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Communicating Sustainability > Lectures > Flashcards

Lectures Flashcards

1
Q

Communication science

A

Communication Science studies the production, content and reception (incl. consequences and effects) of communicative messages, using theories such as (but not limited to) Cultivation theory, agenda setting theory, framing, uses & gratifications, spiral of silence, information processing theory…

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2
Q

Corporate communication

A

Studies the communication of and about organizations (for profit, not for profit, public, all of them), especially the production, content and consequences of this communication.

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3
Q

Univeler Case

A

check the slides

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4
Q

Sustainable Living Plan (2010)

A
  • CEO Paul Polman 2009-2019
  • 248 pages

3 missions:
Improving health and wellbeing
Reducing environmental impact
Enhancing livelihoods

  • No vague promises, but detailed measures to reach these goals
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5
Q

Risks for Unilever’s SLP

A

check slides

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6
Q

What does the Unilever case tell us about Com. Sus.?

A
  • Disclaimer: there is lot of business strategy and negotiation going on behind close doors.
    However:
  • Big issues, big(ger) players = lots of media attention
  • Struggle between interests (shareholders,
    Unilever, SMOs etc) also takes place in public communication: new media, social media, owned media;
  • Involves strategic communication: what, how, where, when to communicate;
  • The public gets involved too (in communication as well as behavioural
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7
Q

Classic corporate communication theory

A

model on slides

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8
Q

Functionalist theory

A

Instrumental
Aim is to help PR practitioners
Also applies to the other three models

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9
Q

Normative theory

A

Mutual understanding and cooperation instead of persuasion

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10
Q

The issue life cycle

A
  1. Enforcement:
    The cycle begins with the identification of a need for rules or standards to govern a particular domain or system.
    Enforcement actions generate feedback on the effectiveness of rules. Issues and violations uncovered during enforcement become input for potential adjustments.
    **
  2. Emergence:
    As rules are enforced and systems operate, interactions among components lead to emergent properties or patterns.
    Insights from emergent properties may lead to adjustments in rules, strategies, or system design.
  3. Codification:
    Lessons learned from enforcement and emergent phenomena are documented.
    The codified knowledge is disseminated and implemented to guide future actions and decision-making.
  4. Debate:
    Periodically, the effectiveness of rules and codified knowledge is reviewed.
    Debate is initiated to discuss the need for adjustments, improvements, or changes to rules and standards.
    Through debate, decisions are made regarding modifications to enforcement strategies, revisions to codified knowledge, or updates to existing rules.
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11
Q

Basics of issue arena theory

A
  • Issue = central
  • Multiple issue arenas at once
  • No organizational control
  • Active-passive participation (on stage/off stage)
  • Involves complex and dynamic environment
  • Wider context
  • Multiple arenas
  • “Co-create shared social meanings”
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12
Q

Key research elements

A

Who are the actors involved?
Actor’s interests
Actor’s level of involvement in the debate (timing, intensity, coalitions)
Framing* of the issue
On whose terms does codification take place
Who benefits, who doesn’t?

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13
Q

Two ways to look at a corporation

A
  • economic actor
  • social actor
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14
Q

Economic actor

A
  • On a market
  • With the aim to maximize profit
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15
Q

Social actor

A
  • Relations ships, network
  • Chain of interdependencies
  • Corporate citizen
  • Multiple responsibilities:
    Economic (market)
    Political (society)
    Social (society, organizational)
    Environmental (society)
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16
Q

Agenda Setting Theory basics

A

Media don’t decide what people think, but influence what people think about.
1st level of agenda setting: issues
2nd level of agenda setting: attributes
- Substantial attributes
- Evaluative attributes

The more salient an issue (or actor) and/or certain attributes are in the new media, the more likely they are also on top of people’s minds

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17
Q

Extending Agenda Theory

A

on slides

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18
Q

Social Movement Strategies

A
  • Lobbying
  • Street protests
  • Advertising
  • Disruption
  • Revealing unethical corporate behaviour
  • Legal:
    –Try to prevent permits for discharge of waste
    – Litigate against a company for illegal
    behaviour
    – Litigate against the state
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19
Q

Diagnostic Frames:

A

Identify a problematic situation
Identify the cause of the problem
Identify the consequence of the problem
Identify responsible actors

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20
Q

Prognostic Frames:

A

Propose a solution
Including specific actions
Including reference to responsible actors (who should enact the solution)

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21
Q

Orders of Worth

A

Normative principles associated with specific institutional environments which are employed by actors in public controversies to justify their viewpoints

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22
Q

Why was the Urgenda case more successful than the Milieudifensie’s case?

A

Preliminary conclusions:
Wider range of diagnostic frames (from multiple domains) addresses a wider range of actors.
Smaller and abstract range of prognostic frames provides better ground for agreement between actors from different domains/OoW.

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23
Q

Journalists’ role perceptions found
in research 1960-2023:

A

Gatekeeper
Broker ‘neutral information-
transmitter’
Advocate
Watchdog
Lapdog

24
Q

What role journalists can take
depends on…

A

Type of news outlet
Resources available to the journalist
Type of beat (social context of field under investigation)
Complexity of issue
Type of audience

25
Q

Media hypes

A
  • News media hypes
  • Anatomy:
    First peak, follow up peas
    Trigger event
    Source use
    News causing news
26
Q

News media hypes

A

Every news media hype, now also is a social media hype

27
Q

Social media hypes - patterns

A

Series of short peaks;
1 high peak, followed by series of short peaks;
Mulitple high peaks, followed by a series of short peaks;

Sometimes lasting 2 years (recurrent)
Some last a few weeks (or shorter?)

28
Q

Who started the hype?

A

Actor-generated
Genuine event
Media generated

29
Q

Three types of social media hypes related to sustainability issues:

A
  1. Activism against unsustainable industry
  2. Scandals
  3. Conflict between industry actors and activists
30
Q

Constructivism

A
  • Social media enable the construction of information through continuous interaction between individuals on online networks.
  • These individuals include journalists, PR-professionals, farmers, campaigners, politicians, citizens & consumers.
31
Q

Do Greenfluencers stimulate activism engagement?

A

Activism can be online as well as offline
Low-effort
High-effort

32
Q

Hypothese of greenfluencers

A

H 1Engagement with green influencers relates to participation in environmental activism

H2 Engagement with green influencers positively relates to formation of parasocial relationship

H3 Parasocial Relationships relate to engagement with environmental activism

Does the level of env. knowledge of followers impact the relationship between PSR and engagement? (H4/5)

33
Q

FIndings on greenfluencers

A

Young adults that engage with greenfluencers are more likely to engage with low/high effort activism

This is (partly) explained by their
Parasocial Relationships

For followers with high levels of environmental knowledge the direct relationship with hig effort activsm is stronger, while it weakens the PSR- High activism relationship

34
Q

Greenwashing definition(s)

A
  • Greenwashing refers to use of exaggerated, deceptive, and unsubstantiated claims of environmental benefits to improve corporate image (Sailer et al., 2022).
  • ‘Greenwashing is a PR tactic used to make a company or product appear environmentally friendly, without meaningfully reducing its environmental impact’ (Das, 2022)
  • Making sustainability claims that are not (fully) substantiated, or (partly) untrue.
35
Q

Effects of (perceived) greenwashing on the Social License to operate:

A
  • Greenwashing concerns
    “unacceptable behaviour”
  • Could therefore damage SLO
  • Focus on SLO would prevent organizations to greenwash.
36
Q

Social License to Operate

A

Corporations need to meet and engage with expectations of society and avoid activities that are deemed unacceptable in the eyes of societies. Accordingly, SLO can be considered a form of ‘soft’ regulation enforced through the beliefs and behaviors of relevant stakeholders in society (Van der Meer & Jonkman, 2021)

37
Q

Effects of greenwashing

A

Negative effect on corporate image
Negative effect on profit
Does ethical harm

Ecological conscious consumers are increasingly skeptical

38
Q

Types of greenwashers

A
  • ‘Evil greeners’: intentional false green claims
  • ‘Unintentional greenwashers’: may fall victim to false claims by their middle agents
  • The ‘falsely accused’
39
Q

Risks and opportunities of GW:

A

Many green consumers = market

Risk: damage to your SLO due to skepticism fed by greenwashing image if the industry.

  • Consumers worry about climate change increasingly
  • Business is trusted less than NGOs and - Governments in terms of their efforts to fight climate change.
  • Fashion amongst the least trusted industries.
  • CEOs least trusted as spokespersons to advocate sustainability
40
Q

What if we add skepticism caused by industry wide greenwashing?

A

graph on slides

41
Q

How should you communicate as a ‘sustainable fashion brand’?

A

Transparency
Third party certification
Be accountable
Communicate with stakeholders/be active in the issue arena

42
Q

Causes & Effects of GW

A
  • Appeal to ‘green markets’
  • Brush up image & reputation
  • Regain Social License to Operate
  • Perceived greenwashing effects
  • Damage to reputation
  • Damage to SLO
  • Consumers switch to other brands
43
Q

Talk action dynamic perspective

A
  • Talk Action dynamics and the four modalities allow
  • Speaking out ambitions
  • Where – in good circumstances – talk may actually become action (in the sense of organizational change, or increased engagement of employees for example)
  • Despite, but also because, audiences are critical/skeptical and voice their doubts.
44
Q

What is new about the TAlk Action dynamic?

A
  • Greenwashing is a perception, usually from external stakeholders.
  • It asumes a ‘final condition’
  • Promise made, but broken
  • Damage to reputation and SLO
45
Q

Contemporary society characterised by:

A

Hypermodernity
High level of complexity
Even more so because of digitalization
=> grand issue of sustainability

46
Q

Complex adaptive systems paradigm

A

Environments are constantly changing;

Grand challenges:
uncertain
non-liniair patterns,
Do not have an end
Often solutions are part of a new problem (deep sea mining, nuclear power, raising taxes on profits)

47
Q

Complex adaptive systems paradigm pt. 2

A
  • Complex system paradigm for PR and sustainability:
  • Starts at the macro level
  • Considers the relations between actors as strategic communication at the meso level
  • Assumes that, at the micro level, actors follow rules that guide these relationships
48
Q

Ten properties of complex systems communication

A
  1. Emergence & evolution
  2. Adaptivity
  3. Heterogeneity
  4. Nonlinearity
  5. Feedback & recursion
  6. Self-organization
  7. Phase transitions
  8. Networks
  9. Scaling
  10. Cooperation & co-intelligence
49
Q

How to engage employees in sustainability talk (and goals)

A
  • Employee communication
  • Leadership & change communication
  • CEO advocacy: effects of external sustainability communication on employees’ sense of belonging
    Personal factors
    Communication factors
  • Employees as sustainability ambassadors
  • What makes employees to communicate the sustainability vision of the organization?
    • Cause-Org fit
    • Cause-Personal fit
    • Value congruence (CEO-Empl)
    • Message credibility
    • Org. Identification
50
Q

Grand Challenges

A

Collective Behaviour:
- Collective Action
“Action taken together by a group of
people whose goal is to enhance their
condition and achieve a common
objective” (Van Zoomeren et al., 2008)
- Drivers of change:
“What motivates individuals to change
their behaviours for the common
good?”

  • Two types:
    Drivers for change
    Drivers for priming
51
Q

Drivers of change

A
  • Perceived thread
    Personal
    Close others
    Vulnerable others
  • Participative efficacy beliefs
  • Injunctive social norms
  • Descriptive social norms
  • Perceptions of government policy
52
Q

Narrative persuasion by corporate sustainability messages

A

Corporate sustainability messages understood differently by different stakeholders

53
Q

The black box of narrative richness

A
  • Character identification
    Emotionally
    Cognitively
    ➔ salient, detailed protagonist
  • Transportation
    Enables mental and emotional engagement with the message (story)
  • Message credibility
    H6: more narrative richness ➔
    less credible message
54
Q

What works and why?

A

Messages with more narrative richness have a more positive effect on behavioural intentions (Coca Cola reputation & employer reputation & word of mouth), because of:
- Character identification
- Transportation
No difference was found for message credibility

55
Q

Why does narrative richness work so well?

A
  • Morality is a key component of
  • Corporate Sustainable Responsibility
  • As well as in rich narratives
56
Q

Sustainable Responsible Investing

A
  • SRI is growing
    But a huge gap exists between now and the UN SDGs

How can we stimulate investors to participate in SRI?

  • Financial advisors!
    Lack SRI expertise
57
Q

Strategic communication of financial advisors

A

model on slides

Communicating Sustainability (1 decks)

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