Time to read
less than1 minute
Changing the Behaviors of Behavior Change Experts: Confronting Dilemmas of Ethics and Impact in Behavior Change Programming
Summary:
Can it be effective to encourage Afghans to report petty corruption if reporting mechanisms are broken and they are likely to experience retribution? Is it ethical to persuade Lebanese parents to send their children to school instead of to work, when the lack of government support programs leaves families in an already precarious financial position? Where is the line between promoting behaviors that we consider objectively beneficial, and respecting communities and cultures in which those behaviors are unacceptable? This session will explore questions around the ethics and impact of SBCC programs given the broader environment in which they're implemented, and will ultimately seek to answer the question of whether changes to our own behavior or mindset as SBCC practitioners are warranted.
Discussion/Implications for the Field:
It goes without saying that SBCC programming must respect the principle of Do No Harm. However, the lines of where and how harm happens can be blurry, both in terms of ethical considerations and the practical and opportunity cost of implementing programs that may have limited impact. As SBCC expands to new sectors and develops new approaches all highlighted by this Summit it is important to reflect on where to draw these lines, and how to define them in the clearest way possible.
Abstract submitted by:
Elizabeth Robinson - Magenta Consulting
Josiane Smith - Social Innovation Exchange
Mame Diarra Ndiaye Sobel
Can it be effective to encourage Afghans to report petty corruption if reporting mechanisms are broken and they are likely to experience retribution? Is it ethical to persuade Lebanese parents to send their children to school instead of to work, when the lack of government support programs leaves families in an already precarious financial position? Where is the line between promoting behaviors that we consider objectively beneficial, and respecting communities and cultures in which those behaviors are unacceptable? This session will explore questions around the ethics and impact of SBCC programs given the broader environment in which they're implemented, and will ultimately seek to answer the question of whether changes to our own behavior or mindset as SBCC practitioners are warranted.
Discussion/Implications for the Field:
It goes without saying that SBCC programming must respect the principle of Do No Harm. However, the lines of where and how harm happens can be blurry, both in terms of ethical considerations and the practical and opportunity cost of implementing programs that may have limited impact. As SBCC expands to new sectors and develops new approaches all highlighted by this Summit it is important to reflect on where to draw these lines, and how to define them in the clearest way possible.
Abstract submitted by:
Elizabeth Robinson - Magenta Consulting
Josiane Smith - Social Innovation Exchange
Mame Diarra Ndiaye Sobel
Source
Approved abstract for the postponed 2020 SBCC Summit in Marrakech, Morocco. Provided by the International Steering Committee for the Summit. Image credit: amk713 via Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)