How to Write a Radio Serial Drama for Social Development- PDF

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xvi Prologue perform a particular deed. Efficacy increases with experience—either direct personal experience or vicarious experience gained by observing other people or by becoming emotionally involved with the characters in a drama. Drama constantly employs vicarious efficacy. As listeners become emotionally involved with a character, for example, a shy, young girl named Rose, her actions and personality inspire the listeners with the belief that “if Rose can do it, so can I.” Modeling takes place when people observe others performing a behavior either in real life or in a drama. According to social learning theory, models (also known as role models) are most effective at stimulating social learning and behavior when observers: • Find them attractive or admirable; • Feel they have something in common with them; and • Have an emotional reaction to them (usually inspired by the models’ expressions of emotion). Modeling is part of the stock-in-trade of the radio drama writer, who deliberately creates role model characters whom the audience can admire and choose to copy. Sometimes the writer also creates negative models to demonstrate the unfortunate results of undesirable behavior. Negative characters can be attractive in some ways (e.g., handsome, daring, rich), even while they model the grief that may result from bad behavior. Research shows, however, that negative models are not sufficient to spur behavior change. It is essential to include positive role models. Also effective are characters who learn from their mistakes and change from being a negative to a positive role model over the course of the drama. Such a change, however, must be realistic within the cultural and social context of the character and of the listening audience. Parasocial interaction (Horton and Wohl, 1956) takes place when people begin to think of fictional characters as if they were real people. Listeners often talk back to fictional characters on the radio as if they were in the same room and sometimes send them letters or even gifts. When, for example, two characters in the Australian agricultural serial Blue Hills, were pregnant, listeners sent in baby clothes that they had knitted especially for them (Black, 1995). When another character, Hilda, complained mildly about her job, she received several genuine letters from listeners offering her a better position. A good script writer takes advantage of parasocial interaction by creating believable characters who inspire listeners with a feeling of personal relationship. As a result, listeners are likely to imagine themselves as part of the drama and to experience vicariously how a behavior feels, how others might react, and how they might respond. Social learning theory can help the drama writer identify the types of characters that most attract the audience, the consequences of behavior that people are concerned about, and the types of stories that give people increased confidence in their ability to perform a behavior. ❖ Diffusion Theory Of the four communication theories discussed here, diffusion theory (Rogers, 1995) places the strongest emphasis on a person’s social environment. It was developed to explain how a new idea or behavior spreads through a social system (usually a group or community) over time. Mass media can introduce information to a community, but it is social networks and interpersonal communication that spread information further within the community, help people evaluate it, and determine whether people act on it. Research shows that information and influence spreads through a series of interpersonal interactions among people who share similar characteristics (such as social status or experiences) or who are frequently in contact (such as friends, family members, and work mates). According to diffusion theory, these social networks help people judge a new behavior against the following criteria: • Compatibility—Is the new behavior compatible with current behaviors, beliefs, and values • Complexity—How difficult is it to perform
Prologue xvii • Trialability—Can it be tried without too much risk before making a decision • Observability—Are there opportunities to see what happens to others who adopt this behavior • Comparative advantage—Does the new behavior offer any advantage over current behavior Diffusion theory also indicates that the attitudes of people in a social system tend to converge over time as a new idea is more and more widely discussed. The more people know about or practice a behavior and tell others about it, the more it becomes a norm in the community. Serial drama can make use of social diffusion theory in a number of ways: • Through characters who demonstrate how the new behavior fits with or grows out of current beliefs and practices (compatibility); • Through dialogue describing the new behavior in simple terms and in appropriate language for the audience (low complexity); • Through role models who motivate listeners to try at least some aspects of the new behavior (trialability) and advocate its acceptance by others; • Through multiple plots that show what happens to characters who adopt the new behavior and to those who do not (observability); and • Through happy endings that demonstrate the benefits of the new behavior (comparative advantage). The writer also can put the principles of diffusion theory to work by encouraging the interpersonal interactions that spread information throughout a society. The drama can encourage listeners to discuss the new behavior with others or approach local authorities to find out more about the new behavior. Diffusion theory also suggests the importance of demonstrating that a behavior is commonly practiced. Sometimes, the public does not appreciate the extent to which a socially desirable practice has already diffused. If there is a general perception that few people in a community practice family planning, for example, users may choose not to talk about it. This keeps the topic of family planning off the public agenda and out of sight and reinforces the belief that few people use family planning (Taylor, 1982). A radio drama can counteract this problem by showing the reality of the situation. Communication and the Steps to Behavior Change Communication has a marked effect on behavior, but research shows that behavior change rarely happens immediately upon exposure to a message. Usually, people must pass through a series of steps, quickly for some people, more slowly for others, that leads to the desired behavior change. Research shows that the most effective messages begin with an understanding of where the audience is located on the steps to behavior change. They then employ the most appropriate form of communication to move the audience on to the next steps. Five steps to behavior change appear in some form in all commonly used models of communication effects: knowledge, approval, intention, practice, and advocacy. 1. Knowledge refers to being aware of and knowing how to perform behaviors promoted by a social development project. For example, parents must be Steps to Behavior Change 5 Advocacy 4 Practice 3 Intention 2 Approval 1 Knowledge
Page 1 and 2: How To Write a Radio Serial Drama f
Page 3: Using This Book This book is a prac
Page 6 and 7: vi Contents Chapter Two 13 Writing
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Page 10 and 11: x Contents Chapter Thirteen 181 The
Page 12 and 13: xii Prologue 1. Individual-level co
Page 14 and 15: xiv Prologue Source factors are the
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48 Chapter Four: Blending Story and
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Chapter Six Developing the Setting
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Chapter Six: Developing the Setting
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102 Chapter Seven: Writing for the
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148 Chapter Ten: Testing the Pilot
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Chapter Eleven Script Presentation
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Chapter Eleven: Script Presentation
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Chapter Thirteen The Value of Editi
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Chapter Thirteen: The Value of Edit
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Glossary This list defines the word
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Glossary 211 Four Ts of Teaching FX
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Glossary 213 scene script script he
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Index of Script Excerpts and Other
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Bibliography/references 217 Bibliog
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