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Introduction
This paper links two developments in the public relations discipline. The first pertains to ways that public relations can help governments reach their foreign policy goals. The public relations scholarship has identified similarities between public relations and international relations bodies of knowledge (e.g. [35] Signitzer and Coombs, 1992; [36] Signitzer and Wamser, 2006), provided theoretical suggestions about the role of public relations in foreign policy settings (e.g. [9] Grunig, 1993; [36] Signitzer and Wamser, 2006; [41] Vujnovic and Kruckeberg, 2005), and empirically investigated the link between public relations and the management of foreign affairs by governments ([45] Yun, 2006; [42] Wang and Chang, 2004; [48] Zhang and Benoit, 2004).
The second development that this paper addresses is the conceptualization of public relations as a strategic management function ([14] Grunig et al. , 2002; [21] Ledingham, 2006). According to the relational perspective, public relations adds value to an organization when this function strategically manages mutually beneficial relationships between an organization and its key constituencies.
In this paper the two above-described developments are bridged. The goal of this research study is to understand how, if at all, public relations, which has been conceptualized as a strategic management function, makes contributions to foreign policy planning and implementation at government institutions. This research study emphasizes the relational perspective by investigating its applicability to the practice of public relations in foreign policy settings.
Conceptualization
Public relations and foreign policy goals
The public relations scholarship has acknowledged that the function of public relations can help governments reach their foreign policy goals (e.g. [9] Grunig, 1993; [24], [25] L'Etang, 1996, 2006; [35] Signitzer and Coombs, 1992; [36] Signitzer and Wamser, 2006). Similarities between public relations and foreign affairs have been discussed. For example, [35] Signitzer and Coombs (1992) compared the four models of public relations ([13] Grunig and Hunt, 1984) to the goals of cultural diplomacy ([31] Peisert, 1978). Parallel levels of analysis in public relations and international relations were identified by [36] Signitzer and Wamser (2006). [24], [25] L'Etang (1996, 2006) suggested that public relations practitioners and diplomats perform similar functions: representation of their organizations/governments, negotiation and peacemaking on behalf of their organizations/governments, counseling of the senior management/government officials, and intelligence gathering and environmental scanning in contexts that their organizations/governments...