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In the United States the inclusion of social issues in prime-time
television or daytime dramas is not a new concept. Issues such as
breast cancer, alcoholism, abortion, teen pregnancy, and HIV/AIDS
have been portrayed by Hollywood in diverse shows such as ER, Beverly
Hills 90210, General Hospital, and Ellen to mention a few (Glik,
1998).
Many researchers have conducted studies on entertainment-education
efforts in promoting health related issues. An evaluation component
is usually part of the campaign strategy. Vaughan et. al. (2000)
claim that the radio soap opera “Twende na Wakati” (Let's
Go with the Times), broadcasted in Tanzania had a definite influence
in relation to listener’s knowledge, attitude, and implementation
of HIV/AIDS preventive measures. The authors concluded that the
effects of the radio soap opera achieved a reduction in the number
of sexual partners by both men and women, and an increase in the
use of condoms. Some of the intervening variables that helped influence
the behaviors were the self-perception of the risk of contracting
HIV/AIDS, self-efficacy in preventing HIV/AIDS, interpersonal communication
about HIV/AIDS, and identification with and role modeling of the
principal characters of the soap. These findings reinforce the premise
of Entertainment-education, which is the idea that individuals learn
behavior by observing role models, particularly in the mass media,
since influence and imitation are expected outcomes of the strategy
(Waisbord, 2001).
Papa et. al. (2000) investigated the effects of “Tinka Tinka
Sukh” (Happiness Lies in Small Pleasures) on its audience
in India. “Tinka Tinka Sukh” was an entertainment-education
radio soap opera broadcasted by All India Radio in 1996-1997. Some
of the educational themes encountered in this soap opera were gender
equality, dowry related issues, family size, and HIV prevention,
among others. Through listeners’ interview survey data and
content analysis of listeners’ letters, the researchers concluded
that conversation about the education theme presented in the soap
opera is important in creating an environment for learning and it
may lead to community action and social change.
However, many researchers question the effectiveness of entertainment-education
in changing behavior. Sherry (1997) analyzing the pro-social soap
opera experiments, found scarce support for the success of those
attempts.
His conclusions affirm that most evaluations of the entertainment-education
experiments are limited and do not support claims of behavioral
effects. Another criticism of the entertainment-education model
is that it tends to ignore certain cultural, behavioral patterns
that sometimes extrapolate the individual decision-making process,
but that relate to the social context (Yoder, Horner, & Chirva,
1996). Singhal & Rogers (2000) have also addressed those claims
as previously discussed; the emphasis of entertainment-education
is no longer on the individual behavior change, because of the various
circumstantial factors involved. Singhal & Rogers (1988) have
also acknowledged that an “entertainment-education strategy
is much more effective in creating knowledge of an issue than changing
the behavior regarding this issue”.
Another problem encountered by the entertainment-education strategy
evaluation is the difficulty in isolating the amount of behavior
change that can be attributed to the specific entertainment-education
message, whether in a television or radio soap opera, or any other
medium. Yoder, Horner, & Chirva (1996) identified this problem
in their follow up evaluation of a radio soap opera in Zambia addressing
HIV prevention. Their results show that behavior changes are most
likely due to previous exposure to HIV/AIDS information, or other
factors such as interpersonal beliefs or moral values.
The “Archie Bunker effect”, the degree to which certain
audience individuals identify with negative role models in the media,
is also cited in the literature as criticism of entertainment-education
(Sherry, 1997). Archie Bunker is the protagonist of “All in
the Family”, a sitcom broadcast by CBS in 1971. The character
is a very prejudiced but funny man, who uses a lot of racial slurs,
and demeaning remarks. The intention of the show’s creator
is to call the attention to bigotry. However, Vidmar & Rokeach
(1974) found that “All in the Family” reinforces, instead
of reduces racial and ethnic prejudice among already prejudiced
viewers. Singhal & Rogers (1999) agree that this effect is observed
in many entertainment-education productions; however, they contend
that it is only in a small percentage of the audience.
Ethical considerations also surfaced in the studies of entertainment-education
(Papa, et. al., 2000; Brown & Singhal, 1993; Singhal & Rogers,
1999). Questions are raised about who decides what pro-social messages
to include in entertainment, and what/whose values should be observed.
Another concern would be with the responsibility of the programmers
about the changes that they are bringing for viewers and society
with entertainment productions. Collaboration and discussion among
all stakeholders involved, producers, researchers, policy makers
and audiences is the key suggested to answer these questions (Papa
et. al. 2000).
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