Radio serial drama listeners tripled their contraceptive use from 18 to 51 percent

Evidence

According to before-and-after assessments, listeners were twice as likely to discuss family planning and reproductive health after listening to the radio drama. They regarded smaller families as ideal, favored more space between births, and were less likely to believe that using contraceptives goes against the will of Allah or God. They increased adoption of contraceptive methods from 18% at baseline to 51% following the serial drama. In further testimony to the effectiveness of the serial drama, listeners reported significantly greater changes than did nonlisteners after the researchers took into account other possible influences. — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement, 2883

Categorization

• XREF: Strong concrete example of Bandura’s social modeling theory in action: observational learning changing deeply held religious attitudes plus behavior.
• DEEPTHINKING: The mechanism is striking: entertainment modeling shifted not just behavior but belief that contraception violates Allah’s will — a demonstration that media modeling can reconfigure religious conviction in mass audiences.
• CANDY: A radio show tripled contraceptive use from 18% to 51% in the world’s highest-fertility country — a punchy fact for conversations about development and media.