TECEP® Test Description for COM-210-TE

PUBLIC RELATIONS THOUGHT AND PRACTICE

This exam assesses students’ knowledge public relations concepts. Topics include: the foundation ideas 
and fundamental concepts of contemporary public relations practice; studies of public opinion formation, 
influence, and measurement; techniques of communication and journalism that effectively reach large 
audiences; and management skills required to plan and execute a successful public relations program.​ (3
credits)

● Test format:​ 100 multiple choice questions (1 point each).

● Passing score:​ 65%. Your grade will be reported as CR (credit) or NC (no credit).
● Time limit:​ 2 hours.

OUTCOMES ASSESSED ON THE TEST

● Discuss the origins of and changes within the public relations field over time and what is expected
of contemporary practitioners

● Identify the core values, theories, principles that guide the practice of public relations

● Describe the steps and processes involved in executing the management function

● Illustrate the similarities and differences in the way public relations is practiced in different
organizational settings

TOPICS ON THE TEST AND THEIR APPROXIMATE DISTRIBUTION

The table below indicates the main topics covered by this exam and the approximate percentage of the
exam devoted to each main topic. Under the main topic heading is a list of related–but more
specific–topics. It is important to review these topics to determine how much prior knowledge you have
and/or how much additional study is necessary.

Topic Percentage

Concept, practitioners, context, and origins

30%
● Defining public relations

TECEP Test Description for COM-210-TE by Thomas Edison State University is licensed under a ​Creative Commons
Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License​.
 ● Clarifying key terminology
● Numbers, salaries, assignments, roles, and practitioner
challenges
● Issues in organizational settings
● Origins and development of the public relations field

Theoretical foundations
● Professionalism
● Ethical foundations, codes of ethics, and accountability
● Legal considerations, freedoms, lobbying, and protections
30%
● Theoretical trends and systems perspectives
● Communication theories, mass communication, and public
opinion
● Internal and external relations

Management process
● Defining public relations problems
● Planning and programming 30%
● Taking action and communicating
● Evaluating the program

Public relations practice in different settings

● Public relations in:
○ Corporate organizations
○ Government
○ Politics
10%
○ The military
○ Nonprofits and NGOs
○ Health care
○ Associations
○ Labor unions

STUDY MATERIALS

Below is a list of recommended study materials to help prepare you for your exam. Most textbooks in this
subject include the topics listed above and will prepare you for the test. If you choose another text, be
sure to compare its table of contents against the topic list to make sure all topics are covered.

Title

Broom, G. M., & Sha, B. ​Cutlip and Center’s Effective Public Relations​. Current edition. Boston, MA:
Pearson.

TECEP Test Description for COM-210-TE by Thomas Edison State University is licensed under a ​Creative Commons
Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License​.
SAMPLE QUESTIONS

The questions below are designed to help you study for your TECEP. Answering these questions does
not guarantee a passing score on your exam.

Please note that the questions below ​will not​ appear on your exam.

1. Which area of public relations deals with emerging issues and their potential impact on an
organization?

a. Public opinion
b. Issues management
c. Public affairs
d. Lobbying

2. Approximately half of all public relations practitioners work in

a. government
b. business and commercial areas
c. health care and hospitals
d. public relations firms

3. In the public relations field, what is the most common threat to a client-firm relationship?

a. Clients’ questions about costs

b. Resistance to outside advice
c. Superficial grasp of the client's unique problems
d. Personality conflicts

4. In which era did muckraking journalism led to the widespread introduction of public relations in
business?

a. Postwar Era, 1945 - 1965

b. Roosevelt Era, 1930 - 1945
c. Booming Twenties Era, 1919 - 1929
d. Seedbed Era, 1900 – 1917

5. What is the main purpose of licensing public relations practitioners?

a. To regulate access to posts in the field

b. To create an elite of public relations practitioners
c. To preserve the well-being of society
d. To achieve better wages for licensed practitioners

TECEP Test Description for COM-210-TE by Thomas Edison State University is licensed under a ​Creative Commons
Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License​.
 6. Publishing and selling the creative work of others and protecting property rights of one’s own
creative work is regulated by

a. libel and publication regulations

b. access and deregulation
c. Securities and Exchange Commission
d. copyright and trademark law

7. Early theories of mass communication suggested that audiences were passive recipients of
media messages and thus vulnerable to manipulation. Which of the following best describes
current thinking?

a. Audiences are more vulnerable and passive than ever before.

b. Television viewing, in particular, creates increased activity in the right hemisphere of the
brain.
c. Active receivers are not uniformly affected by mass communication messages.
d. Technology has led to increasingly passive recipients at the ends of message
transmission systems.

8. Which form of communication is most effective in forming or changing predispositions toward an

issue?

a. Interpersonal
b. Media
c. Group
d. Public

9. What is the major advantage of organizational publications?

a. Their ability to provide a revenue source for sponsoring organizations

b. Their ability to deliver specific, detailed information to narrowly defined target publics
c. Their ability to avoid the problems typically associated with two-way media
d. Their ability to give sponsoring organizations a means of uncontrolled communications

10. What should a public relations media practitioner do if she does not know the answer to a
reporter’s question?

a. Give the reporter other information she is certain is correct.

b. Say that the information is “off the record” and will be disseminated later.
c. Say “I don’t know” and promise to provide the information later.
d. Say “no comment,” rather than appear uninformed.

TECEP Test Description for COM-210-TE by Thomas Edison State University is licensed under a ​Creative Commons
Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License​.
 11. The “internal factors” portion of a firm’s public relations situation analysis often includes

a. a communication audit
b. strategy suggestions
c. community focus groups
d. a listing of media contacts

12. The process of identifying publics who are involved and affected by a situation central to an
organization is called a(n)

a. exploratory survey
b. situation interview
c. communication audit
d. stakeholder analysis

13. Approximately what proportion of nonprofit sector practitioners conduct audience research?

a. One-quarter
b. One-half
c. Two thirds
d. Almost all

14. Psychographics refers to

a. individual values, lifestyles and characteristics

b. individual sex, age, race and income statistics
c. potential influence
d. all of the above

15. The American flag is an example of a

a. stereotype
b. semantic device
c. symbol
d. message

16. Which traditional news criterion would you expect to be most important in public relations
messages distributed through the mass media?

a. Proximity
b. Timeliness
c. Prominence
d. Impact

TECEP Test Description for COM-210-TE by Thomas Edison State University is licensed under a ​Creative Commons
Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License​.
 17. In recent years social media has had a major impact on the practice of public relations. In which
of the following areas has the impact been greatest and experienced most immediately?

a. Politics
b. Retail business
c. Automotive sales
d. Nonprofits

18. Which phase of public relations audience research is associated with summative evaluation?

a. Implementation
b. Impact
c. Attitude change
d. Preparation

19. What is the primary public relations activity in financial relations?

a. Measuring investor opinions toward the company

b. Producing the annual report
c. Making arrangements and preparing materials for financial meetings
d. Writing and disseminating financial news releases

20. Which of the following Internet-related challenges is most significant in the public relations field?

a. Representing clients using new social media environments

b. Finding stable, cost-effective Internet providers
c. Training staff to use social media
d. Staying abreast of changing technology

TECEP Test Description for COM-210-TE by Thomas Edison State University is licensed under a ​Creative Commons
Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License​.
ANSWERS TO SAMPLE QUESTIONS

1. (​b​) 8. (​a​) 15. (​c​)

2. (​b​) 9. (​b​) 16. (​d​)
3. (​a​) 10. (​c​) 17. (​a​)
4. (​d​) 11. (​a​) 18. (​b​)
5. (​c​) 12. (​d​) 19. (​b​)
6. (​d​) 13. (​c​) 20. (​d​)
7. (​c​) 14. (​a​)

TECEP Test Description for COM-210-TE by Thomas Edison State University is licensed under a ​Creative Commons
Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License​.