Until Further Notice: Post-Modernity and Socio-Territorial Belonging

One of social theory's main concerns is the analysis of the changes that take place in human societies. This article systematizes existing knowledge about the characteristics of post-modern societies by incorporating it into Ferdinand Tönnies’ classical theory of societal change. Post-modern societies are defined as societies in which people are essentially separated, yet still tightly connected in spite of everything that divides them. Tönnies characterizes community as ‘organic’ and society as ‘mechanic’. In this article, contemporary societies are defined as ‘digital’. Their ‘psychological’ foundation, or founding will, is found in the concept of ‘imagination’. New forms of relationships accompany the coming of the digital society. Relationships with other individuals and with the territory are defined as ‘fluid’.     

Public relations and the rise of hypermodern values: Exploring the profession in Europe

This article raises the question of whether European public relations (PR) and communications professionals perceive a cultural transformation in the direction of hypermodernity, and if so, attempts to assess how this influences their organizations and their work. Questions were asked in the European Communication Monitor 2017, an annual survey among communications professionals, and 3387 respondents from 50 European countries filled in the questionnaire. The results indicate that European professionals recognize a cultural transformation in the direction of hyper consumption, hyper modernization and hyper narcissism that influences the communication between their organizations and their stakeholders. A cluster analysis shows that less than half of the respondents perceive a transformation of their organization in the direction of hypermodern characteristics and values. Organizations with post/hypermodern characteristics have superior communications departments compared to modern organizations. Post/hypermodern organizations and excellent communications departments also engage more often in societal debates than other types of organizations and departments.