Journal Review Past Crisis and Image Restoration - Iriene 125120207121014

Impact of past crises on current crisis communication by Timothy Coombs and Understanding image restoration strategies from a stakeholder approach by Chutima Kessadayurat

It is linked with a previous research based on Situational Crisis Communication Theory (SCCT). This theory argue that history of crises is critical to determine reputation threat. Also when the threat increase, crisis manager should use strategy in response that demonstrate acceptance of crisis responsibility. The journal explains of a study to test SCCT contention that crisis history could affect to reputational threat. SCCT also focusing in communication to protect organization’s reputation.

The hypotheses of SCCT argues that past crisis could shape the current crisis and reputational threat as mention above. Hence SCCT was made to follow the information as instructed. 

Then Attribution theory also linked as a guide the crisis situations to response strategies. Where attribution theory is about people perceptions and crises will trigger attributions. Crisis attributions affect feeling and behavior in organizations involved in crisis. Therefore crisis manager could uses crisis response strategies attempt to construct attribution crisis or perception of the organization itself.

In order to make attribution there are three attribution dimensions. First is stability of the event happens. Second is external control which indicates if the event is controllable or not. The third is personal control which shows whether the events cause is controllable or not by other person. Or the internal locus which reflects about a person and external locus reflects the situation. Therefore attribution theory connecting crisis response strategies with the crisis situation.

Crisis threat assessment divided into two steps. On the first step they identify the crisis type. SCCT differs 10 crisis types: natural disaster, rumor, product tampering, workplace violence, challenge, technical error product recall, technical error accident, human error product recall, human error accident, and organizational misdeed. Then attribution of crisis responsibility divided various crisis types into three clusters include victim, accidental and intentional. In victim cluster there are low attributions of crisis responsibility such as natural disaster. The victim of the crisis is organization. The accidental cluster contain minimal attributions of crisis responsibility such as technical error. Then the intentional crisis cluster needed strong attribution of crisis responsibility such as human error or organizational misdeed. Next the second step to assess crisis threat is to adjust the reputation from three points such as crisis history which the organizations has in the past. Second is relationship history towards the stakeholders. And the last is severity or the damage amount by accident.

Three studies regarding past crisis on SCCT were explained in the journal. And it shows that the history of crisis condition creates more crisis responsibility pressure and increasing the attributions. Thus it could also gives the reputational threat. Research was conducted using 321 respondents. They were given four crisis scenarios and questionnaire. The result shows that respondents sees the no mention of crisis history as the same info as information which indicates no crisis history. But when crises involve product tampering and technical error product recalls respondents perceived the reputation of the organization with a history of crises more negative rather than the reputation of organization without past crisis or unknown history. So in conclusion if news media doesn’t blow up information regarding past crisis, stakeholders will assume there were no past crises. An organization needed to maintain clean crisis record because similar past crises will affect current crises.

Then in image restoration strategies journal highlighting the significance of stakeholders in designing restoration message. First the writer focuses on crisis communication and organization image. The variables of crises can be seen from its threat, short response time, and then surprise is one of crisis characteristic. The writer argues that organizations can manage crisis in two way. Taking preventive way or restorative approach. In preventive it allows two way communication between organization and public to create understanding. Issue management also necessary and public relations are responsible for developing crisis management team.

In Benoit’s 5 restoration strategy the first step is denial. There are simple denial and shift to blame. Second is evasion of responsibility which allow to manipulate public perception. And there are four tactics in evasion such as provocation, defeasibility, accident and good intention. Third is reduce the offensiveness of the act with bolster, minimize differentiate, transcend, attack accuser and compensate. Fourth is corrective action which concerns attempt to repair damage by action. And the last is mortification which occurs in asking for forgiveness.

In linking with four assumptions of theory of social construction reality, shows that the theory is connected with image restoration. The assumptions contains reality through human experience, language determined by social interactions, reality defined by conventions of communication and communication behavior linked social construction of reality. Therefore the theory explains how communication maintain and provide people perception towards organization. And how image is considered as socially constructed trough communication. And the way organization communicates its restoring image represents the reconstruction of reality.

Understanding stakeholder interpretation in constructing reality of image restoration is very important. In conclusion this article shows how image restoration message function. Which use communication to create reality and language is reality image construction. Which is really matter in restoring image strategies. 

By Iriene Muharani

125120207121014