Abstract
Public diplomacy research in the realm of communication science has increased significantly since 2009, particularly in public relations and strategic organizational communication studies. Public diplomacy is generally conceived as a strategic communication instrument comprising different communication methods to inform and engage with foreign publics in order to advance the interests of nation-states. In this chapter, I focus on research on public diplomacy as the communication efforts of a nation (including those of the government itself and institutions that speak on behalf of the government) in advancing national interests and, ultimately, affecting the perception of a nation. In this regard, previous research has examined either subjects (communicators of public diplomacy messages) or objectives of public diplomacy communication.