Reviewing the role of public relations professionals
Abstract
Taking professional approaches in public relations studies as a starting point, this article tracks the many ways in which this professional role has been perceived and identifies its different typologies, beginning with the first investigations into the field, carried out by Glen M. Broom and David M. Dozier in the 1980s, and then moving into the present day, when transformations in technology and in the international context are generating new expectations about how public relations should be performed. Our review centered on scientific publications from the Web of Science’s main collection. These publications were classified depending on whether their focus was on the performance of the role of professionals, on the situation in which this role is performed, or on the dynamics of professional roles. We conclude that most typologies of the role of public relations professionals are based on declarations by these professionals regarding their activities and how their role contributes to or operates within organizations. Among the topics found in the relevant literature, the most prominent are: the tensions between the role of public relations professionals and journalists, discrimination based on gender, role typology proposals, and the description of the competencies and skills required for the role.
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