Resource-Based Public Relations Efforts for University Reputation from an Agenda-Building and Agenda-Setting Perspective

Abstract

With growing pressure on higher education institutions (HEIs) because of decreasing student numbers and increasing demand on seeking external funds, emphasis on managing an institution’s reputation is higher than ever. As an important indicator of public relations’ impact on organizational performance, scholars suggest reputation as a tangible public relation (PR) outcome leading to financial performance. Agenda-building and agenda-setting research have been popularly examined in line of PR reputation research. However, little research has focused on integrating PR planning as the underlying factor of PR influence on reputation. To this end, the present study examined the relationships among resource-based PR information, media coverage and reputation through the theoretical lens of agenda-building and agenda-setting. Previous literature pertaining to strategy development explicated resources as an organization’s internal strength that enables an organization to succeed at environmental opportunities through prompt and effective responses. Taking this concept further to PR research, this study highlights the interplay of PR strategy based on the target public’s perceptions of an organization’s resources (eg, internal strengths such as human capital resources) and reputation.