Mendelson, [1973: 50-61] the author of another oft-quoted article on “Some Reasons Why Information Campaigns Can Succeed”, points out three conditions under which communication campaigns can be made more effective. Firstly, campaigns should be based on the assumption that the receivers are not even remotely interested in the message. Secondly, the planner should combine diffusion of information with interpersonal communication. Thirdly, the planner should remember that the receivers do not constitute a monolithic mass and so should cater to their individual demographic and psychological characteristics.
Although opinions vary, implementation of any communication policy should include a combination of systematic and creative planning. Both are equally essential in dissemination of information – using innovative methods to solve communication problems are as important as using a systematic approach to ensure that the message reaches all members of the receiver group.
In fact, Windahl, Signitzer and Olson [1992: 20] have merged the two methods into ‘creative systematics’ — “finding creative ways to structure systematic work”; and ‘systematic creativity’ — “striving in a systematic way for creative solutions to problems.” Depending on the stage of communication planning, one can emphasise each approach. “Creativity usually dominates during the initiation and production phases, systematics during the implementation and evaluation phases” [Ibid: 21].
Then, a mass communicator has to focus on many qualities while sending across a message; the chief among them are the perceptive ability and information processing potential of the receiver [Severin and Tankard, 1997: 73-74]. Selective perception is the tendency of a person to be influenced by wants, needs, attitudes and other psychological factors. This plays an important role in any communication as it also comprises its main hindrance. As such, no communicator can assume that the same message will have the same intended meaning to all its receivers. What further complicates this process is that the message is not interpreted by the recipients in the same manner.
Thus, for effective communication, the communicator should emphasise on a few more qualities. These include empathy, social perspective-taking, situational knowledge comprising contexts, time, space, the cultural context and public opinion, and receiver-oriented relationship [Windahl, Signitzer and Olson, 1992: 21].
It is very important that the communicator gets into the shoes of the receiver to get a proper understanding of the latter’s situation. This awareness should be supplemented with an understanding of the options available to the recipient in the given social perspective. For example, a receiver may accept a message but may lack the resources to behave in accordance with it. The hindrance may come from religious or cultural norms.
Situational knowledge is the ability to assess correctly what is appropriate and effective in a particular situation. A communication never takes place in a vacuum, but rather in a complex social, political and economic matrix. A reference to the context always makes it more interesting to the receivers. In the same way, if the communication of a message is sensitive to the time factor, depending on whether it is time-bound or timeless, it is bound to be a success. For any interpersonal communication, the space or the venue in which it takes place has an equally important effect. For example, to convey students about the exam dates, the assembly hall is a better venue any day than the cafeteria.
More often than not, communication takes place between different cultures or even sub-cultures in the society. So, the communicator has to be careful as to how he puts across his message. For example, the culture between two generations of the same society might be different. Closely following it, the message will be received and interpreted in keeping with the public opinion of the society, or the values, beliefs and ideas of the society.
The last but not the least is the relationship between the message originator, the planner and the receiver. In some cases, we find that the planner leans more towards the originator than the receiver. Here we can say that the originator controls the process. In certain other cases, we find that the planner takes an independent stance trying to balance the requirements of both the originator and the receiver. But, an ideal situation would be one where the interests of both the originator and the planner merge, and the planner oriented towards the receiver. Only then the communication process tends to be more effective.
According to Bagsak [http://www.comminit.com/planningmodels/pmodels/planningmodels-55.html], the five key ideas that make a communication campaign effective are:
1. Focus on both individual and contextual factors that affect behavior change
2. Integrate top-down and bottom-up approaches, in order to promote participation of actors at different levels
3. Have a tool-kit approach to deal with problems, priorities, and target groups. For example, use the mass media to reach large populations; use social mobilisation to bolster participation and support outreach efforts; use media advocacy to gain support from governments and donors; use popular or folk media to generate dialogue and activate information networks.
4. Combining mass media and interpersonal communication can raise awareness and knowledge, and stimulate social networks and peer conversation.
5. Community empowerment is the key to sustain projects because mass participation is intrinsic to the success of any development communication.
Again, Rice and Atkin (1989) and Rogers and Storey (1987), [as quoted by Windahl, Signitzer and Olson, 1992: 102], have mentioned seven factors that contribute to successful campaigning. They constitute:
1. the role of the mass media in creating awareness and stimulating others to participate
2. the role of interpersonal communication is instrumental in behavioural change as also the maintenance of such change
3. credibility of the originator or sender of the message
4. evaluation of campaign objectives and messages to make sure they fit media habits, audience predispositions and availability of resources
5. campaign appeals must be specific rather than general
6. preventive behaviour is difficult to achieve because of delayed benefits, and so they must be related to immediate gains
7. finally, the messages should be in keeping with the times and be culturally acceptable as well. Besides, the channels of transmission must be available to the audience.
Along the same lines, McQuail has also introduced the concept of four filtering factors that can ensure the success of a campaign: attention, perception, group situation and motivation [Ibid: 104].
Cernea [1991: 465] brings in the concept of ‘fitting projects to people’ through a case study on three rural development projects in Mexico, Ghana and Nepal. Here he emphasizes on participation of the recipients not only in the implementation of a communication process, but also in the initial formulation of the plan. He feels that the recipients, being local residents, are better informed about their community and so can judge the practicalities of a project plan. Besides, they would be more committed towards a project with which they have been involved right from its inception than one that has been suddenly handed over to them. But it is often seen that the elite of the community wean away such participatory rights to further their own profits. This effectively cuts off the non-elites with limited resources whose participation would have actually benefited the project.
But, in fact, most communication planners feel it's because of paucity of funds that programmes are failing. Very few realize that programs fail because they are not implemented well. Awareness generation through a sound communication strategy is very important; whereas most projects get restricted due to badly made posters and pamphlets. This is because no CNA (Communication Needs Assessment) is done. What is required is to raise the awareness generation level enough so that the people concerned can generate and sustain debates on the issue at hand. The target audience needs to realize why certain practices are desirable, while others are not. Merely telling them not to practice certain things or resorting to fear psychosis (for example, the AIDS poster with the danger sign — skull and bones) will not help matters.
Thus, a detailed research on the background of the target population is very important, so as to know how to involve them best in the project. Then, the media messages should be modified to suit the purpose and fit the project. Thereafter, the influence of the communicated messages on the receiver needs to be evaluated.
Monday, 9 February 2009
2.2.3 What is the influence of the cultural context? How can media campaign be used to realize the objective of development communication?
Any kind of communication, more so if it is an interpersonal one, entails a certain level of cultural communication. When a Western country offers its technological know-how, political and economic concepts and organisational skills, it is obviously offering a part of its culture to the developing countries. This cultural exchange determines, in a big way, the success or failure of a communication process.
In fact, as Boeren and Epskamp [1992: 234] say, professional communicators should keep two factors in mind: firstly, culture comprises a constantly changing pattern of inter-related elements such as relationships, opinions and actions. Secondly, you cannot move one element without disturbing the entire pattern. As such, one has to be doubly careful when indulging in such interpersonal cultural exchange.
These cultural values are inculcated in our minds through a social process, namely education. This can again take place in three ways: formal education or the knowledge acquired through schooling; non-formal education or the out-of-school education; and the informal education that is truly life-long whereby we acquire values, attitudes, skills and knowledge from our daily experiences and the surrounding ambience. Thus, along with the cultural context, the level and mode of education also influences development communication processes. The latter mirrors the ideological and cultural pattern of the society.
Casmir [1991: 28] says, “ We use cultural models to simplify, organise, and interpret our perception of reality.” This is the reason why a certain group of people might see certain things that others might fail to notice, even though both are exposed to identical situations. As such, the new paradigm of development suggests total involvement of the target audience in the communications project, so that their perceptions, attitudes, values and knowledge are taken into account. It also recommends solving problems from within the system rather than imposing “new and allegedly superior systems” from the outside [Ibid: 32].
During the feed-forward stage when the sender is gathering data on the target population, it is important to find out what kind of programme content the local mass media catering to that community has on offer. For example, Indians like listening to film music and the Caribbeans like to dance to calypso music. Accordingly, the communicator should choose his or her strategy of communication because similar products are culturally popular with the local people. In one classic case, it was found that when the use of contraceptives was publicised in the television by two trendy teenage pop idols, it caught on readily with the younger generation; the images coaxed them to think twice before making love without a contraceptive [Boeren and Epskamp, 1992: 240].
But in its bid for globalisation, the Western media is often found to impose its way of programming and programme content on the developing world. With the concentration and convergence of the media, it is the big media conglomerates based in the West that control the world media. As a result, the Western media is often accused of destroying the indigenous cultural values and beliefs of the Third World. This method of moulding and manipulating the culture amounts to social irresponsibility on the part of the mass media.
Again, the same symbols and motifs may mean different things to different people. The most obvious real-life example that comes to mind is of this person who wears a T-shirt with the Indian Swastik symbol on it. When he wears it in India, it is a fashion statement; but when he wears the same T-shirt in Germany, people frown at him and give him unfriendly looks. This is because the now-banned Nazi symbol looks very similar to the Indian Swastik.
Thus, we can conclude that the cultural context greatly influences any form of communication. It is the role of the mass media to bridge this cultural gap by being sensitive to the needs and beliefs of the people it is catering to.
In fact, as Boeren and Epskamp [1992: 234] say, professional communicators should keep two factors in mind: firstly, culture comprises a constantly changing pattern of inter-related elements such as relationships, opinions and actions. Secondly, you cannot move one element without disturbing the entire pattern. As such, one has to be doubly careful when indulging in such interpersonal cultural exchange.
These cultural values are inculcated in our minds through a social process, namely education. This can again take place in three ways: formal education or the knowledge acquired through schooling; non-formal education or the out-of-school education; and the informal education that is truly life-long whereby we acquire values, attitudes, skills and knowledge from our daily experiences and the surrounding ambience. Thus, along with the cultural context, the level and mode of education also influences development communication processes. The latter mirrors the ideological and cultural pattern of the society.
Casmir [1991: 28] says, “ We use cultural models to simplify, organise, and interpret our perception of reality.” This is the reason why a certain group of people might see certain things that others might fail to notice, even though both are exposed to identical situations. As such, the new paradigm of development suggests total involvement of the target audience in the communications project, so that their perceptions, attitudes, values and knowledge are taken into account. It also recommends solving problems from within the system rather than imposing “new and allegedly superior systems” from the outside [Ibid: 32].
During the feed-forward stage when the sender is gathering data on the target population, it is important to find out what kind of programme content the local mass media catering to that community has on offer. For example, Indians like listening to film music and the Caribbeans like to dance to calypso music. Accordingly, the communicator should choose his or her strategy of communication because similar products are culturally popular with the local people. In one classic case, it was found that when the use of contraceptives was publicised in the television by two trendy teenage pop idols, it caught on readily with the younger generation; the images coaxed them to think twice before making love without a contraceptive [Boeren and Epskamp, 1992: 240].
But in its bid for globalisation, the Western media is often found to impose its way of programming and programme content on the developing world. With the concentration and convergence of the media, it is the big media conglomerates based in the West that control the world media. As a result, the Western media is often accused of destroying the indigenous cultural values and beliefs of the Third World. This method of moulding and manipulating the culture amounts to social irresponsibility on the part of the mass media.
Again, the same symbols and motifs may mean different things to different people. The most obvious real-life example that comes to mind is of this person who wears a T-shirt with the Indian Swastik symbol on it. When he wears it in India, it is a fashion statement; but when he wears the same T-shirt in Germany, people frown at him and give him unfriendly looks. This is because the now-banned Nazi symbol looks very similar to the Indian Swastik.
Thus, we can conclude that the cultural context greatly influences any form of communication. It is the role of the mass media to bridge this cultural gap by being sensitive to the needs and beliefs of the people it is catering to.
3. EMPIRICAL SECTION
3.1.1 WHAT RESEARCH METHODOLOGY HAS BEEN FOLLOWED AND WHY?
Mainly two research methods have been used — critical analysis of literature and semi-structured interview.
Literature review or critical analysis of the existing literature forms the foundation of every research work. It helps to develop a good insight into relevant previous research and the trends that have emerged. A deductive approach has been followed to identify the literature. That is, a conceptual framework has been developed which is subsequently tested using data from the literature.
Gall et al [as quoted by Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, 2003: 46] point out several purposes or advantages of literature review, such as:
• it helps to refine research questions and objectives
• it highlights research possibilities that have been overlooked till date
• it helps avoid work that has already been done
• it also gives an insight into the research strategies and techniques that may be appropriate for your research
It also helps to identify the relevant theories, demonstrate knowledge in the chosen field, prevent plagiarism by referring to work by recognised experts, as well as support arguments with valid evidence in a logical manner.
Thus, literature review has been used to string together different ideas culled from the literature into a cohesive argument to justify the context and the content of my research. But, this method has a drawback: the researcher has a tendency to refer to only that literature which positively supports the work, often overlooking contrary ideas.
Data has been collected using both primary and secondary sources. As a primary source, data has been gathered from the seminar report of The Cardiff Group and reports by Government of India, Ministry of Health. As a secondary source, books, journals and internet publications relevant to the research have been consulted.
To overcome the limitations of this research method, it has been supplemented by semi-structured interview in the empirical section, whereby a list of themes and questions had to be covered. These often varied from interview to interview, with some questions being omitted or their order being re-arranged depending on the respondent’s background. At times, additional questions have also been used to explore the research questions. Besides, the questions were primarily open-ended, to facilitate understanding of the respondent’s point of view. The data was recorded either by note-taking or through emails. So, they were one-to-one qualitative interviews that were conducted either face-to-face, over the telephone or through emails.
However, there are certain advantages as well as disadvantages of semi-structured interviews as well. It can strike a positive rapport between the interviewer and the interviewee; since the respondent talks about something in detail and depth, there are chances of high validity; it offers an opportunity to clarify complex questions and issues; with few pre-set questions involved, the interviewer does not pre-judge what is important and what is not. On the other hand, the success of the interview depends on the skill of the interviewer and the articulacy of the respondent. Again, the drawback of this interview method is that it could be time-consuming and expensive; the qualitative response may be difficult to analyse; lastly, the validity of the responses may be questionable for a number of reasons, such as the researcher has no way of verifying the veracity of the answers or the respondents may have imperfect recall [Ibid: 268].
Extensive library work has been engaged in by the researcher to reduce the chance of arriving at any fallacious conclusions to some extent.
Mainly two research methods have been used — critical analysis of literature and semi-structured interview.
Literature review or critical analysis of the existing literature forms the foundation of every research work. It helps to develop a good insight into relevant previous research and the trends that have emerged. A deductive approach has been followed to identify the literature. That is, a conceptual framework has been developed which is subsequently tested using data from the literature.
Gall et al [as quoted by Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, 2003: 46] point out several purposes or advantages of literature review, such as:
• it helps to refine research questions and objectives
• it highlights research possibilities that have been overlooked till date
• it helps avoid work that has already been done
• it also gives an insight into the research strategies and techniques that may be appropriate for your research
It also helps to identify the relevant theories, demonstrate knowledge in the chosen field, prevent plagiarism by referring to work by recognised experts, as well as support arguments with valid evidence in a logical manner.
Thus, literature review has been used to string together different ideas culled from the literature into a cohesive argument to justify the context and the content of my research. But, this method has a drawback: the researcher has a tendency to refer to only that literature which positively supports the work, often overlooking contrary ideas.
Data has been collected using both primary and secondary sources. As a primary source, data has been gathered from the seminar report of The Cardiff Group and reports by Government of India, Ministry of Health. As a secondary source, books, journals and internet publications relevant to the research have been consulted.
To overcome the limitations of this research method, it has been supplemented by semi-structured interview in the empirical section, whereby a list of themes and questions had to be covered. These often varied from interview to interview, with some questions being omitted or their order being re-arranged depending on the respondent’s background. At times, additional questions have also been used to explore the research questions. Besides, the questions were primarily open-ended, to facilitate understanding of the respondent’s point of view. The data was recorded either by note-taking or through emails. So, they were one-to-one qualitative interviews that were conducted either face-to-face, over the telephone or through emails.
However, there are certain advantages as well as disadvantages of semi-structured interviews as well. It can strike a positive rapport between the interviewer and the interviewee; since the respondent talks about something in detail and depth, there are chances of high validity; it offers an opportunity to clarify complex questions and issues; with few pre-set questions involved, the interviewer does not pre-judge what is important and what is not. On the other hand, the success of the interview depends on the skill of the interviewer and the articulacy of the respondent. Again, the drawback of this interview method is that it could be time-consuming and expensive; the qualitative response may be difficult to analyse; lastly, the validity of the responses may be questionable for a number of reasons, such as the researcher has no way of verifying the veracity of the answers or the respondents may have imperfect recall [Ibid: 268].
Extensive library work has been engaged in by the researcher to reduce the chance of arriving at any fallacious conclusions to some extent.
3.1.2 RATIONALE BEHIND THE CHOICE OF TCG AND THE QUESTIONNAIRE
TCG has been chosen for the empirical study because it is a newly-evolved organisation without any defined communication policy that would help realise its aim of design and development. Since the researcher’s objective is to identify an effective communication policy, the freshness of TCG acts as a clean slate.
To facilitate the research findings, two sets of questionnaire have been used for two categories of respondents — the founding members of TCG as well as professionals from the development sector. The reason behind this was to gather empirical information on TCG as well as general information on the issue at hand.
The interviews were mostly conducted through emails because most of the respondents are busy professionals with schedules that entail frequent travelling. The advantage of using email as a mode of interview is that it can be accessed from any corner of the globe. This makes it less time and cost-intensive.
Besides this, Rob Aley has been interviewed telephonically and Angharad Thomas face-to-face. As an obvious drawback of a telephonic interview, Aley did deviate marginally from the questionnaire as soon as a rapport was established. But, because of his previous experience in working on design and development as well as his familiarity with the objectives of TCG, his response on a suitable communication policy for the Group was very insightful. Thomas, on the other hand, got very involved with the aims and objectives of the Group without contributing much to the research questions. As such, her responses helped largely in tracing the roots of TCG.
Other than the TCG members, valuable responses were received from well-placed professionals in the development sector, namely Tom Hewitt, Chirantani Dey and Ines Smyth. Hewitt is the director of the Child Rights Information Network (CRIN), a global network that disseminates information about children’s rights amongst NGOs, United Nations agencies, inter-governmental organisations (IGOs), educational institutions and other child rights experts (CRIN is hosted by Save the Children, UK, and also has support from Save Sweden, UNICEF and the Alliance); Smyth is the regional policy advisor for west and southern Africa, policy department, Oxfam, Great Britain; while Dey is a program officer (communication, documentation and advocacy) at UNDP, CHARCA (a joint United Nations project on reducing women's vulnerability to HIV/AIDS), India. Among the responses received, some of the points raised by Smyth could not be clarified because she was travelling and could not be contacted. As such, several disparities in her responses could not be analysed by the researcher.
To facilitate the research findings, two sets of questionnaire have been used for two categories of respondents — the founding members of TCG as well as professionals from the development sector. The reason behind this was to gather empirical information on TCG as well as general information on the issue at hand.
The interviews were mostly conducted through emails because most of the respondents are busy professionals with schedules that entail frequent travelling. The advantage of using email as a mode of interview is that it can be accessed from any corner of the globe. This makes it less time and cost-intensive.
Besides this, Rob Aley has been interviewed telephonically and Angharad Thomas face-to-face. As an obvious drawback of a telephonic interview, Aley did deviate marginally from the questionnaire as soon as a rapport was established. But, because of his previous experience in working on design and development as well as his familiarity with the objectives of TCG, his response on a suitable communication policy for the Group was very insightful. Thomas, on the other hand, got very involved with the aims and objectives of the Group without contributing much to the research questions. As such, her responses helped largely in tracing the roots of TCG.
Other than the TCG members, valuable responses were received from well-placed professionals in the development sector, namely Tom Hewitt, Chirantani Dey and Ines Smyth. Hewitt is the director of the Child Rights Information Network (CRIN), a global network that disseminates information about children’s rights amongst NGOs, United Nations agencies, inter-governmental organisations (IGOs), educational institutions and other child rights experts (CRIN is hosted by Save the Children, UK, and also has support from Save Sweden, UNICEF and the Alliance); Smyth is the regional policy advisor for west and southern Africa, policy department, Oxfam, Great Britain; while Dey is a program officer (communication, documentation and advocacy) at UNDP, CHARCA (a joint United Nations project on reducing women's vulnerability to HIV/AIDS), India. Among the responses received, some of the points raised by Smyth could not be clarified because she was travelling and could not be contacted. As such, several disparities in her responses could not be analysed by the researcher.
3.1.3 THE CARDIFF GROUP: TRACING ITS ROOTS
TCG was born out of a two-day seminar held in July 2002, organised mainly by James Fathers, Tim Coward and Angharad Thomas. Since then, it has turned into an interdisciplinary group of academics and practitioners drawn from fields as varied as design, development studies and economics. Among the founding members, Coward is the Director of Research and Graduate Studies in the Cardiff School of Arts and Design at the University of Wales Institute (UWIC), while Thomas is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Art and Design at the University of Salford, and Fathers is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Product and Engineering Design at the UWIC.
The focus of interest of the Group is the exploration and articulation of the relationships between design and development, in any global context but particularly in low-income economies. The process of design is considered by the members to be more important than the artefact produced. They believe that design is an essential ingredient in the production of all commodities, management systems and services, and this fact is acknowledged and endorsed in all industrialised economies. However, its role has not been articulated or theorised by either the design world or the discipline of development studies. It is this deficiency that TCG wants to address.
The Group’s aim is to: research into the contribution of design and design education in developing countries; apply the research outcomes through the conduct of “action research projects”; evaluate and disseminate the outcomes of the Group’s work; promote the Group’s aims and outcomes.
It wishes to achieve this by: conducting multidisciplinary projects in partnership with other groups and agencies including those based in developing countries; organising conferences, seminars and workshops; influencing policy and decision-makers in development and developing contexts; collecting and publishing examples of validated research and case studies of practice in the field; providing means of communication for academics and practitioners.
The Group has sought project funding, but so far, without success. Coward [interview: 2004] points out, “We do not have any specific project funding as TCG. Members have worked on projects for which they have secured funding as individuals. These range from projects in developing countries to conference papers and case studies.”
At present, the Group is awaiting response to a proposal submitted to EPSRC and AHRB on the “Designing for the 21st Century”. If successful, this will help fund the development of a “Cluster” whose aims and objectives are very similar to those of TCG.
The Group has subsequently been joined by John Ballyn, an independent design consultant, whose interest in TCG was “to promote the use of design processes by non-designers as part of market development packages for artisans and entrepreneurs” [interview: 2004]. Prior to this, he was working with crafts enterprises in the developing countries, developing training material for distribution to producers. He feels, “it is very important to share and debate methodologies and processes when working in such a field” [Ibid].
Rob Aley, a designer craftsman and candle-maker, is also one of the original members responsible for the formation of TCG. He used to be associated with the Intermediate Technology Development Group, but is now an independent consultant on development educational projects.
Under the supervision of the members, TCG has participated in seminars in Bangalore in India and Gregynog in Mid-Wales, presenting papers on design in development to students and academics of development studies. Individual TCG members have also participated in events in Southern Africa.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in the interview are not necessarily those of The Cardiff Group, but that of the individual members.
The focus of interest of the Group is the exploration and articulation of the relationships between design and development, in any global context but particularly in low-income economies. The process of design is considered by the members to be more important than the artefact produced. They believe that design is an essential ingredient in the production of all commodities, management systems and services, and this fact is acknowledged and endorsed in all industrialised economies. However, its role has not been articulated or theorised by either the design world or the discipline of development studies. It is this deficiency that TCG wants to address.
The Group’s aim is to: research into the contribution of design and design education in developing countries; apply the research outcomes through the conduct of “action research projects”; evaluate and disseminate the outcomes of the Group’s work; promote the Group’s aims and outcomes.
It wishes to achieve this by: conducting multidisciplinary projects in partnership with other groups and agencies including those based in developing countries; organising conferences, seminars and workshops; influencing policy and decision-makers in development and developing contexts; collecting and publishing examples of validated research and case studies of practice in the field; providing means of communication for academics and practitioners.
The Group has sought project funding, but so far, without success. Coward [interview: 2004] points out, “We do not have any specific project funding as TCG. Members have worked on projects for which they have secured funding as individuals. These range from projects in developing countries to conference papers and case studies.”
At present, the Group is awaiting response to a proposal submitted to EPSRC and AHRB on the “Designing for the 21st Century”. If successful, this will help fund the development of a “Cluster” whose aims and objectives are very similar to those of TCG.
The Group has subsequently been joined by John Ballyn, an independent design consultant, whose interest in TCG was “to promote the use of design processes by non-designers as part of market development packages for artisans and entrepreneurs” [interview: 2004]. Prior to this, he was working with crafts enterprises in the developing countries, developing training material for distribution to producers. He feels, “it is very important to share and debate methodologies and processes when working in such a field” [Ibid].
Rob Aley, a designer craftsman and candle-maker, is also one of the original members responsible for the formation of TCG. He used to be associated with the Intermediate Technology Development Group, but is now an independent consultant on development educational projects.
Under the supervision of the members, TCG has participated in seminars in Bangalore in India and Gregynog in Mid-Wales, presenting papers on design in development to students and academics of development studies. Individual TCG members have also participated in events in Southern Africa.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in the interview are not necessarily those of The Cardiff Group, but that of the individual members.
3.1.4 MEDIA VERSUS FACE-TO-FACE
The respondents were asked to identify the best communications strategy among the three primary ones. In addition, they were asked whether they would identify particular strategies with particular projects. The following is an analysis of their responses.
From her personal experiences in communications and project management in the field of HIV/AIDS, Dey [interview: 2004] thinks that a combination of all the above mentioned strategies is likely to make the desired impact. But if that does not seem feasible, then the best strategy would be to use popular and mass media since visual learning always has an effect.
“Mass media or IEC (Information, Education and Communication) as well as gradual persuasion usually work. But if the motive is not just to persuade but to also change behaviour, then BCC (Behaviour Change Communication) would be more effective” [Ibid]. For example, if one wishes to address issues on HIV/AIDS, then IEC is a good strategy. But if one wishes to promote the use of condoms among CSWs (Commercial Sex-Workers) and their clients, then BCC is ideal. Besides posters, pamphlets and hoardings, BCC also uses theatre, plays, documentaries as well as short ad-films to convey the message.
But, Smyth [interview: 2004] thinks that the choice of the strategy depends on the communication target group. For example, campaigns and media work well for the general public (but this also differs as per the literacy level of the public); while workshops and seminars are successful with staff and partners.
Similarly, Hewitt [interview: 2004] also agrees that the choice of communications strategy depends on the project objectives — the audience to be reached and the kind of things to be communicated. Campaigns can be successful when there is a wide participation. A good example of this is the campaign against the Multilateral Agreement on Investment which involved civil society organisations from around the world putting pressure on international organisations such as WTO and different governments; pamphlets seem to me to be just a subset of some broader campaign strategy; workshops generally involve too much talking and not enough doing, but they are a good way of getting people together to share and discuss information. And, theatre as a way of communicating can be most effective and fun too when working with children (for example in child-to-child work, see http://www.child-to-child.org/). Mass media, almost by definition, is effective for reaching a wider audience. But then, television’s effectiveness depends on where you are (accessibility) and who you are (who controls it). For example, in Brazil, the transmission of Rede Globo reaches virtually every corner of a huge country. But, what is communicated is often dubious. On the contrary, radio is a great medium for getting across messages on healthcare, environment, social justice and other issues. Its influence has been remarkable in many parts of the African continent [Ibid].
Hewitt believes that particular strategies need to be tailor-made for particular projects. For example, to circulate its information, CRIN uses different strategies for different clients. Where there is accessibility, it uses the internet; but in other places, it uses printed material through the postal service for dissemination of information on child rights to member organisations.
From her personal experiences in communications and project management in the field of HIV/AIDS, Dey [interview: 2004] thinks that a combination of all the above mentioned strategies is likely to make the desired impact. But if that does not seem feasible, then the best strategy would be to use popular and mass media since visual learning always has an effect.
“Mass media or IEC (Information, Education and Communication) as well as gradual persuasion usually work. But if the motive is not just to persuade but to also change behaviour, then BCC (Behaviour Change Communication) would be more effective” [Ibid]. For example, if one wishes to address issues on HIV/AIDS, then IEC is a good strategy. But if one wishes to promote the use of condoms among CSWs (Commercial Sex-Workers) and their clients, then BCC is ideal. Besides posters, pamphlets and hoardings, BCC also uses theatre, plays, documentaries as well as short ad-films to convey the message.
But, Smyth [interview: 2004] thinks that the choice of the strategy depends on the communication target group. For example, campaigns and media work well for the general public (but this also differs as per the literacy level of the public); while workshops and seminars are successful with staff and partners.
Similarly, Hewitt [interview: 2004] also agrees that the choice of communications strategy depends on the project objectives — the audience to be reached and the kind of things to be communicated. Campaigns can be successful when there is a wide participation. A good example of this is the campaign against the Multilateral Agreement on Investment which involved civil society organisations from around the world putting pressure on international organisations such as WTO and different governments; pamphlets seem to me to be just a subset of some broader campaign strategy; workshops generally involve too much talking and not enough doing, but they are a good way of getting people together to share and discuss information. And, theatre as a way of communicating can be most effective and fun too when working with children (for example in child-to-child work, see http://www.child-to-child.org/). Mass media, almost by definition, is effective for reaching a wider audience. But then, television’s effectiveness depends on where you are (accessibility) and who you are (who controls it). For example, in Brazil, the transmission of Rede Globo reaches virtually every corner of a huge country. But, what is communicated is often dubious. On the contrary, radio is a great medium for getting across messages on healthcare, environment, social justice and other issues. Its influence has been remarkable in many parts of the African continent [Ibid].
Hewitt believes that particular strategies need to be tailor-made for particular projects. For example, to circulate its information, CRIN uses different strategies for different clients. Where there is accessibility, it uses the internet; but in other places, it uses printed material through the postal service for dissemination of information on child rights to member organisations.
3.2 RE-ANALYSING THE RESEARCH QUESTIONS:
3.2.1 What are the reasons for the success or failure of communication for development?
Coward says that lack of initial funding is the prime problem that needs to be dealt with. Once the initial project funding has been secured, the worker can move on to other issues. Thomas [interview: 2004] echoes that the lack of basic resources, namely funding and efficient man-power, are the decisive factors. Besides, the objectives are often not sorted out well enough and so are unsustainable. “Interventions are made with the best of intentions, but are seldom appropriate” [Ibid].
Ballyn feels that the realities in the world make it increasingly challenging for those in need to have their problems resolved. Professionals often use jargons such as ‘beneficiaries’ “to reassure beneficiaries of development aid that their needs are being respected”. This gives the target population a wrong impression which can affect communication between the message sender and the receiver. Politics such as these — from the grassroots to the national and international arena — can make or break a project and its objectives.
He cites an example recorded by the Crafts Revival Trust in India. There are about 30,000 colleges of design of variable quality in India and it is part of the curriculum for the students to go on a compulsory research visit to the crafts-making communities. The struggling-to-survive artisans, in turn, are promised that they would receive better facilities and training from such studies. But no such benefit seems to come their way. On the contrary, they get tired and impatient of the endless stream of students with their repetitive questions and the never-ending surveys. As such, “trust is being eroded faster than it can be restored”.
On the other hand, Dey says that there are three specific reasons why a project fails and along with it, any attempt at communication. Firstly, some developmental projects fail because they make the mistake of blindly adopting the strategies which were successful in some other country. Secondly, most projects have objectives which are difficult to sustain. Thirdly, consistent flow of funding is also a major problem. So, Dey suggests that the objectives should be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time-bound). This will ensure the success of development communication to an extent that the planners will know what to talk about.
At the cost of sounding “slightly jaded”, Hewitt points out that the objectives are “not well defined in the first place, and are also insufficiently resourced”. A ‘development project’ by definition implies a time-bound, issue-based set of activities. As such, they do not have a life-span long enough to see any concrete and lasting outcomes. “The project winds up, the experts go home, and little or nothing sticks – change generally takes much longer than a year or two to be evident” [Hewitt].
But Aley [interview: 2004] puts it simply yet effectively when he says that a development communication strategy is successful if the level of communication depends on who you are communicating with. For example, community level workers will use simpler ways of getting their message across with the rural population of a developing country as compared to the population of a technologically-advanced country with a reasonably high level of education.
To sum up, communication for development can be improved by ensuring proper and consistent flow of funds, avoiding use of jargons and thereby keeping away from politics, formulating well-defined and achievable objectives, and adopting innovative and creative strategies and approaches to communicate the desired messages.
Coward says that lack of initial funding is the prime problem that needs to be dealt with. Once the initial project funding has been secured, the worker can move on to other issues. Thomas [interview: 2004] echoes that the lack of basic resources, namely funding and efficient man-power, are the decisive factors. Besides, the objectives are often not sorted out well enough and so are unsustainable. “Interventions are made with the best of intentions, but are seldom appropriate” [Ibid].
Ballyn feels that the realities in the world make it increasingly challenging for those in need to have their problems resolved. Professionals often use jargons such as ‘beneficiaries’ “to reassure beneficiaries of development aid that their needs are being respected”. This gives the target population a wrong impression which can affect communication between the message sender and the receiver. Politics such as these — from the grassroots to the national and international arena — can make or break a project and its objectives.
He cites an example recorded by the Crafts Revival Trust in India. There are about 30,000 colleges of design of variable quality in India and it is part of the curriculum for the students to go on a compulsory research visit to the crafts-making communities. The struggling-to-survive artisans, in turn, are promised that they would receive better facilities and training from such studies. But no such benefit seems to come their way. On the contrary, they get tired and impatient of the endless stream of students with their repetitive questions and the never-ending surveys. As such, “trust is being eroded faster than it can be restored”.
On the other hand, Dey says that there are three specific reasons why a project fails and along with it, any attempt at communication. Firstly, some developmental projects fail because they make the mistake of blindly adopting the strategies which were successful in some other country. Secondly, most projects have objectives which are difficult to sustain. Thirdly, consistent flow of funding is also a major problem. So, Dey suggests that the objectives should be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time-bound). This will ensure the success of development communication to an extent that the planners will know what to talk about.
At the cost of sounding “slightly jaded”, Hewitt points out that the objectives are “not well defined in the first place, and are also insufficiently resourced”. A ‘development project’ by definition implies a time-bound, issue-based set of activities. As such, they do not have a life-span long enough to see any concrete and lasting outcomes. “The project winds up, the experts go home, and little or nothing sticks – change generally takes much longer than a year or two to be evident” [Hewitt].
But Aley [interview: 2004] puts it simply yet effectively when he says that a development communication strategy is successful if the level of communication depends on who you are communicating with. For example, community level workers will use simpler ways of getting their message across with the rural population of a developing country as compared to the population of a technologically-advanced country with a reasonably high level of education.
To sum up, communication for development can be improved by ensuring proper and consistent flow of funds, avoiding use of jargons and thereby keeping away from politics, formulating well-defined and achievable objectives, and adopting innovative and creative strategies and approaches to communicate the desired messages.
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