MDST 485 - Communication Strategy [Preliminary]
This form will help you complete your preliminary communication strategy for MDST 485. After you have completed it, you should have a better idea of the things you need to do to work with your community organization. Remember, this is a PRELIMINARY document and is always subject to updating, revision, and change based on the realities you encounter when working in the community.
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Your Organization and its Goals
Your organization or issue *
Fill in the name of your organization/issue.
Your overall goal *
As best you can, write the overall goal of the organization and your team. This should be based on your first meeting with your organization's leader, or the work you have done with your team..
Understanding the Situation
This section includes questions about your understanding of the issue your organization is working on and the people involved.
What do you already know? *
When we start with an analysis of the situation, the first thing we consider is what research has already been done. What do you know about the situation already?
What research needs to be done? *
Once we have a sense of what is already known, then we can think about what questions still need to be answered and how we can answer them. We might do this through surveys, interviews, and focus groups, or through other participatory ways of understanding people's situation.
What's happening? *
After we've done some research, we need to start developing a problem statement. To do that, we need to try to answer the question of what's happening. You completed this in class in Week 3/Session 3.
Where and to whom? *
In order to develop the problem statement, we also need to know where it's happening and to whom.
With what effect? *
In order to develop the problem statement, we also need to know what effect the issue is having on people.
Who and what is influencing the situation and to what effect? *
In order to develop the problem statement, we also need to know who is influencing the situation and the effect they are having on the situation.
As a result of what causes? *
What do you think are some of the underlying causes involved in your issue?
Write your problem statement based on your answers above.
Thinking about all of the responses to the questions above, generate a problem statement. An example problem statement could be something like: "children in XYZ community do not have regular access to clean water, education, and nutritious food. This causes them to miss school days, lag behind in their reading, and suffer from preventable diseases like diarrhea. Parents often choose to keep their children home from school during certain times of the year so that they can assist with agricultural chores, and many do not know about the necessity of treating water. Community leaders and local governments have not supported updated farming practices. Much of this is due to the need to harvest at a certain time of the year, and to the social issues involved in sending children to school, which can be expensive."
Your Theory of Change
In this section you'll work on thinking through the issues involved in a theory of change.

Most people have an idea how the world and people operate, based on personal experiences, values, and beliefs. This is also how theory formulation (in a very general and simplistic way) starts, with personal observations, analyses, and conclusions of someone’s own life experiences. From these observations and conclusions, a model explaining why things happen can take shape. In a second step, academic institutions often take these models and further develop and often test them to determine how well they hold up under different conditions. This is because a real theory or model must be replicable in a variety of settings and with many individuals or groups (National STD/HIV Prevention Training Centers 2005). This also provides predictions about the causal relation between two or more phenomena.

We call this beginning of a theory our theory of change. It will serve as a tool to support the change we think we need and how it should be addressed more explicitly. A complete theory of change incorporates the perspectives of all constituents. It is important to reconsider all assumptions that shape beliefs and check them against various data sources and SBCC theories about what will work and why, and what strategies are likely to be most effective in the short, medium and long term.

Here are the steps involved in working on a theory of change:

1. Name the changes the problem calls for.
2. Name the key barriers/assets to change.
3. Clarify our assumptions.
4. Name SBCC concepts to help find the tipping point for change: The concepts that these assumptions are based on are used in community organization and advocacy theories, such as agenda setting and framing, Diffusion of Innovation, and coalition building (between services and community leaders).
5. Summarize the above points.


An example Theory of Change for Male Circumcision
What inputs will you add to the situation, and to whom will they be aimed?
Think about the communication you will do and how it can lead to some outputs. Use the example image above to think about what communication can do.
Describe the potential audiences for this communication.
You can name more than one audience here.
What outputs do you expect, based on your inputs?
These should be very concrete and based on the inputs you have provided.
What outcomes do you expect, based on your inputs and the outputs they generated?
Think about the changes in your audience - how will the communication you have done influence their perceptions of the issue or issues?
What do you think will be the overall impact based on the inputs, outputs, and outcomes?
Think about the big picture and how your work can make a difference in the situation.
What is your theory of change? (summarize it here)
After considering the potential inputs, outputs, outcomes, and overall impacts, write a summary of your theory of change. You should think about who could be the catalysts for the change, and how they can specifically impact other people or the overall situation.
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