Risk and Crisis Communications - Methods and Messages

Informationen zum Autor Pamela (Ferrante) Walaski is the President of JC Safety & Environmental, Inc., a health and safety consulting firm and is a frequent speaker and seminar presenter on the topic of risk and crisis communications. She holds both the CSP and CHMM designations, and writes regularly for the leading professional journals. She is both chair of the Technical Publications Advisory Committee and administrator of the Consultants Practice Specialty of the ASSE, and was a contributing author to The Safety Professionals Handbook. In 2011, she was the recipient of the ASSE President's Award. Klappentext The go-to guide for learning what to say and how to say it In this climate of near constant streams of media messages, organizations need to know how to effectively communicate risks to their audiences and what to say when a crisis strikes. Risk and Crisis Communications: Methods and Messages is designed to help organizations understand the essential components of communicating about risks during a crisis, and it carves out a role for safety health and environmental (SH&E) professionals in the process. Covering common theoretical concepts and explaining the positions of noted experts in the field such as Peter Sandman and Vincent Covello, the book provides a fundamental understanding of the process behind crafting effective messages for a variety of different situations and explains the consequences of saying the wrong thing to an emotional audience. Incorporating numerous case studies?including the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and the 2010 H1N1 pandemic?it shows how messages can change the way an audience perceives an event and how they react to it, clearly demonstrating how ineffective messages can create untold difficulties for an organization's public image. Savvy SH&E professionals know that their role in helping to craft risk and crisis messages as well as assisting in the execution of risk communication plans provides a critical path to becoming more valuable members of their organizations. Risk and Crisis Communications: Methods and Messages provides invaluable assistance in helping SH&E professionals add value to their organization. Zusammenfassung This book provides practical information that allows Safety Health & Environmental professionals to assess risk to their organizations. It also assists readers in determining whether or not they need to develop a formal risk and crisis communication plan. Inhaltsverzeichnis List of Tables ix Preface xi 1 INTRODUCTION 1 2 GENERAL CONCEPTS OF RISK AND CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS 5 Historical Background 5 Key Defi nitions 7 The Stages of a Crisis 10 The Process of Communication 11 The Purpose and Objectives of the Communication Event 13 References 17 3 COMMUNICATION FUNDAMENTALS AND THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS 19 Audience Perceptions of the Communicator 19 Trust and Credibility 21 Four Theoretical Models 25 The Risk Perception Model 26 The Mental Noise Model 28 The Negative Dominance Model 28 The Trust Determination Model 29 Risk = Hazard + Outrage 30 High Hazard/Low Outrage ("Watch out!") 31 Medium Hazard/Medium Outrage (Stakeholder Relations) 32 Low Hazard/High Outrage ("Calm down!") 32 High Hazard/High Outrage ("We'll get through this together.") 33 Mental Models 33 Functional Lines of Communication 35 Care Communications 35 Consensus Communications 36 Crisis Communications 36 The Excellence Theory 37 The "Stickiness" of Messages 38 References 38 4 CRAFTING RISK AND CRISIS MESSAGES-SETTING GOALS AND OBJECTIVES AND AUDIENCE PROFILING 41 Key Successful Message Development Concepts 41 Message Crafting-Determining Purpose and Objectives 43

List of contents

List of Tables ix
 
Preface xi
 
1 INTRODUCTION 1
 
2 GENERAL CONCEPTS OF RISK AND CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS 5
 
Historical Background 5
 
Key Defi nitions 7
 
The Stages of a Crisis 10
 
The Process of Communication 11
 
The Purpose and Objectives of the Communication Event 13
 
References 17
 
3 COMMUNICATION FUNDAMENTALS AND THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS 19
 
Audience Perceptions of the Communicator 19
 
Trust and Credibility 21
 
Four Theoretical Models 25
 
The Risk Perception Model 26
 
The Mental Noise Model 28
 
The Negative Dominance Model 28
 
The Trust Determination Model 29
 
Risk = Hazard + Outrage 30
 
High Hazard/Low Outrage ("Watch out!") 31
 
Medium Hazard/Medium Outrage (Stakeholder Relations) 32
 
Low Hazard/High Outrage ("Calm down!") 32
 
High Hazard/High Outrage ("We'll get through this together.") 33
 
Mental Models 33
 
Functional Lines of Communication 35
 
Care Communications 35
 
Consensus Communications 36
 
Crisis Communications 36
 
The Excellence Theory 37
 
The "Stickiness" of Messages 38
 
References 38
 
4 CRAFTING RISK AND CRISIS MESSAGES--SETTING GOALS AND OBJECTIVES AND AUDIENCE PROFILING 41
 
Key Successful Message Development Concepts 41
 
Message Crafting--Determining Purpose and Objectives 43
 
Message Development Constraints 45
 
Profi ling Audiences--Who Are They and What Do They Want? 46
 
Profi ling Audiences--How Do They Process and Perceive the Risk? 50
 
References 52
 
5 CRAFTING RISK AND CRISIS MESSAGES--DEVELOPING THE WORDS 55
 
Crafting Messages--Overarching Principles 55
 
Conveying Empathy 57
 
Audience Emotions--Anger 59
 
Audience Emotions--Mistrust 63
 
Audience Emotions--Fear, Panic, and Apathy 63
 
Message-Crafting Techniques 66
 
Infl uence Diagrams--The Mental Models Approach 67
 
Message Mapping 70
 
References 75
 
6 DELIVERING THE MESSAGE WHILE AVOIDING COMMON MISTAKES 77
 
Message Delivery Templates 77
 
The Use of Visuals in a Communication Event 82
 
Delivering the Message in the Age of the Internet 85
 
Common Message Delivery Mistakes and Effective Corrections 89
 
Failing to Communicate Technical Information 89
 
Failing to Help the Audience Understand the Uncertainly of Most Risk Information 90
 
Trying to Compare Risks 90
 
Making Value Judgments about "Acceptable" Levels of Risk 90
 
Being Concerned That an Audience Will Panic 91
 
Using Words That Imply Negative Behaviors 91
 
Responding Too Quickly or Not Quickly Enough 91
 
Failing to Speak with One Voice 92
 
The Use of Content Analysis and Readability Analyses 93
 

Evaluating the Communication Event 94
 
References 98
 
7 WORKING WITH THE MEDIA 101
 
Level of Organizational Expertise 102
 
Advance Development of Relationships with the Media 103
 
The Various Roles of the Media 104
 
Constraints of the Media and Media Representatives 105
 
What the Media Needs from an Organization 106
 
Fair Media Coverage 108
 
Developing a Media Communications Plan 109
 
Getting the Accurate Message Out 110
 
Choosing a Spokesperson 111
 
Preparing for an Interview 113
 
After the Interview 114
 
References 119
 
8 DEVELOPING A RISK AND CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS PLAN 121
 
Defi ning A

Report

"However, given the balance of theory and practical information in Walaski's book, it is certainly a good addition to the library of risk and crisis communications professionals." ( Technical Communication , 1 November 2012)

Product details

• Authors: Walaski, P Walaski, Pamela Walaski, Pamela (Ferrante) Walaski
• Publisher: Wiley, John and Sons Ltd
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 26.08.2011
• EAN: 9780470592731
• ISBN: 978-0-470-59273-1
• No. of pages: 224
• Subjects: Natural sciences, medicine, IT, technology > Chemistry; Social sciences, law, business > Business > Business administration; Chemie, Public Health, chemistry, Electrical & Electronics Engineering, Elektrotechnik u. Elektronik, Health & Social Care, Gesundheits- u. Sozialwesen, Chemical and Environmental Health and Safety, Arbeitssicherheit u. Umweltschutz i. d. Chemie, Systemtechnik u. -management, Systems Engineering & Management, Public Health General, Allg. Public Health