Ukraine, just as many other countries that were part of the former Soviet Union, is suffering from the problem of bribery. The public relations field in Ukraine is not immune to corruption, and bribery between public relations professionals and journalists is a well-known phenomenon. In the current qualitative study, the goal was to explore the attitudes of Ukrainian public relations professionals toward bribery and to create a guide for doing business in Ukraine. Through a semistructured survey, the researcher obtained the perceptions of Ukrainian public relations professionals toward bribery, including the definition of bribery, the differentiation between bribery and traditional gift giving in Ukrainian culture, assumptions regarding the situations in which bribery occurs, and the magnitude of the problem in Ukrainian society. The analysis of the responses showed a dual nature in the public relations professionals' attitudes toward bribery. The participants defined bribery as a negative action; however, they believed that bribery occurs regularly even though the participants indicated they had not personally participated in bribery transactions. The participants also reported that bribery occurs between public relations firms and clients. The participants also shared some positive attitudes toward bribery, indicating bribery is a method of achieving goals in business. Additionally, the participants indicated bribery is more common in smaller cities than in large cities, such as the capital. The findings of the study indicate that public relations education and professional training need to include an emphasis on ethical behavior, ensuring public relations professionals in Ukraine have a better understanding of the importance of ethics in the public relations profession.

The study examines attitudes toward and effectiveness of cause-related marketing initiatives in Poland. As the results indicate, the factors, which lead to the popularity and effectiveness of the cause-related marketing initiatives in the United States and the United Kingdom, lack in the Polish culture. Even though CRM is popular in Poland, it does not influence the purchase decisions. Poles do not have any expectations toward businesses in the area of corporate social responsibility. They believe that the government should take the responsibility for solving social issues, and value only the functional dimensions of the products, because their emotional needs are fully satisfied by their families, friends and religion.

Denna fallstudie presenterar forskning om vad som kan påverka framgången för internationella teknikföretag när det kommer till att etablera sig i det svenska medielandskapet. Sverige ses som ett nav för innovation och med globalisering samt framväxten av kommunikationsteknologier kan företag bedriva sin verksamhet på andra marknader än deras ursprung, vilket gör det viktigt att förstå vad som kan påverka framgången med att etablera sig i det svenska medielandskapet när man genomför kommunikationsinsatser. Denna fallstudie består av 7 semistrukturerade intervjuer med tre typer av medieproffs, (1) interna mediaproffs, (2) externa PR-specialister och (3) journalister. Resultaten visar att det finns sex faktorer som kan påverka framgången med att etablera sig i det svenska medielandskapet för internationella techföretag; (1) realistiska förväntningar, (2) bra timing, (3) nyheter kopplade till samhälleliga utmaningar och möjligheter, (4) en förståelse för hur medielandskapet fungerar, (5) lokala talespersoner och valid data, samt (6) relevans för målgruppen. / This case study presents research on what can affect the success of international tech companies establishing a presence on the Swedish media landscape. Sweden is seen as a hub for innovation and with globalisation and the rise of communication technologies, companies are able to conduct their business in different markets than their origin, making it important to understand what can affect the success of establishing a presence on the Swedish media landscape when conducting communications efforts. This case study consists of 7 semi-structured interviews with three types of media professionals, (1) in-house media professionals, (2) external PR-specialists, and (3) journalists. The results show there are six factors which can affect the success of establishing a presence on the Swedish media landscape for international tech companies; (1) realistic expectations, (2) good timing, (3) news connected to societal challenges and opportunities, (4) an understanding of how the media landscape operates, (5) local spokespeople and valid data, and (6) relevance for the target audience.

In a global business environment, cultural understanding is an essential tool for successful communication and relationship building between organizations and audiences. However, the power of cultural values to modify individuals' ways of thinking and communicating is not well understood in terms of crisis communication management. Therefore, this study applied Sue's (1991, 2001) theory of cultural competence to examine the effect of cultural values on crisis communication planning, using three methodological approaches. First, grounded theory analysis was applied to qualitative interviews with 25 communication professionals concerning cultural influences on crisis. Second, a national online survey (N=172) assessed communication practitioners' attitudes toward, and knowledge about, other cultures, and their skills to respond to diverse cultures. Third, media portrayals of corporate crises were examined with semantic network analysis of news articles from the New York Times, USA Today, and the Wall Street Journal between January 1, 2007 and December, 31, 2008, to identify whether cultural aspects were mentioned. These approaches yielded five main findings. First, PR practitioners had difficulties in defining multiculturalism, often equating cultural diversity with communicating with Latinos. Second, interviewees saw cultural differences as just one aspect of diversity, emphasizing that age, religion, and education differences also affect corporate discourse. Third, although professionals considered culture a key element of crisis management, they did not feel prepared to handle the challenges of a multicultural crisis, nor did they report that they used culturally adjusted crisis strategies often. Fourth, regression analyses conducted on the survey data showed that skills to manage multicultural situations and openness to diverse knowledge significantly predict the relevance professionals attributed to culture when designing crisis communication strategies. Fifth, media accounts of crises did not mention cultural elements in the three newspapers investigated. By integrating cultural competence and crisis management frameworks, this study provides the foundation for an in-depth understanding of crises, where scholars can pair crisis strategies with audiences' cultural expectations. Instructors can incorporate this framework to their courses, preparing PR students to new demands of the profession. Finally, training initiatives focused on increasing levels of cultural competence can make organizations ready to the challenges of a global market. / Mass Media and Communication

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