ECREA16-Abstract

481

Thursday, November 10

1 6 : 3 0 – 1 8 : 0 0

OSC04

Bridging divides

PP 231

Strategic Communication Support for Integration in Intercultural Contexts

S. Balonas

, A. Duarte Melo

, T. Ruão

, R. Ribeiro

University of Minho, Communication and Society Research Centre, Braga, Portugal

Strategic communication has been considered to be of growing importance in life of all type of organizations (Hallahan et al., 2007). Notwithstanding that

specialized literature continues to focus on studies based on large private corporations, strategic communication is increasingly being used both as resource

and tool for public institutions, particularly focused in their complex interaction with citizens. This article stresses the transfer of good practices widely

tested in entrepreneurial environments to large social interaction environments such as are public universities. We intend to demonstrate how to apply

the principles of organisational and strategic communication in foreign citizens' integration contexts concerning institutions of higher education. The fun‑

damentals of strategic communication applied to specific objectives will be highlighted namely the increase of cultural diversity and multiculturalism in

university communities demanding for integration levels improvement - through the definition and implementation of strategic communication plans,

assuming that good strategic communications practice must involve, develop, promote and raise the attitude in and for the organisation, promoting change

and new behaviour, and not simply reporting on events (Marchiori, 2011). Looking at the Portuguese scenario, the number of foreign students increased

by 74%, mainly on higher education. In 2016, students come from 200 countries (Silva, 2016) raising complex issues as cultural diversity and transcultur‑

ality. The discussion is, therefore, focused on the Portuguese higher education context whose internationalization strategy demands the enhancement

of the acceptance level of international students. In fact, institutional policies have been concerned directly with integration activities, namely the ones

promoting the improvement of integrations' level, with particular attention to the interpersonal dimension of the relationship between international

students and local University communities, from national students to teachers, and non-teaching staff. Furthermore these policies enclose the principles

of organisational and strategic communication convened in a spirit of good practices. This work is focused on the diagnosis phase that guides the definition

of prevalent cultural tensions/issues. The diagnosis dimension is emphasized as a key assumption in the strategy building to raise awareness of multicultur‑

alism. On the other hand, the study aims to obtaining greater knowledge about the principles of strategic communication applied to behavioural change,

through documentary analysis. Finally, we suggest the comparative analysis between the decisions arising from the strategic design and strategic actions

carried out by European universities. In summary, to obtain effective impact on behaviour change between individuals and groups in a sustainable way

the communication must be strategic, participatory, based on research evidence and results-oriented (UNICEF, 2005). Key words: strategic communication,

multiculturalism, integration, behavioural change.

PP 232

Sport as Mediation in Northern Ireland’s Divided Society? A Critique of the ‘Dialogical’ Sport Development and Peace (SDP)

Communicative Model

I. Somerville

, O. Hargie

, D. Mitchell

University of Leicester, Media and Communication, Leicester, United Kingdom

Ulster University, Belfast, United Kingdom

Trinity College Dublin, Belfast, United Kingdom

In recent years there has been considerable interest in the public policy arena in ‘sports based interventions’(SBIs) and the role they can play in forwarding

a Sport, Development and Peace (SDP) agenda. Sport is viewed by policy makers as an important interventionist tool to encourage reconciliation in deeply

divided societies. In this study data was gathered in Northern Ireland from 16 elite actor interviews (n. 16), semi-structured interviews (n. 104) and a survey

with the general public (n.1200). The findings reveal a number of recurring themes relating to the role sport plays in civic/ethnic identities and the role

SBI’s play in communicating mediation and reconciliation across a society still deeply divided by the memory of violent conflict. These themes will be

delineated and discussed in the paper, together with implications for sporting bodies and policy makers in Northern Ireland. It is clear from our data that

that participation in SBI’s has had some impact in breaking down barriers between the sectarian groups in Northern Ireland. However it is equally clear

from our analysis of the profile of the participants that a large element of the population are unlikely to take part in such initiatives. In particular the poor,

those with low educational attainment and those who do little sport or exercise are much less likely to take part in SBIs and thus there is a need for eval‑

uation of the most effective communication strategies for organisations involved in peacebuilding through sport. In particular it is important to analyse

the foundational assumptions of the communication models which characterise the main approaches to SBIs. Many SBIs are underpinned by a ‘dialogical’

SDP model. A model which is rooted in an interpretative, communicative philosophy which understands conflicts as primarily about divided communities

characterised by a lack of social contact, trust, and effective mediation (Giulianotti, 2011). Following this model SBIs typically involve mixed teams in order

to help build inclusive social capital across the communities, by forging relationships founded upon informal, practical cooperation. The dialogical ethos is

explicit in many peace making projects which use sport to bring participants into meaningful and cooperative contact with the ‘Other’, with the objective

of changing cross-community perceptions (Giulianotti, 2011). However, many of the dialogic SBIs in Northern Ireland remain ‘top-down’ and hierarchical.

The authoritative position of the agency is explicit and prevalent - for example, the agency organizes the structure of games, the distribution of teams,

acts as mediator/referee, etc. Such dialogic SDP models have had limited success in Northern Ireland thus this paper assesses the potential contribution

a ‘critical’ SDP model might play in building communication, trust and common interest between the divided communities. The critical model encourages

an andragogical technique (Giulianotti, 2011) of communication were participants assume decision-making responsibilities, and learn through experience,

acknowledging mistakes or problems along the way, to build more inclusive communities.