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Chapter 15Chapter 15Communication Communication

Campaign EffectsCampaign Effects

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Parts of Communication Parts of Communication CampaignsCampaigns

• The objectives of the campaign or the media methods employed

• The strategy used to facilitate change• The potential benefits resulting from

proposed change• Public perceptions about the

campaign stakeholder• The stakeholders themselves

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Campaign Objectives and Campaign Objectives and MethodsMethods

• Objectives– Refer to the essence of communication

appeals

• Methods– The genre of communication, the type of

communications media, and the strategies that the campaign employs

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Strategy to Facilitate Strategy to Facilitate ChangeChange

• The “three E’s”– Education– Engineering – Enforcement

• Effectiveness depends on:– Audience’s cultural heritage, form of

government, and level of technological development

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Potential Benefits From Potential Benefits From Proposed ChangeProposed Change

• Potential benefits that individuals or society will gain may motivate audiences to change.

• Also, highlighting the negative aspects of particular behaviors may also have an impact.

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Campaign StakeholdersCampaign Stakeholders• Stakeholders- the individuals, groups,

associations, or organizations that initiate the campaign in order to promote reform.– Individuals and associations– Media– Government– Social scientists

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Public Perceptions of the Public Perceptions of the StakeholderStakeholder

• Source of campaign messages must appear to be entitled to offer the messages, place them on the public’s agenda and attempt to change the audience’s behavior.

• Two classes of public issues:– Obligations– Opportunities

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Two Classes of StakeholdersTwo Classes of Stakeholders• First-party entitlement

– When an aggrieved group of stakeholders is seen by the public to be directly affected by an issue

• Second-party entitlement– Circumstances in which stakeholders are

not directly impacted by a particular issue

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McGuire’s ModelMcGuire’s Model• Emphasizes a number of steps in the

persuasive process• Inputs include the source, message,

recipient, channel, and the context of the message.

• Outputs include exposure and attention to the information, interest, comprehension, acquisition of new knowledge, etc.

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Elaboration Likelihood Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM)Model (ELM)

• Describes central and peripheral routes to persuasion

• Persuasion process is influenced by the likelihood of the audience member to think carefully or elaborate cognitively about a persuasive appeal

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Reasoned Action and Reasoned Action and Planned BehaviorPlanned Behavior

• People decide to change their behavior because of:

1. Their attitudes about the behavior2. Their perceptions of how others will

view the behavior3. Their perceptions of how much control

they have over the behavior

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Automatic Activation ModelAutomatic Activation Model• When a specific attitude comes to

mind, a specific behavior follows spontaneously under two conditions:

1. The object of the attitude is present.2. The object is perceived according to

the attitude.

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Social Cognitive and Social Social Cognitive and Social Learning TheoriesLearning Theories

• Human thought and actions are determined by three different factors:– Behavior factors– Personal characteristics– Environmental factors or events

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Self-efficacySelf-efficacy

• The belief in oneself that the behavioral change can occur

• Ways to increase self-efficacy:– Use of role models– Counterattitudinal advocacy– Offering reasons to change whenever others

encourage the old behavior– Presenting mild fear appeals,– Encouraging “deeply held but possibly

unrealistic illusions” that will promote the desired behavior

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Why Campaigns FailWhy Campaigns Fail

• Barriers related to audience’s perceptions of messages block the way for campaign success

• Audience members attend to messages selectively

• The lack of clearly defined criteria for success

• Unsophisticated audience-targeting techniques

• Unrealistic goals

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Successful Campaign Successful Campaign PrinciplesPrinciples

1. Understand historical and conceptual dimensions

2. Apply and extend relevant theory3. Understand theoretical implications

and interactions of campaign components

4. Plan the campaign: match objectives to individual cost-benefits

5. Apply formative evaluation

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Successful Campaign Successful Campaign Principles (Cont’d)Principles (Cont’d)

6. Analyze and understand the audience7. Analyze and understand media choices8. Mix multiple media and interpersonal

channels when cost-effective9. Understand uses and contradictions of

mass media10. Identify reasonable criteria for

campaign success and use summative evaluation to assess both theory and program success

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Understand Historical and Understand Historical and Conceptual DimensionsConceptual Dimensions

• Concepts are keys to understanding communication campaign components:– Objectives, methods, strategies of change,

individual or collective benefits, first-party and second-party entitlement, and stakeholders

• Study the successful campaigns of the past– Women’s suffage, the muckraking efforts,

the New Deal, and the power of propaganda campaigns

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Apply and Extend Relevant Apply and Extend Relevant TheoryTheory

• Theoretical principles help design the most effective campaigns possible– McGuire’s Communication/ Persuasion

model– Elaboration Likelihood model– Social learning theory

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Other Theoretical ModelsOther Theoretical Models

• Extended Parallel Process model– Two separate responses to fear appeals,

either cognitive or emotional; encourages a balance between the two

• Diffusion model– The spread of ideas or practices via

interpersonal networks

• Transtheoretical model– 5 stages in the process of behavior change:

precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, or maintenance

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Understand Theoretical Understand Theoretical Implications and Interactions of Implications and Interactions of

Campaign ComponentsCampaign Components

• Campaign goals should not be set too high.

• Careful decisions should be made regarding the measure of success.

• The power of particular campaign components may undermine the campaign’s overall message.

• Different components may affect each other in a positive way.

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Plan the CampaignPlan the Campaign• Set realistic goals.• Define media objectives clearly.• Campaign timing is essential.• Choose media carefully.• Use the four P’s of marketing:

– Product, price, place and promotion.

• Position campaign products cautiously.

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Apply Formative EvaluationApply Formative Evaluation• Evaluations are necessary for:

– Planning, making, and implementing improvements

– Administering and scheduling various components

– Other aspects of the campaign

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Preproduction ResearchPreproduction Research• Obtain relevant information about

the sociocultural climate that may impact the campaign.

• Four stages:1. Identify audience-related factors2. Specify behavior-related factors3. Identify the intermediate steps4. Identify media use factors

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Analyze and Understand the Analyze and Understand the AudienceAudience

• Identify subaudiences and recognize the three major types of audiences:– Focal segments– Interpersonal influencers– Societal policy makers

• Sense-making approach:– Tries to “ensure as far as possible that

dialogue is encouraged in every aspect of communication campaign research, design, and implementation”

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Analyze and Understand Analyze and Understand Media ChoicesMedia Choices

• Includes strategies of media use– Public service announcements

• Use broadcast rating services and media books to determine which channels are most watched by target audiences

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Mix Multiple Media and Mix Multiple Media and Interpersonal ChannelsInterpersonal Channels

• Interpersonal communications should be used as support for the overall media campaign when cost-effective.

• Mass media campaign messages are usually more effective.

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Understand Uses and Understand Uses and Contradictions of Mass Contradictions of Mass

MediaMedia• Commercials, television programs,

and motion pictures sometimes deliver messages that conflict with campaign messages.

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Criteria for Campaign Criteria for Campaign SuccessSuccess

• Identify reasonable criteria• A successful campaign can be one

that raises public awareness and results in a significant reduction in the behavior that is trying to be changed.

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Summative EvaluationSummative Evaluation

• The identification and measurement of several aspects of the campaign:– The audience– Implementation of the campaign

components– The effects of the campaign on

individuals and society– The cost effectiveness of the project– Identification of the steps in the causal

process

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Summative Evaluation Summative Evaluation (Cont’d)(Cont’d)

• Three types of models that may be used to assess the campaign’s success:– The advertising model

• focuses on the early stages of the communication hierarchy of effects

– The impact-monitoring model• focuses on the more distal stages and social

impacts

– The experimental model• focuses on testing hypothesized causal chains

through controlled manipulation of treatments

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Systems-Theoretical Systems-Theoretical Approach for Campaign Approach for Campaign

EvaluationEvaluation

• Seven stages:1. Specify the goals and underlying

assumptions2. Specify the process model3. Specify prior states, system phases, and

system constraints4. Specify immediate and long-term intended

poststates5. Specify the process model at individual level6. Choose appropriate research approach7. Assess implications for design

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Recent Research and Future Recent Research and Future TrendsTrends

• Examine a variety of different types of campaigns

• Make various theories to guide communication campaigns

• Evaluate the effectiveness of a motivational campaign

• Studies have found that political communication campaigns produce significant effects