engleski

A comparative analysis of language-communications perception in public relations

The concept of lifelong learning is something which modern society strives for, linguistic competence, especially in the mother tongue. It is considered to be a prerequisite for the acquisition of all other competences, for example, the ability to communicate in foreign languages, have mathematical and digital skills, entrepreneurship, and so on. This is particularly connected to communication with the public. Namely, an expert in public relations must be an excellent and skilled communicator. In order to be one, he/she must have an above average language culture, one that is functional as opposed to a theoretical one, which unfortunately prevails in the Croatian educational system. This communication must have as its main goal, according to James Grunig, the enablement of understanding between people permitting the so- called symmetric concept of public relations, that is, the multidirectional dialogue which is practiced by liberal and organizational societies. In order for this to be put into practice, it is essential to have strong language skills and communication with stakeholders in order to avoid potential conflict situations. This paper focuses on the context of a bi- directional research: the student population − in order to ascertain if the existing system of higher education, which is centered on the engagement of public relations, trains its students well enough for them to have successful and independent communication with the public. The task of this paper is to reinforce the position of the students’ gained knowledge and skills in communication, as well as the views of agency experts on communication and other necessary skills of the students/newly employed workers, which was ultimately achieved. The survey was conducted during March and April, 2015 in five higher education schools and universities in the Republic of Croatia, and it included a total of 250 respondents. At the same time, 11 public relations agencies were surveyed. The survey results showed that there was a certain discrepancy between the self-evaluations of the students concerning their language- communication skills and their ability to learn how to apply them in specific situations, along with the assessments of the public relations agencies experts concerning language- communication preparedness of the students/newly employed workers for independent work.

communication ; public relations ; linguistic competences ; language culture and awareness ; student population ; public relations agencies

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