An Online Ethics Training Module for Public Relations Professionals: A Demonstration Project
The researchers developed and tested an online training module with both experienced public relations professionals and newcomers to the field with the hopes of helping them sharpen and refine their ethical decision-making skills. The researchers’ pilot study found that although most testers repo...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Insitute for Public Relations
2010-09-01
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| Series: | Public Relations Journal |
| Online Access: | https://prjournal.instituteforpr.org/wp-content/uploads/2010PeckMatchett.pdf |
| Summary: | The researchers developed and tested an online training module with both experienced
public relations professionals and newcomers to the field with the hopes of helping them
sharpen and refine their ethical decision-making skills. The researchers’ pilot study
found that although most testers reported the Web site was difficult to navigate and/or
found the ethical content to be complex, the majority believed their ethical decisionmaking
abilities were improved. The module drew from the resources of the Center for
Ethical Deliberation (CED) Web site developed by one of the researchers. The goal of
the demonstration project, or pilot study, was to develop a specific “Public Relations”
area on the CED Web site that would be devoted to the ethical issues likely to arise in
the public relations field.
These issues included
1) disclosure of information,
2) conflicts of interest, and
3) lying, or spinning information, for a client or an organization.
The researchers tailored the CEDs Guided Deliberation Processes to these three,
highlighting the specific links between these issues and more general ethical concepts
and analytical tools. With some changes to the PR module and the CED site, this tool
could be used by professionals, newcomers to the profession and students preparing
for a PR career.
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| ISSN: | 1942-4604 1942-4604 |