Some centuries ago, Machiavelli
said: "There is nothing more difficult to carry out, nor more doubtful of
success, nor more dangerous to handle, than to initiate a new order of things.
People do not truly believe in anything until they have had actual experience
of it."
Dispite this wisdom, it is only
relatively recently that development programmes have fully incorporated
effective communication components. The successes of "miracle rice"
in Asia , of global immunization campaigns, of
fuel-efficient stoves, and much more, are the result of effective communication
as much as improved technologies.
Recent research also shows that
communication should be seen as a basic human need. Individual human beings
will break down; even die, just as quickly if they are deprived of
communication as if they are deprived of water or food.
It is important to recognize that
the communication we are talking about here is very much a human activity. It
is imperfect, it's informal, it's familiar, it uses simple words-but it is also
very complex. Think of how you can affect your own communication with others:
by the words use, the tongue you use, the looks you give, your mannerisms, your
message, your dressing. Think also how you may have changed some of your own
behaviour: deciding to get fit, to stop smoking, to change jobs, to use a new
product. The chances are that while you may have first heard about what you
want to do from the mass media, you actually changed behaviour after talking
with a friend or someone you respect.( A Guide: 2-3)
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