Development communication

What is development communication?

• This describes an approach to

communication which provides

communities with information they

can use in bettering their lives,

which aims at making public

programmes and policies real,

meaningful and sustainable.

• Such information must be applied in some way as part of community development but it must also address information needs which communities themselves identified.

• The outcome of this approach, in short, is to make a difference in the quality of life of communities.

• Nora Quebral (1971) defines

development communication as

follows:

• Development communication is the

art and science of human

communication applied to the speedy

transformation of a country and the

mass of its people from poverty to a

dynamic state of economic growth

that makes possible greater social

equality and the larger fulfillment of

the human potential.

Comparison of diffusion and participatory approaches

• The diffusion model assumes that a

proper combination of mass-mediated

and interpersonal communication

strategies can move individuals from

poor to not-poor via a process starting

with awareness (of a new technology

or practice) through interest,

evaluation, trial and finally to adoption

of the technology or practice that is

assumed to lead to improved livelihoods.

Summary of diffusion approach (Waisbord 2000)Diffusion model

• Definition of communication:

information transfer - vertical

• Definition of development

communication: information

dissemination via mass media

• Problem: lack of information

• Solution: information transfer:

Knowledge - Attitudes - Practice

• Goal: outcome oriented: behavior

change

• In the early 1970s an intellectual shift

occurred in the basic conception of

development communication when

predominately Latin American scholars

challenged the diffusion approach to

development communication.

• Critics of the diffusion model were unsettled

by its pro-innovation, pro-persuasion and top-

down nature that is, its strong emphasis on

adoption and lack of emphasis on recipient

input into the development decisions and

processes. (Colle, 1989).

• Therefore in the 1970s, there was a

shift to the participatory approach,

which is based on a systems

framework with an emphasis on

horizontal communication through

which the poor/disadvantaged are

directly involved in the communication

process.

• They not only adopt but are part of the

creation of the new

technology/knowledge.

The effectiveness of participatory development communication: Some contextual factors

The participatory approach is made effective by a number of factors. Among these factors

are:

• creating a participatory communication environment that not only gives room for the expression of diverse ideas on societal developmental concerns, but also facilitates grassroots-level interaction;

• strengthening the flow of public information and opportunities of public dialogue on development policies and programmes;

• producing and disseminating information

content that reflects as well as responds to

the local values and information needs of the

people at the grassroots level;

• using culturally appropriate communication

approaches and content;

• using community communication-access

points, especially community radio

• harnessing the strengths of traditional media

(drama, dance, songs, story-telling, etc.) and

combining them with new information and

communication technologies;

Summary of participatory approach (Waisbord 2000) Participatory model

• Definition of communication: information exchange/dialogue - horizontal

• Definition of development communication: grassroots participation via group interaction

• Problem: structural inequalities/local knowledge ignored

• Solution: information exchange/ participation

• Goal: process-oriented: empowerment, equity, community

• Frameworks: Types of interventions

• Social change/praxis (Freire) Empowerment education

• Social mobilization/activism Participatory Action Research (PAR)

• Rapid Participatory Appraisal (RPA)

Use of various media in development communication

• The two main techniques adopted in

the use of various media in

development communication is social

marketing and its subset education

entertainment., as many development

interventions are in effect advertising

campaigns for such “products” as

contraception, the use of the latest

seeds or fertilizers, or the use of a

new technological equipment or

knowledge.

Social MarketingDefinition

• The use of established advertising techniques to promote development goals via media such as TV, radio, newspapers and billboards etc, is termed social marketing (Kotler and Roberto, 1989: 24).

• Social marketing has adopted not only the forms of marketing, but also its tools: consumer research, pretesting, and audience segmentation (Backer, Rogers and Sopory, 1992: 32). Most media-based development projects can be placed into the social marketing category.

Education EntertainmentDefinition

• A subset of social marketing is entertainment-education, which has been defined by leading U.S. proponents in classic diffusion terms as “the process of purposely designing and implementing a media message to both entertain and educate, in order to increase audience knowledge about an educational issue, create favorableattitudes, and change overt behavior” (Singhal and Rogers, 1999: xii).

• Entertainment education messages

may be carried by, for example, a

soap opera or popular song

specifically written for that purpose, or

in vignettes inserted into variety

shows. The key characteristic is that

the media fare is not presented in an

overtly didactic way; it is presented

and meant to be consumed as

entertainment.

• Big claims have been made about

the power of the entertainment

education strategy. For instance,

“[e]ntertainment –through

television, radio and music– is

one of the most effective

communication strategies for

reaching the public to promote

family planning and other public

health issues.”

• For example, an examination

of a radio soap opera in

Zambia designed to

disseminate information about

AIDS found changes over time

in some behaviors, in a family

planning campaign in Nigeria.

• Entertainment-education interventions

combine entertainment with education

by incorporating educational

messages into entertainment

programming on radio or television.

These messages may be carried by,

for example, a soap opera or popular

song specifically written for that

purpose, or in vignettes inserted into

variety shows.

• The key characteristic is that the

media fare is not presented in an

overtly educational way; it is

presented and meant to be

consumed as entertainment. It is

based on Albert Bandura’s (1977)

social learning theory that posits

that individuals imitate the

behaviour of role models.

• As Lettenmaier et al put it (1993:

5), enter-edu projects “can

persuade listeners to change

attitudes and practices because

people tend to adopt the

behaviour of those they admire,

whether that person is real or a

fictional character.”

• Entertainment-education has been

enthusiastically embraced by many

development communication

practitioners (Singhal and Rogers,

1999). Entertainment-education

television and radio programs tend to

be highly popular with audiences

because the programs are produced

in local languages, and feature local

settings and situations.

• Media exposure leads to increased knowledge and attitude change. For example, farmers basically utilize mass media for entertainment, relaxation, to escape from problems and to enliven their houses, so the use of a new herbicide can be promoted, for example, through television or radio.

Some of the various media that can be used in social marketing and education entertainment are:

• Electronic media

• television and radio broadcasts

• The programme may comprise of

interviews with experts, officials and

farmers, folk songs and information

about weather, market rates,

availability of improved seeds

• and implements, etc

Radio forums

• Live broadcasts or programming

for the developing community on

the intervention concerned. This

can take many forms, for

example, the form of a studio

panel discussing a relevant topic,

where communities can phone or

write in, where possible.

Casette tapes

• People can record their own experiences

and this gets fed - decision makers

indigenous forms of in-depth interviewing -

while the community member is busy with

their work or the task which is the one in

question (local unemployed youth sitting in

a tavern)

Print media

• newspapers/local magazines,

etc.

• Written articles for national

programming can be featured in

newspapers or local magazines

where the national broadcaster

has specific programme which

are developmental in nature.

Traditional mediaFolk drama/Street theatre

• Telling community stories or events in this

medium is one good way of handling

sensitive things which people may not

openly talk about…after all, it is the

characters talking! This could be done

through humorous skits and plays through

which the importance of literacy, hygiene

etc. are enacted.

It is important, however, to understand that development communication using various media is possible only with the active involvement of the following:

(i) Development agencies like departments of agriculture.

(ii) Voluntary organizations

(iii) Concerned citizens

(iv) Non governmental organizations (NGOs)

These groups help the government in implementing development programmes.