Table of Contents

DoD Short Course Class 00-B

Abstract
 

Military public affairs officers have one of the most challenging and unique missions in the armed services.  They are charged with developing and implementing information campaigns to inform and educate military members and the American public about the roles and mission of the military in peacetime and in war.  Despite an obvious need for leadership involvement and support, not every military commander realizes the true value of public affairs, and the result is a lack of support for the PA mission.  Determining what a commander’s perceptions and attitudes toward public affairs are and more importantly, what influences those perceptions, would be extremely valuable to increasing the effectiveness of PA programs suffering from lack of leadership involvement and support. This Capstone project is designed to determine just what those influences are that ultimately translate into attitudes and behaviors – either in a supportive or non-supportive role.  To ascertain those influences, the researchers developed a 35-question survey (Appendix 1) to distribute to PA professionals in all four services in which they will assess their commanders’ attitudes toward and support of public affairs.  A similar version will also be sent to commanders, and the results from both will be compared and analyzed to assess the major influences shaping leaders’ perceptions and attitudes toward public affairs.  The ultimate goal of this research is to devise strategies, based on the major influences, that PA professionals can use to develop a leader who is more supportive of public affairs operations.  A more supportive leader is one who better understands PA’s role; better understands the value of PA in accomplishing the mission; and translates that understanding into increased involvement and support.