Background Conference Communication as Development Catalyst

If development is understood as the process of generating positive social, economic and cultural changes to allow people to achieve their human potential, then communication – the production and conveyance of information, ideas, thoughts and feelings at interpersonal, group/organisation or mass media level – is integral to that process. Effective communication keeps people informed, builds relationships, removes misunderstandings and conflicts, facilitates public dialogues, encourages civic participation, promotes behavioural changes and ultimately empowers people to materialise their potential. In other words, effective communication acts as a catalyst for the positive changes that development aims to engender.

The opposite is equally true: poor communication practices and strategies can act as a considerable impediment to positive changes and, worse, can even lead societies backward. In today’s increasingly rich, complex and relatively unregulated digital landscape, societies – including those that are socially and technologically advanced – are more prone to such failures than ever before. More, ironically, is not always better. The proliferation of digital disinformation, the rise of online incivility, the manipulation of human emotions for vested interests, the polarisation of political attitudes, and the intensification of mental health risks on social media are just a few recent examples.

Societies, therefore, need in-depth and systematic knowledge of how communication practices, processes and principles contribute to – positively or negatively – to development causes, progresses and outcomes. In producing and sharing such knowledge, communication research plays an instrumental role in identifying opportunities and challenges as well as finding communication approaches and solutions to generate the positive changes that development aims to produce.

But let us face this: although often acknowledged for their crucial importance, the roles and functions of communication in development processes have not been examined in detail in many developing countries, including Vietnam. Vietnamese research publications and forums on these and related topics are rare, with much being done at the macro-structural level that is based less on empirical evidence and more on theoretical and ideological principles.

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