When to say what during crisis situations: experimental tests of the Situational Crisis Communication Theory (SCCT) and stealing thunder

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The impact of voice disorders among teachers: vocal complaints, treatment-seeking behavior, knowledge of vocal care, and voice-related absenteeism

OBJECTIVES: Teachers are at increased risk for developing voice disorders. Occupational risk factors have been extensively examined; however, little attention has been paid to the consequences of the vocal complaints. The objective of this study was to investigate the knowledge that teachers have about vocal care, treatment-seeking behavior, and voice-related absenteeism. METHODS: The study group comprised 994 teachers and 290 controls whose jobs did not involve vocal effort. All participants completed a questionnaire inquiring about vocal complaints, treatment-seeking behavior, voice-related absenteeism, and knowledge about vocal care. Comparisons were made between teachers with and without vocal complaints and with the control group. RESULTS: Teachers reported significantly more voice problems than the control population (51.2% vs 27.4%) (chi(2)=50.45, df=1, P<0.001). Female teachers reported significantly higher levels of voice disorders than their male colleagues (38% vs 13.2%, chi(2)=22.34, df=1, P<0.001). Teachers (25.4%) sought medical care and eventually 20.6% had missed at least 1 day of work because of voice problems. Female teachers were significantly more likely to seek medical help (chi(2)=7.24, df=1, P=0.007) and to stay at home (chi(2)=7.10, df=1, P=0.008) in comparison with their male colleagues. Only 13.5% of all teachers received information during their education. CONCLUSIONS: Voice disorders have an impact on teachers' personal and professional life and imply a major financial burden for society. A substantial number of teachers needed medical help and was obligated to stay at home because of voice problems. This study strongly recommends the implementation of vocal education during the training of teacher students to prepare the vocal professional user

How personality traits affect crisis perceptions : an experimental test of the use of crisis response strategies and the moderating effects of locus of control

This study provides empirical evidence for the Situational Crisis Communication Theory, which provides guidelines for matching crisis response strategies (CRS) to crisis types. The impact of crisis type and CRS on corporate reputation was measured among 316 consumers in a 3 (crisis type: victim, accidental, preventable) x 3 (CRS: deny, diminish, rebuild) between subjects factorial design. Preventable crises had the most negative effects on reputation. The rebuild CRS restored the reputation best. The interaction between crisis type and CRS on reputation was not significant. The respondents’ locus of control had a moderating impact on the relationship between CRS and reputation

The impact of a theater performance on the vocal quality of actors

Background: Theater actors are a special group of elite vocal performers where the slightest vocal difficulty can have serious professional consequences. Little is known about the presence of vocal complaints and dysphonia in this group. Aims: The purpose of this study was to investigate vocal quality, vocal complaints and risk factors for developing voice disorders in theater actors. Secondly, the impact of one vocal performance on the voice was investigated by comparing objective and subjective voice quality immediately before and after a theater performance of one and a half hour. Methods and procedures: Speech samples of 26 theater actors (15 men, 11 women) with a mean age of 41.9 years were recorded before and after a theater performance of one and a half hour and analyzed using the software program PRAAT. Speech samples consisted of the combination of sustained phonation and continuous speech. For each speech sample the multiparameter index Acoustic Voice Quality Index was calculated. Auditory perceptual evaluations were performed using the GRBASI scale. Questionnaires were used to inventory vocal symptoms and influencing factors. Outcome and results: Acoustic analysis showed a mean AVQI of 3.48 corresponding with a mild dysphonia. Fifty percent of the theater actors reported having (sometimes or regularly) vocal complaints after a performance. The questionnaire revealed a high presence of vocally violent behavior and poor vocal hygiene habits. Objective vocal quality, measured by the AVQI did not change after a theater performance. The auditory perceptual evaluation of the overall grade of dysphonia showed a subtle amelioration of the vocal quality. Conclusion and implications: The results of this study showed the presence of mild dysphonia, regular vocal complaints and poor vocal hygiene habits in theater actors. A theater performance did not have an impact on the objective vocal quality. Further research is necessary to confirm these preliminary results and to investigate the long-term impact of performing on the objective vocal quality

The impact of level of threat and self-efficacy on consumer responses for commercial products : the moderating role of self-esteem

Where the use and effectiveness of threat appeals has been investigated extensively in social marketing, this study focuses on the impact of social threat appeals in a commercial setting (ad for deodorant). The study investigates the moderating impact of self-esteem on the appraisal of threat and efficacy evoked by a message and on the interaction effect of self-efficacy and level of social threat on brand attitude and purchase intention. Results show that, contrary to previous findings, high threat appeals can be effective for low self-esteem people, but only when self-efficacy is increased explicitly in the message.status: publishe

The role of empathy in crisis communication : providing a deeper understanding of how organizational crises and crisis communication affect reputation

This study advances our theoretical knowledge of how organizational crises and crisis communication affect reputation. Prior research solely emphasizes the importance of organizational crisis responsibility in this process. Three experiments show that stakeholders' empathy toward the organization provides a second explanation. The first two experiments demonstrate that victim crises not only inflict less reputational damage than preventable crises because stakeholders consider the organization less responsible for the events, but also because they are more likely to empathize with the company. The third study shows that empathy can also explain the outcomes of crisis communication. An apology arouses empathy among stakeholders and subsequently increases reputation repair, unlike denial. The role of empathy in the crisis communication process has implications for both theory and practice