Communication for Social Change Overview

Communication for Social Change

• Communication for social change is a philosophy of service guided by the Ministry of Public Information.
• Its goal is planned change, focused on diminishing poverty, unemployment, and inequality.
• It involves the application of communication principles to transform a nation and its people from poverty to economic growth, social equality, and human potential fulfillment.
• This process utilizes new technologies in both material and social contexts.

Functions of Communication for Social Change

• Social mobilization: Encouraging active participation and engagement.
• Information dissemination: Sharing necessary information effectively.
• Community participation: Building awareness and responsibility among communities.
• Persuading people to change their lifestyles, habits, and thoughts: Changing people's mindsets and ways of behaving.
• Changing knowledge, attitudes, and skills: enhancing knowledge and abilities to achieve specific goals.

Media in Development Communication

• Social marketing: Leveraging established advertising techniques (TV, radio, newspapers, billboards) to promote development goals.
  • This utilizes consumer research, pretesting, and audience segmentation.
• Education entertainment: A subset of social marketing that integrates educational messages within entertainment formats (e.g., soap operas, songs, variety shows).
  • This aims to increase knowledge, foster favorable attitudes, and change behaviors subtly, rather than directly.

Comparing ASEAN and Developed Countries

• ASEAN countries focus on teacher training, employment, and agricultural technology.
• Developed countries concentrate on systems engineering, transportation, banking, and investments.
• Audience, environment, technique, and content are considered crucial aspects of communication.

Topics Burdensome With Poverty, Inequality, and Injustice

• Agriculture, aviation
• Urban issues (cities), crime, defense
• Energy, science, technology, and environmental concerns.
• Government policies (plans, budgets, housing infrastructure), industry, tourism, manpower, and multinational organizations.
• Public health, shipping, and weather/climate changes.
• Community development, consumerism, taxation, and education.
• Agrarian reform
• Minorities, population, and social welfare

Needed Social Revolution

• Commitment across all societal levels.
• Synergized messaging across various levels.
• Well-designed and evidence-based communication encompassing all segments of society.
• Comprehensive social mobilization efforts.

Social Change Communication Model

• A model showing the interconnectedness of individuals, communities, and society in the social change process.
• The model emphasizes the crucial role of interpersonal communication, choices, and consequences in achieving behavioral change.

Media Role

• Mass media communication plays a critical role in influencing subjective norms, interpersonal communication, debate, behavior modeling, choices, and consequences.
• It promotes para-social interaction and emotional connections and creates a sense of legitimacy.

How-to Recommendations for Communication Campaigns

• Target the audience in non-technical terms, use popular language.
• Effectively utilize visuals (graphics) and translate scientific, technical, and political jargon.

Use of Media in Development Communication

• Effective development communication leverages social marketing and its subset- education entertainment.
• Development programs frequently adopt advertising campaigns to promote products (e.g., contraception, seeds, fertilizers, new technologies).