OVERALL SOCIAL CHANGE - the new terrain we walk - Social Shakes

Below is part of an overall paper called "SOCIAL SHAKES - rethinking the core principles for principled and effective development action" - the full Table of Contents is here.

OVERALL SOCIAL CHANGE - the new terrain we walk

Of course the world did not stand still whilst the developments just outlined took place. The overall social changes taking place were also hugely instructive for understanding the role of communication for enhanced Development progress. An analysis of those changes can inform our understanding of the most influential communication processes for the progress and change we all desire.

Let's take a look at some of the social changes, the ways in which those developments have accelerated progress, and the communication learning from those social dynamics.

Vastly more people live in urban areas now than did 30 years previously - by a factor of 5 from 1950 to 2014⁹. That urbanisation has facilitated a series of social changes.

Many cultures have strong cultural norms and practices that can work against positive outcomes for populations – for example: a minimal role for women in both household and local community decision-making, a very strict "place" for children, low priority on girls' education, and a tradition of basing the prevailing views that matter on age and seniority - with often strict enforcement of those rules and customs. We have seen these dynamics in effect across a myriad of issues, from political processes and civil society engagement to vaccination, female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C), traditional diarrhoea responses and HIV/AIDS treatment. They are particularly strongly in place in most rural areas.

Urbanisation itself shakes up these dynamics. Decision-making processes in communities and households are not as strongly linked to and conditioned by the historical culture. Family patterns change. The physical closeness of services - health, education, utilities and in some cases social services - supports people taking advantage of different skills and knowledge than may be found in rural areas. There could be a wider variety of diverse opinions and ideas in urban as opposed to rural areas. There are greater opportunities for governance and decision-making across a broader cross-section of the community. All of these dynamics greatly help make progress.

Many countries have also seen a broadening and deepening of representative political governance. We do not wish to overstate this case. In so many countries in all parts of the globe, there are significant issues with accountable representative governance. And, of course, there are some places where promising representative governance initiatives have gone spectacularly wrong. But, in general, there are many more political processes in countries now compared to 30 years ago that have elections, representative governance and accountability to an electorate as a central plank of their system. The book "Democratic Paths and Trends" (edited by Barbara Wejnert) ¹⁰ provides some historical trend data – for example: Progress requires a vibrant political process. Development issues bring with them significant political dynamics – stigma and prejudice, individual rights, prioritisation of services, gender-related issues, equity considerations, budgeting levels, the allocation of resources, cultural "restrictions", and much more. Though some may pine for the old days of authoritarian governments, the world is much better served by political representatives accountable to their electorates for their decisions. That accountability has required very active communication processes.

We have very quickly moved to a digital world. The mobile phone is just 45 years old. Its common presence in most economically poor countries (non-OECD) dates back only 5 to 7 years at most. In many parts of those countries, its presence is ubiquitous. Facebook was "born" in 2004 - just 14 short years ago. One billion people are now active daily on Facebook. There are of course similar trends with Twitter, WiFi access, internet usage, and much more.

The qualities of the digital environment match some key requirements for overall Development. People can access knowledge in real time. Physical distance is no barrier to accessing services. The two-way and community nature of the digital processes helps to ensure there is strong input from the people experiencing an issue. Some of the stigma and prejudice concerns can be lessened. Confidentiality is easier to preserve. It is much easier for networks of people to form, convene and work together in support of each other. There is an increased number of avenues for holding decision-makers to account.

This social networking quality of the cell/mobile phone is borne out by the data. Pew data indicate that cell phone ownership in Tanzania rose from 10% in 2012 to 73% in 2014 (and probably a lot more now). In Nigeria for the same period, it is 10% to 83%, the same trend for Kenya, and they are all catching up on the United States, which went from 64% to 89%. So many other countries in the world have such similar trends.

But perhaps more salient is that these phones are being used for social networking roles. Those social networking qualities of the mobile phone are key to how people use their devices. Please consider this chart¹¹: This next social change also comes into the category of a walk successfully commenced but huge mountains still to be climbed. The status and rights of women have come a long way in many countries and contexts (not all, of course). As outlined in the overview of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) process related to family planning, this social movement was a key factor for that specific issue. But it has also been crucial across a range of other Development issues and concerns. Effective action requires good decision-making. Those decisions are enhanced when different perspectives can be openly raised, debated and considered as decisions are made. This is as important within households on the issues experienced by families as it is in public forums considering policy priorities and the allocation of scarce resources to address those priorities.

The more extensive engagement of women in personal, private, family and public priority settings and programme decision-making is a direct consequence of a broader movement for gender equity and women's rights.

Though data are hard to come by, all signs point to a very significant growth in the number of civil society organisations and the more extensive scale of their coverage and work in non-OECD countries. This is, of course, a direct byproduct of the other social change processes outlined above: urbanisation, representative government, a move toward the digital, and gender equity struggles. These changes have helped to create fertile soil for the growth of locally developed and grown organisations.

That trend in itself is vitally important as civil society groups emerge to complement the much more established government, traditional and religious-based organisations operating in communities, districts, cities and towns and across a country.

Local and national civil society organisations are vitally important for accelerating progress. Having emerged from local contexts and cultures, they will be attuned to the really important subtleties and nuances of those contexts. By their very nature, they involve local people in leadership and decision-making roles, enhancing the relevance and astuteness of decisions that are made. They will have deep community connections, providing access and links that are beyond "external" organisations. There is a much higher likelihood of the innate credibility that comes with being "local". And the process of accountability is internal to a community or country, not external to a set of external actors.

Finally to sex! A large number of Development issues revolve around sex. It is not just the obvious ones of family size and HIV/AIDS but many others: FGM/C, gender-based violence, alcohol, and girls' education, for example.

Many parts of the world - not all, admittedly - are now much more open about sexuality issues and dynamics than was the case 25 years ago. That "space" to discuss sex and sexuality issues is a core part of the reason for substantial progress on some of these issues. In most cases, this has been an organic process within families, communities and countries as they recognise the need for greater openness as an integral part of the response to some key concerns. In some notable cases, this "space" approach has been significantly programmed as the core principle for action.

These are just a few of the very significant social changes that have taken place over the past quarter century or more. We could also have looked at gay rights, land rights, indigenous people's movements, environmental movements, and much more.

But the key question is: What do the major improvements gained through social movement communication strategies, and the communication process that are at the heart of the social changes that are so enmeshed with these concerns, tell us about the best communication strategies to pursue for broad scale progress and improvement?

⁹ The global urban population has increased by a factor of 5, from 0.7 billion in 1950 to 3.9 billion in 2014. It is expected to increase by another 60% by 2050, when 6.3 billion people are projected to live in urban settlements. The global rural population is ceasing to grow. It is projected to reach a peak of just under 3.4 billion shortly after 2020 and to decline thereafter to 3.2 billion in 2050 - http://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/publications/pdf/popfacts/PopFacts_2014-3.pdf [PDF]
¹⁰ https://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/book/10.1108/s0895-9935%282010%2918
¹¹ http://www.pewglobal.org/2016/02/22/social-networking-very-popular-among-adult-internet-users-in-emerging-and-developing-nations/

The next section in this paper is PRINCIPLES FOR EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES.

The previous section in this paper is CHILD HEALTH.

Editor's note: Above is an excerpt from Warren Feek's paper "SOCIAL SHAKES - rethinking the core principles for principled and effective development action".

The full table of contents for this paper can be accessed at the bottom of the opening page.