Ethical Stakeholder Engagement
From inactive publics to brand ambassadors, organizations must consider how best to communicate with a variety of stakeholders. With the growth of social media, ethical engagement with stakeholders has become more challenging. Engagement implies a two-way exchange, if not necessarily a meeting of minds, then certainly a swapping of ideas and opinions, listening and talking, and stakeholders have expectations that require ethical standards.
The Arthur W. Page Center seeks grant proposals that address the issues of ethical stakeholder engagement. Research projects should deepen the field’s understanding of the issues with a focus on real-world solutions for practitioners. Submissions should clearly demonstrate how the research will benefit the practice of public relations and how the authors intend to disseminate findings to the field. Grants will range from $1,000 to $5,000.
Possible topics include (but are not limited to):
- Measuring the impact of stakeholder engagement
- Benefits or challenges of ethical stakeholder engagement
- Online stakeholder engagement
- Engagement with specific audiences such as:
– Activists
– Community
– Elderly
– Employees
– Influencers
– Investors
– International groups
– LGBT
– Youth
The research conducted from approved proposals will be evaluated for a special issue of the Public Relations Journal guest edited by Dr. Marcia W. DiStaso. Authors of successful submissions may also be asked to participate in a webinar or conference panel and/or make their work available for distribution through a website.
Deadline for proposal submission is September 1, 2013. Proposals should be submitted through the Page Center website (http://thepagecenter.comm.psu.edu/, click on Page Legacy Scholar Grants). Questions should be directed to Dr. Marcia W. DiStaso at mwd10@psu.edu or (814) 863-9874.