of a syllabus did not make any difference for student engagement in the course, (2) a visually appealing design made a difference for motivation in the course, and 3) a visually appealing syllabus mattered for the course impression and the course instructor.
In both studies, students preferred visually appealing syllabi with different elements of design. They found the visually appealing syllabi to be more interesting but not significantly engaging. Focus group participants preferred a visual design, and some liked the long version over the short one. However, the design of the syllabus did not necessarily motivate them to learn or engage in the class. This finding is similar to a result in the experimental study, which indicates that student engagement in the course was not influenced by differences of syllabus design, length, or the interaction of two independent variables. It could be plausible that the participants may be highly engaged already in the course itself, demonstrated by the high mean scores across independent variables (above 4 on a 7-point Likert-type scale). Also, the finding could be caused by consistent tone and style in the syllabus languages across the different designs that might generate different psychological or emotional factors (e.g., students’ sense of belonging or emotional climate), which can be influential for engagement (Soria & Stebleton, 2012).
In the experiment, however, the visually appealing syllabus was positive with statistical significance for student motivation in the course, consistent with findings from FGIs in this study. The findings are also in line with previous research that accounts for the positive effect of visualized contents in students’ classroom experience (e.g., Ulbig, 2010), as well as student motivation in the course (e.g., Ludy et al., 2016). Not surprisingly, the results indicated that the course instructor can stimulate more active learning from students through visual images or contents of the course syllabus. However, this result could be limited to the general motivation for the course due to a single-item measurement. Further research should be conducted to provide more fruitful results indicating more detailed motivations related to both intrinsic and extrinsic motivations.
Regarding students’ impressions of the course, there were inconsistent results across the two studies: the FGIs and the experiment. The participants from the focus groups also preferred a long version because they wanted complete, step-by-step instructions of assignments in the syllabus. However, the results of the experimental study demonstrated that students who read a short syllabus would be likely to think that the syllabus is easy to read and understand, as well as to navigate and to find information. In addition, the experimental study found that the shorter syllabus is better for positive characteristics of the course instructor such as being approachable, personable, creative, enthusiastic, and open-minded.
This result indicates that additional information for the longer version, such as assignment description with deadlines, course policies, and other campus resource information (e.g., counseling and disability center), is not beneficial for positive impressions of the course, as well as the course instructor. In this regard, this study extends the previous research about preferences for a lengthier or more detailed syllabus regarding course effectiveness (e.g., Ludy et al., 2016). Contrasting with the findings from the previous research, this study suggests that the syllabus is sufficient for itself and course instructor effectiveness if it contains general information about the course, textbook, categorized assignments with grade scale, and course schedule. Also, this could be added into the empirical evidence for how flexible syllabus features or contents should be included in support of researchers who advocate for the shorter and flexible construction for the syllabus (Fornaciari & Dean, 2014).
This study also found that the visually appealing syllabus can generate positive impressions of the course instructor, compared to the text-oriented one. Based on the focus group interviews, students perceived the instructor who designed a visually appealing syllabus to be more creative and caring. In the experimental study, the positive characteristics of the instructor were also influenced by length, particularly short—a result of an interaction of length and design. Especially, the effect of the visually appealing syllabus on the impressions of the course instructor became stronger when students read the short version, as the post-hoc test revealed (See Figure 1). This result demonstrates how important a visually appealing syllabus is for perceived course instructor effectiveness––that is, design matters in an effective syllabus. The plausible explanation for the finding is that current students have more familiarity and enjoyment of being provided with a variety of visualized inputs (Phillips & Trainor, 2014).
Implications
As a pragmatic implication, the results provide insight into the importance of making syllabi a well-crafted document by using visually appealing contents. As some participants addressed in the FGIs, visualized content is not limited to visual images but can be achieved by underlining or highlighting text with different colors or bolded letters. By doing so, PR course instructors can benefit from the positive impressions of their course, as well as themselves, as the first impression may be weighted more heavily than other sources of information (e.g., instructor reputation; Buchert, Laws, Apperson, & Bregman, 2008). More importantly, the results for the length (i.e., a short syllabus) indicate the elevated importance of the type of information that is included.
Furthermore, these results provide meaningful insight into how course instructors build and develop relational rapport with their students through the course syllabus. Relational rapport with the course instructors is of paramount importance to college students (Morreale & Staley, 2016). It can increase students’ class participation, affective learning, and satisfaction with the course (Frisby & Myers, 2008). By creating a short, visually appealing syllabus, instructors can build relational rapport with students and expect positive results subsequently. Thus, the results in this study provide the need for the course instructors’ efforts on the syllabus for teaching effectiveness, as a well-designed syllabus can help them increase student learning (Monaco & Martin, 2007).
Limitations and Future Research
There are some limitations that should be addressed for future research. Both studies, the FGIs and the experimental study, relied on a convenience sample as the researchers recruited students based on availability at a Midwestern university. Although this nonprobability sample was cost-effective and efficient for this study, more studies are needed to replicate and generalize the results. In addition, the PR course selected (International Advertising and Public Relations) may have contents or topics that students are already interested in, which could have resulted in high scores on their likelihood to engage, regardless of the design and length. Different PR courses should be used in future research. Prior attitudes for the course should also be controlled in future research. With today’s increasing use of online syllabi on the web, a comparison between a printed, visually oriented syllabus and an online web version should also be explored in future research.
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Appendix A: The first page example for text-oriented syllabus used in the study
Appendix B: The first page example for visually-appealing syllabus used in the study
