Communication Objectives and Strategies
Communication Objectives and Strategies
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Assignment: Identifying Communication Objectives and Strategies
Chapter 12
Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Second Edition, 2013. © Copyright, 2013. All rights reserved.
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Communication Objectives
- Describe:
- Intermediate steps that must be taken to reach the overall program goal and outcome objectives
- Specific intermediate outcomes your program aims to produce in support of your goal
- Measurement of the level of achievement of communication objectives is often used as an intermediate evaluation parameter
Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Second Edition, 2013.
© Copyrights, 2013. All rights reserved.
*
Communication Objectives
- Relate to:
- Changes in knowledge, attitudes, skills, interactions, etc. among primary and secondary audiences
- Intermediate changes in the social and political environment that may lead to political or social change/outcomes
- Program milestones (e.g., attain a certain number of project partners)
- Need to be supportive of overall program’s goal and outcome objectives
Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Second Edition, 2013.
© Copyright 2013. All rights reserved.
*
Communication Objectives
Often expressed with the following words:
- To raise awareness
- To increase knowledge
- To break the cycle of misinformation
- To change attitudes
- To facilitate interactions
- To help build expertise and skills
- To encourage group communication or partnerships
Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Second Edition, 2013.
© Copyright 2013. All rights reserved.
*
Communication Objectives Examples
- Increase awareness of HIV preventative measures and services among (30%) of U.S teens (by the year 2006)
- Inform adolescents about the link of risk behaviors with life-threatening accidents and disability
- (25%) of adolescents in intended group will report (by the year 2010) to know about the higher risk for accidents and disability among user of recreational drugs
- Increase by 20% the number of African Americans who will know the importance of preventative medicine by the year 2007
Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Second Edition, 2013.
© Copyright 2013. All rights reserved.
*
Steps to the Development of Communication Objectives
- Review, share and discuss your research findings
- Make sure objectives are specific to each group and stakeholder
- Do not include tactical elements
- Limit the number of communication objectives
- Identify and prioritize objectives
Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Second Edition, 2013.
© Copyright 2013. All rights reserved.
Goal and Objectives
Key Questions
- What is the overall goal of your program?
- What are the key outcome objectives (behavioral, social and organizational)?
- What are the key communication objectives of your program in support of outcome objectives and overall program goals?
- Prioritize and select 2-3 per audience
- SMART Objectives
- WHO will do WHAT by WHEN by HOW MUCH?
- Analyze existing barriers and supportive factors
- Consider program timeframe, resources, etc.
Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Second Edition, 2013.
© Copyrights, 2013. All rights reserved.
*
What Is A Communication Strategy?
“A communication strategy is a statement
describing the overall approach that would be
used to accomplish the communication
objectives. The communication strategy
highlights how people can become aware of
a disease risk, gain knowledge about
smoking prevention methods, improve
patient-provider communications on sensitive
health issues, etc.”
Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Second Edition, 2013.
© Copyrights, 2013. All rights reserved.
*
Strategy Development
- Review all information gathered for your situation analysis/problem definition, audience profile/ segmentation
- Take into account program’s goal/objectives
- Answer “how” you will reach your program’s objectives
- Don’t be tactical
- Strategies are concepts/positions that describe “how” you will reach your program’s objectives and not a series of flyers, brochures, media campaigns, etc.
Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Second Edition, 2013.
© Copyrights, 2013. All rights reserved.
*
Examples of Strategies for a Potential Program on Tobacco Control among Teens
- Use teenage role models to highlight the risks of smoking
- Create a peer support network to facilitate discussion of smoking risks
- Engage high schools in establishing smoking risk awareness programs.
- Use natural opportunities and venues (for example, teen meetings, publications, concerts) to raise awareness of the health risks of smoking.
- Provide tools to parents to speak with teenagers about health risks associated with smoking.
- Develop core communication materials and activities on smoking health risks that can be easily distributed, shared on social media and other new media, and customized by primary and secondary audiences.
Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Second Edition, 2013.
© Copyrights, 2013. All rights reserved.
*
Examples of Strategies for a Potential Program on Tobacco Control among Teens
- Establish partnerships with local youth organizations to include discussion of smoking risks in their agenda and enhance program reach
- Promote smoking risk awareness through one-on-one counseling at routine medical visits
- Create a safe space for peer-to-peer communication where teens can discuss smoking
- Focus on the limitations that smoking poses to physical performance and excellence in sports
Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Second Edition, 2013.
© Copyrights, 2013. All rights reserved.
*
Strategy Development
- Strategies are audience-specific, research- and evidence-based
- Should take into account audience’s needs, preferences, pastimes, influencing factors, preferred messengers, etc.
- For example, strategies from the previous example (tobacco control among teens) all:
- “Rely on the audience’s needs or preferences (create a peer support network; use teenager role models)
- Tap into the work, credibility and networks of existing organizations, venues or others (establish partnerships with local youth organizations)”
- See appendix A for worksheet on how to rank and select strategies
Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Second Edition, 2013.
© Copyrights, 2013. All rights reserved.
*
Strategy Development
Strategy vs. Tactics
Program’s Goal:
- Reduce impact of back-to-back pregnancies on family income/ childcare quality/overall quality of life among women 18-29
Behavioral Objective:
- Encourage women age 18-29 to use short-term family planning (FP) methods to space their pregnancies at least of one year (first program milestone to be achieved after 18 months from launch)
Communication Objectives:
- Facilitate provider-patients communications on short-term FP in XX percent of medical practices by the year xx
- Increase awareness of the importance of short-term FP among XX % of women age 18-29 by the year XX
Adapted from O’ Sullivan, JHUCCP, 2003
Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Second Edition, 2013.
© Copyright 2013. All rights reserved.
*
Strategy Development
Strategy vs. Tactics
Strategy
- Promote short-term FP methods as well as their safety and efficacy via healthcare providers counseling*
Tactics
- Organize provider-patients workshops at local health clinics
- Conduct media outreach to publicize workshop calendar/encourage women’s attendance/promote awareness of short-term FP methods
- Develop educational tools package that can be used by providers for new patient orientation sessions
- Create online list-serv where healthcare providers can share resources on FP counseling
Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Second Edition, 2013.
© Copyrights, 2013. All rights reserved.
*JHUCCP, 2003
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Strategy Development
Strategy vs. Tactics
Alternative Strategy
- Create social network by identifying women in the target community who have successfully used short-term FP methods and can advocate for their use*
Tactics
- Train women spokespeople/create media speaker bureau
- Conduct women’s magazine outreach
- Develop radio and TV PSA (public service announcement)
- Organize internet chats on top women’s website
- Develop peer-to-peer communications meetings at local health clinics
- Integrate FP planning training and materials within website of local women’s groups
*JHUCCP, 2003
Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Second Edition, 2013.
© Copyrights, 2013. All rights reserved.
*
In-class Practice
- Watch these two videos from the CDC Verb Campaign and comment on what you think was their overall program goal, outcome objectives, communication objectives and strategies. Use the definitions discussed in this course
Identifying Communication Objectives and Strategies
This presentation is part of the instructor’s supplement for Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice. Second Edition. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, an imprint of Wiley. The instructor’s supplement is stored within a password-protected webpage for instructors. Copyrights @2013 by Renata Schiavo. All rights reserved
Schiavo, R. Health Communication: From Theory to Practice, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Second Edition, 2013. All rights reserved.
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