With support from the four major PR/Communication professional organizations – PRSA, IABC, IPR and the Arthur W. Page Society – USC Annenberg’s Strategic Communication and PR Center today launches its eighth Generally Accepted Practices (GAP) Study. GAP VIII will serve as the cornerstone for the world’s first ongoing global study of public relations and communication management practices, to be conducted by USC in partnership with the Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management.

In the only known example of their teaming up to support a single research project, the four professional groups will encourage their members to participate in GAP VIII and support the publication of the findings.

To view the full survey, visit: https://uscannenberg.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_agUBlUE7XNlucXH.    

GAP has a ten-year history as the most comprehensive and in-depth study of the field. Its findings are widely used by senior-level practitioners in structuring, staffing, managing and measuring their communication organizations during a time of unprecedented change. Topics covered include budget and staffing levels relative to organizational size, use and management of social media, measurement and evaluation, shifting areas of responsibility, and the relationship between specific practices and organizational success. The findings are made available to practitioners, educators and students free of charge, as a service to the profession. 

“After seven studies over a ten-year period, GAP has achieved a strong record of consistency and reliability in the U.S.,” said Jerry Swerling, Director of USC Annenberg’s Strategic Communication and PR Center. “As we planned GAP VIII, it seemed clear that the time had come to apply what we have learned on an international scale.

“A partnership with the Global Alliance, which represents 160,000 practitioners and academics around the globe and was likewise exploring international research opportunities, quickly took shape. With GA we have formed relationships with academic and professional partners on three other continents, who will conduct GAP-like beta studies in their own countries based on our methodology. Their data will then be combined with that of GAP VIII to give us an unprecedented perspective on how our industry is progressing around the world. Our ultimate goal is to create a truly global, ongoing gauge of our profession’s evolution.”

Teaming up to support GAP VIII in the U.S. are The Arthur W. Page Society, the 400+ members of which are generally the heads of communication in major U.S. organizations; the Institute for Public Relations (IPR), which explores the science underlying the practice of communication; the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC), with its 15,000-member global network of communicators; and the 21,000 member Public Relations Society of America (PRSA). The GAP VIII study is supported by a grant from Edelman.

Using multiple channels, the associations will encourage their members to participate in GAP VIII, which will be conducted entirely online. The survey will close in mid-December and data will be analyzed over the following months. The findings of the U.S. study will be released in the second quarter of 2014, while those of the international study will be released in the third quarter of that year.                            

The Strategic Communication and Public Relations Center is part of USC Annenberg’s Public Relations Studies unit. Its mission is to advance the study, practice and value of strategic communication and public relations by conducting innovative applied research in partnership with other visionary organizations.

To see a graphic concerning the study, click here. Related links:

        - GAP VII survey
        - Previous GAP Reports