27. Ethics in crisis communication
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Shannon A. Bowen
Abstract
Although many public relations scholars agree that the public relations function should enact an ethical role in organizations, little research has framed the ethical role of crisis communication and in that which has, ethics is mentioned as a relatively unexplored concern. This chapter seeks to address that deficit in the body of knowledge with the discussion of a theoretical conceptualization for ethical crisis communication. Our position is that the ethicality of the commonly identified crisis response strategies resides in how the crisis response strategies are utilized rather than in the nature of the response strategies themselves. A stark deficit in the literature exists in the failure to explore the theory or application of the principle based moral philosophy deontology in crisis management. We argue that investigating the application of deontology in crisis management is not only theoretically sound from the moral-philosophical perspective, but also will offer resolution to the existing gap in the literature and a beginning of practical application. Our literature to support a conceptualization of ethics in crisis communication is based on public relations theory, situational crisis communication theory (SCCT), ethics and moral philosophy, attribution theory, excellence theory, research in public relations ethics, and deontological ethics. We offer an overview of ethical theory, and then a practical decision-making tool based on deontology and the SCCT for use in analyzing crisis situations and the ethics of crisis response. Based upon this literature, we make normative recommendations for an ethical theory for crisis response and offer a practical implementation of ethical crisis situation analysis, response, and communication.
Abstract
Although many public relations scholars agree that the public relations function should enact an ethical role in organizations, little research has framed the ethical role of crisis communication and in that which has, ethics is mentioned as a relatively unexplored concern. This chapter seeks to address that deficit in the body of knowledge with the discussion of a theoretical conceptualization for ethical crisis communication. Our position is that the ethicality of the commonly identified crisis response strategies resides in how the crisis response strategies are utilized rather than in the nature of the response strategies themselves. A stark deficit in the literature exists in the failure to explore the theory or application of the principle based moral philosophy deontology in crisis management. We argue that investigating the application of deontology in crisis management is not only theoretically sound from the moral-philosophical perspective, but also will offer resolution to the existing gap in the literature and a beginning of practical application. Our literature to support a conceptualization of ethics in crisis communication is based on public relations theory, situational crisis communication theory (SCCT), ethics and moral philosophy, attribution theory, excellence theory, research in public relations ethics, and deontological ethics. We offer an overview of ethical theory, and then a practical decision-making tool based on deontology and the SCCT for use in analyzing crisis situations and the ethics of crisis response. Based upon this literature, we make normative recommendations for an ethical theory for crisis response and offer a practical implementation of ethical crisis situation analysis, response, and communication.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Frontmatter I
- Preface to Handbooks of Communication Science series V
- Acknowledgements IX
- Contents XI
-
Section I – Introducing the field
- 1. General introduction 1
- 2. A brief history of crisis management and crisis communication: From organizational practice to academic discipline 17
- 3. Reframing the field: Public crisis management, political crisis management, and corporate crisis management 59
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Section II – Between text and context
- 4. Image repair theory 105
- 5. Situational crisis communication theory: Influences, provenance, evolution, and prospects 121
- 6. Contingency theory: Evolution from a public relations theory to a theory of strategic conflict management 141
- 7. Discourse of renewal: Understanding the theory’s implications for the field of crisis communication 165
- 8. Making sense of crisis sensemaking theory: Weick’s contributions to the study of crisis communication 177
- 9. Arenas and voices in organizational crisis communication: How far have we come? 195
- 10. Visual crisis communication 213
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Section III – Organizational level
- 11. To minimize or mobilize? The trade-offs associated with the crisis communication process 237
- 12. Internal crisis communication: On current and future research 259
- 13. Whistleblowing in organizations 279
- 14. Employee reactions to negative media coverage 299
- 15. Crisis communication and organizational resilience 319
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Section IV – Interorganizational level
- 16. Fixing the broken link: Communication strategies for supply chain crises 343
- 17. Reputational interdependence and spillover: Exploring the contextual challenges of spillover crisis response 363
- 18. Crisis management consulting: An emerging field of study 375
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Section V – Societal level
- 19. Crisis and emergency risk communication: Past, present, and future 401
- 20. Crisis communication in public organizations 419
- 21. Communicating and managing crisis in the world of politics 439
- 22. Crisis communication and the political scandal 461
- 23. Crisis communication and social media: Short history of the evolution of social media in crisis communication 477
- 24. Mass media and their symbiotic relationship with crisis 493
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Section VI – Intersocietal level
- 25. Should CEOs of multinationals be spokespersons during an overseas product harm crisis? 511
- 26. Intercultural and multicultural approaches to crisis communication 523
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Section VII – Critical approaches
- 27. Ethics in crisis communication 543
-
Section VIII – The future
- 28. The future of organizational crises, crisis management and crisis communication 565
- Biographical sketches 571
- Index 581
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Frontmatter I
- Preface to Handbooks of Communication Science series V
- Acknowledgements IX
- Contents XI
-
Section I – Introducing the field
- 1. General introduction 1
- 2. A brief history of crisis management and crisis communication: From organizational practice to academic discipline 17
- 3. Reframing the field: Public crisis management, political crisis management, and corporate crisis management 59
-
Section II – Between text and context
- 4. Image repair theory 105
- 5. Situational crisis communication theory: Influences, provenance, evolution, and prospects 121
- 6. Contingency theory: Evolution from a public relations theory to a theory of strategic conflict management 141
- 7. Discourse of renewal: Understanding the theory’s implications for the field of crisis communication 165
- 8. Making sense of crisis sensemaking theory: Weick’s contributions to the study of crisis communication 177
- 9. Arenas and voices in organizational crisis communication: How far have we come? 195
- 10. Visual crisis communication 213
-
Section III – Organizational level
- 11. To minimize or mobilize? The trade-offs associated with the crisis communication process 237
- 12. Internal crisis communication: On current and future research 259
- 13. Whistleblowing in organizations 279
- 14. Employee reactions to negative media coverage 299
- 15. Crisis communication and organizational resilience 319
-
Section IV – Interorganizational level
- 16. Fixing the broken link: Communication strategies for supply chain crises 343
- 17. Reputational interdependence and spillover: Exploring the contextual challenges of spillover crisis response 363
- 18. Crisis management consulting: An emerging field of study 375
-
Section V – Societal level
- 19. Crisis and emergency risk communication: Past, present, and future 401
- 20. Crisis communication in public organizations 419
- 21. Communicating and managing crisis in the world of politics 439
- 22. Crisis communication and the political scandal 461
- 23. Crisis communication and social media: Short history of the evolution of social media in crisis communication 477
- 24. Mass media and their symbiotic relationship with crisis 493
-
Section VI – Intersocietal level
- 25. Should CEOs of multinationals be spokespersons during an overseas product harm crisis? 511
- 26. Intercultural and multicultural approaches to crisis communication 523
-
Section VII – Critical approaches
- 27. Ethics in crisis communication 543
-
Section VIII – The future
- 28. The future of organizational crises, crisis management and crisis communication 565
- Biographical sketches 571
- Index 581
