The effectiveness of an organizations's adaptive behavior depends on the extent to which public relations concerns are considered in goal setting and program planning. The following five open systems propositions, based on a "functional" paradigm, address the complex relationship between public relations and organizational intelligence and do not call for studying the attributes of individual practitioners. First, public relations structure and process are functions of the host organization's sensitivity to its internal and external environment. This perspective can be analyzed using both functional and historicist models. Second, the effectiveness of public relations structure and process is a function of the adequacy of information input about the environment that gets factored into organizational decision making. Third, the status of public relations in the organizational hierarchy is a function of the amount of variance in the organization's environment. Fourth, the level of public relations participation in organizational decision making is a function of the extent to which public relations engages in environmental intelligence activities. Fifth, an organization's ability to adapt to and influence its environment is a function of the nature and extent of public relations participation in management goal setting and program decision making. (Flow charts and tables are included.) (JD)