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Pertanika J. Soc. Sci. & Hum. 3(2): 105-112 (1995) ISSN: 0128-7702 © Universiti Pertanian Malaysia Press Selecting Media for Knowledge Transfer: Experience from the Field MUSA ABU HASSAN Department of Development Communication Centre for Extension and Continuing Education Universiti Pertanian Malaysia 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia Keywords: media selection, knowledge transfer, development communication, instructional media, campaign media ABSTRAK Kajian ini meneliti cara pegawai-pegawai unit atau bahagian komunikasi agensi pembangunan pertanian memilih media untuk memindahkan pengetahuan dari agensi kepada klien mereka. Data untuk kajian ini diperolehi melalui kaedah tinjauan yang melibatkan 95 orang pegawai dari 11 buah agensi dengan menggunakan borang soalselidik yang dijawab sendiri oleh responden. Secara keseluruhannya, soalan pada borang soal selidik berbentuk pilihan dan yang menggunakan skala I hingga 7 untuk mendapatkan pandangan dan pengalaman responden. Hasil kajian ini mendapati bahawa responden memilih benda sebenar atau realia sebagai media atau bahan yang paling baik untuk aktiviti pemindahan pengetahuan dan diikuti oleh media-media yang berkebolehan memberikan gambaran sebenar. Responden juga menyatakan bahawa media untuk pengajaran adalah berbeza dari media untuk kempen penerangan. Berkaitan dengan unsur-unsur yang perlu diambilkira semasa pemilihan media, respond en menyenaraikan ciri-ciri audien, diikuti dengan tujuan komunikasi, kegemaran media audien dan tempoh yang diberi untuk menyediakan media. ABSTRACT This study examines the ways in which staff of communication units in agricultural development agencies select media to transfer knowledge to their clients. A survey for data collection was conducted and 95 staff of communication units from 11 development agencies were asked to respond to self- administered questionnaires. Most of the questions were open-ended and ratings of items for fre- quency and applicability were on a scale of 1 to 7. The study revealed that the respondents regarded actual objects or realia best in knowledge transfer activities, followed by media that convey a high degree of fidelity. The respondents also indicated that media for instruction are somewhat different from media for campaigns. The selection elements considered important in the media selection process were audience characteristics, followed by purpose of communication, audience's media preference, and time given to prepare the media. INTRODUCTION Appropriate communication media can greatly facilitate the delivery of knowledge from a source to a receiver and thus the selection of the right media for rapid and effective dissemination of knowledge becomes a challenge. Due to mixed outcomes regarding the apparent effectiveness of mass media for encouraging development (Beltran 1974; Kearl 1978; Hornik 1988; Mayo 1989), note that other communication media have arisen to support the communication process. Small media such as flipcharts, photographs and brochures, in particular, have gained popularity and have proven to be effective. The Academy for Educational Development (AED) (1985) noted that there are strengths and weaknesses in the specific media and an almost universal recognition that a single medium alone accomplishes much less than several media in combination. In light of the current advancements in communication technology, the need for the right choice of communication media is greater than ever. Proper planning and selection to develop a single medium or combination of
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Pertanika J. Soc. Sci. & Hum. 3(2): 105-112 (1995) ISSN: 0128-7702© Universiti Pertanian Malaysia Press

Selecting Media for Knowledge Transfer: Experience from the Field

MUSA ABU HASSANDepartment of Development Communication

Centre for Extension and Continuing EducationUniversiti Pertanian Malaysia

43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia

Keywords: media selection, knowledge transfer, development communication, instructionalmedia, campaign media

ABSTRAK

Kajian ini meneliti cara pegawai-pegawai unit atau bahagian komunikasi agensi pembangunanpertanian memilih media untuk memindahkan pengetahuan dari agensi kepada klien mereka. Datauntuk kajian ini diperolehi melalui kaedah tinjauan yang melibatkan 95 orang pegawai dari 11 buahagensi dengan menggunakan borang soalselidik yang dijawab sendiri oleh responden. Secarakeseluruhannya, soalan pada borang soal selidik berbentuk pilihan dan yang menggunakan skala Ihingga 7 untuk mendapatkan pandangan dan pengalaman responden. Hasil kajian ini mendapatibahawa responden memilih benda sebenar atau realia sebagai media atau bahan yang paling baikuntuk aktiviti pemindahan pengetahuan dan diikuti oleh media-media yang berkebolehan memberikangambaran sebenar. Responden juga menyatakan bahawa media untuk pengajaran adalah berbezadari media untuk kempen penerangan. Berkaitan dengan unsur-unsur yang perlu diambilkira semasapemilihan media, respond en menyenaraikan ciri-ciri audien, diikuti dengan tujuan komunikasi,kegemaran media audien dan tempoh yang diberi untuk menyediakan media.

ABSTRACT

This study examines the ways in which staff of communication units in agricultural developmentagencies select media to transfer knowledge to their clients. A survey for data collection was conductedand 95 staff of communication units from 11 development agencies were asked to respond to self­administered questionnaires. Most of the questions were open-ended and ratings of items for fre­quency and applicability were on a scale of 1 to 7 . The study revealed that the respondents regardedactual objects or realia best in knowledge transfer activities, followed by media that convey a highdegree of fidelity. The respondents also indicated that media for instruction are somewhat differentfrom media for campaigns. The selection elements considered important in the media selectionprocess were audience characteristics, followed by purpose of communication, audience's mediapreference, and time given to prepare the media.

INTRODUCTION

Appropriate communication media can greatlyfacilitate the delivery of knowledge from a sourceto a receiver and thus the selection of the rightmedia for rapid and effective dissemination ofknowledge becomes a challenge.

Due to mixed outcomes regarding theapparent effectiveness of mass media forencouraging development (Beltran 1974; Kearl1978; Hornik 1988; Mayo 1989), note that othercommunication media have arisen to supportthe communication process. Small media suchas flipcharts, photographs and brochures, in

particular, have gained popularity and haveproven to be effective.

The Academy for Educational Development(AED) (1985) noted that there are strengthsand weaknesses in the specific media and analmost universal recognition that a single mediumalone accomplishes much less than several mediain combination.

In light of the current advancements incommunication technology, the need for theright choice of communication media is greaterthan ever. Proper planning and selection todevelop a single medium or combination of

Musa Abu Hassan

media to meet the specific communicationobjectives, is of utmost importance.

Schramm (1977) states that media selectionis a rational act, as the decision-maker has to

consider a host of information related to media,message, learners, cost, and so on. Pounds(1985) believes media selection is derived fromresearch and states that "knowing where peoplelook for information is only half the battle foran extension communicator. Knowing wherepeople find information is the other half'.

Kemp and Smellie (1989) propose thatselection be done after reviewing a number ofmedia and considering such factors as learners,purpose or objective, content, media type, activelearning, technical quality, cost, and validation.

A number of media selection models forinstruction have been developed by scholars suchas Anderson (1983), Reiser and Gagne (1983),Romiszowski (1988), and Reynolds and Anderson(1992). As an example, according to Gagne andBriggs (1979), there are six factors that need to

be considered in media selection: 1) task variables- the type of performance expected of learnersas a result of instruction; 2) learner variables ­the characteristics of the learners that can bematched to specific features of instruction andmedia as different learners have differentlearning styles; 3) the assumed learningenvironment - the practicality of media use as itrelates to size of class, capability of developingnew materials, availability of media equipment,etc.; 4) the assumed development environment- the time, budget, and personnel available thatcould ensure the success of designing thespecified delivery system; 5) the economy andthe culture - to ensure that the chosen mediawould be acceptable and practical to the users,and are within the budget and technology of theagency; and 6) the practical factors ­considerations that need to be reviewed withregard to use, audience, location of use,production and so on.

Media selection in communication is mostlyrelated to information campaigns, and few, ifany, formal models have been proposed. Instead,a number of guidelines for media selection havebeen proposed by several scholars (Schramm1977; Adhikarya and Middleton 1979; Adhikaryaand Posamentier 1987; Rogers and Storey 1987;Mody 1991).

Media selection for agricultural developmentwas initiated in the late 1970s. As Kearl (1978)

noted, two important new questions, althoughnot yet the focus of much research, were at leastbeginning to be asked: 1) what channels ofcommunication, administrative or otherwise, willbest integrate the contributions of diverse publicand private agencies in meeting agriculturaldevelopment needs? 2) what communicationchannels and devices will help rural people clarifytheir alternatives, organize their resources, andmake those outside the community aware oftheir needs?"

More recently, Rosser (1987) stated thatthe responsibility of the communication-researchunit is to ensure that the information beingdisseminated through the different media isbeing readily received and understood by thefarming community. As such, technical termshave to be simplified and translated into thevernacular languages. Also, special audio andaudio-visual programmes have to be presentedin an acceptable cultural format.

Watts and Claar (1983) state that as mediadevelop, as changes occur in audiences andtheir access to media, as research reveals moreabout the complexity and richness of humancommunication, and as planners of educationand communication become more adept, aneffective media selection process is very importantbecause it is the basis for successfulcommunication.

There are at least five ways in whichappropriate communication media can help inthe transfer of knowledge. First, media improvereach and access. "Reach" means that a largernumber of users will receive the knowledge and"access" means users can easily get theknowledge whenever it is required. As a result ofbetter reach and access, knowledge will be moreequally distributed among the users. Second, itfacilitates the teaching and learning process.""hen learners can understand knowledge better,it is more likely that the knowledge will eventuallybe utilized. Third, it helps extension agentsperform their tasks more efficiently as it helpsextension agents to cope with the increase ofknowledge from research institutions and to

present new knowledge effectively. Also,information can be disseminated more widelyand democratically in this manner. Fourth, aproper media selection procedure can save time,personnel and cost of media production. In thismanner the agency's resources will be betterutilized. Fifth, the media serve the additional

106 PenanikaJ. Soc. Sci. & Hum. Vol. 31 0.21995

Selecting Media for Knowledge Transfer

purpose of documenting information as well askeeping records of the knowledge that has beentransmitted by agencies.

perform such statistical tests. The significancelevel for the statistical analyses was set at .05.

METHODOLOGY

The purpose of this media selection study wasto determine how the staff of communicationunits of agricultural extension agencies in adeveloping country select particularcommunication media to disseminateagricultural knowledge to farmers. Moreprecisely, the study proposed first to gain abetter understanding of the following:

In order to answer these questions, a surveyutilizing self-administered questionnaires wasdeveloped to gather data from the respondents.A scale of one to seven was often used to evaluatethe perceptions and experiences of therespondents. The seven value scale was chosenbecause Chaffee (1991) noted that "reliabilityimproved up to, but not beyond, sevencategories".

The reliability measure, Cronbach's Alphawas applied to each question that had a scale of1 to 7. It was found that the Cronbach's Alphavalues on most of the questions were relativelyhigh (ranged from .5939 to .9297).

The total of 108 staff members involved inmedia planning and production at the 11agricultural extension agencies were selected forthe study. Of the 108 questionnaires distributedto the staff, 95 were returned (88% response

rate) .Data were coded and entered into the

computer using the Statistical Package for SocialScience X (SPSSX) program for data analysis.Percentages, means, standard deviations anddifference of means t-tests were conducted. Theneed (Blalock 1979) to better understand andexplain the differences among the respondentsand among the agencies urged the researcher to

a.

b.

Which communication media woulddevelopers consider most appropriate forinstruction and for campaigns, and whetherthey perceived any difference between themedia for these two particular purposes?Which selection factors were consideredsalient to media developers when choosingthe most appropriate communication mediafor knowledge transfer and how theselection factors would be prioritized?

RESULTS

Results of this study show that all 11 agriculturalextension agencies were capable and had beenproducing many kinds of communication mediafor information dissemination. All agenciesreported having adequate facilities, personneland budgets for media production. The numberof staff within the agencies ranged from 3 to 27.

The respondents' ages ranged from 20 to 54years (mean = 36.93 and std. dev. = 6.54); theirworking experience ranged from four monthsto more than 25 years (mean = 8.71; std. dev. =

6.16) and their educational level ranged fromhigh school to Master's degree. Respondentswith titles "Officers," "Heads of Unit", and"Assistant Officers" possessed technical expertisein agricultural subjects, whereas "Technicians","Artists", "Photographers", "Operators", and"Others" were familiar with the production ofcommunication media. Thus, the communicationunits of these agencies had a pool of technicalexpertise and media preparation talent. Acombination of those who know the subjectmatter and those who know how to present theinformation or message in a suitable mediumfor a specific communication situation can beexpected to be particularly effective in knowledgetransfer activities.

Media Appropriate for Instruction

Respondents were asked to rate thecommunication media they consideredappropriate for instruction using a scale of 1(not at all appropriate) to 7 (very/mostappropriate). Out of the 29 listed media, thisstudy found that realia (the actual object orsample of the real thing was considered by 46respondents (48.4%) to be the most appropriatemedium for instruction (scale of 7). The 10media considered most appropriate forinstruction are displayed in Table 1.

The list of media considered appropriatefor instruction by respondents comprised amixture of print, electronic, "big", and "small"media. It can be seen that the top 10 mediaconsidered appropriate for instruction byrespondents are mostly visual media, i.e., mediathat use or contain pictures and illustrations toconvey messages or knowledge. A risalah is akind of publication containing basic and

PertanikaJ. Soc. Sci. & Hum. Vol. 3 No.2 1995 107

Musa Abu Hassan

TABLE 1Communication media rated for instruction

TABLE 2Communication media rated for information

dissemination

comprehensive information on one or moreagricultural techniques, written in a semi­technical to popular writing style and intendedfor farmers.

Media Appropriate for Information Disemination

Using the same list of29 media, the respondentswere asked to rate the appropriateness of thesemedia for information dissemination. Likewise,a scale of 1 (not all appropriate) to 7 (very/most appropriate) was used.

From the listed media, 50 respondents(52.6%) consider television to be the mostappropriate medium for informationdissemination (scale of 7). Other media ratedto be appropriate for this purpose are listedin Table 2.

As shown in Table 2, the respondents listedseveral mass media such as television, radio andnewspapers to be appropriate for informationdissemination. Other media that receivedrelatively high ratings included video, posters,realia, and exhibitions. These results show thatthe respondents consider the mass media to bemost appropriate for information dissemination.As such, these findings are in line with thegeneral practices and perceptions of thoseinvolved in communication.

It can also be noted that the tenth-ratedmedium for information dissemination has ahigher mean than the tenth-rated medium forinstruction. When comparing media appropriatefor instruction and for campaigns (Table 1 andTable 2), one should note that there are fivemedia (television, video, realia, films, and risalah)that made it to the top ten media in both lists.

When asked if they consideredcommunication media for instruction to bedifferent from communication media forinformation dissemination, 72.63% of therespondents said they did, 20.00% said there wasno difference between those two and 7.37%were uncertain. This acknowledgment by therespondents is clearly shown by several mediathat are rated differently for instruction andinformation dissemination. In addition, whenasked whether they used different treatmentswhen producing communication media forinstruction versus information dissemination,75.79% said they did, 20.0% said no, and 4.21 %were uncertain.

To verify the respondents' opinions aboutthe differences between media for instructionand media for information dissemination, apaired t-test procedure was performed on all 29listed media. Basically this procedure comparesthe means of a medium that respondents regardas appropriate for instruction with the mean ofthe same medium that respondents regardappropriate for information dissemination.Results of paired t-test revealed 19 media showedstatistically significant difference at p < .05, and10 media showed no statistical difference at p =

.05. The media that showed significant differenceat p < .05 included realia, television, radio,newspapers, risalah, posters, flipcharts, andpamphlets. The media that showed no statisticaldifference at p = .05 included video, films, slide­tape series, and photographs.

6.355.985.935.925.835.795.775.675.675.55

6.185.985.795.545.49

5.455.435.315.165.08

Mean Values (N=95)

Mean Values (1=95)

TelevisionRadioPosters

ewspapersVideoRealiaExhibitionsFilmsPamphletsRisalah

RealiaVideoSlidesFilmsOHP TransparenciesSlide-tape seriesTelevisionFlipchartsRisalahPhotographs

Type of Medium

Type of Medium

lOS PertanikaJ. Soc. Sci. & Hum. Vol. 3 No.2 1995

Selecting Media for Knowledge Transfer

TABLE 3Communication media rated for knowledge u'ansfer

This new media rating clearly indicates thatrealia (or the real object) is the most suitablemedium for either instruction or knowledgedissemination. The next four media suitable forinstruction or information dissemination are alsothose best able to portray reality. Two printmedia, one audio medium, and a combinationof media (exhibition) rounded out the 10 mediamost appropriate for knowledge transfer. Thisnew list of media ratings can be considered aprincipal finding of this research because it wasdeveloped according to the perceptions andexperience of the media developers themselves.

In order to ensure that the ratings of mediafor knowledge transfer by the respondents are

Thus, it can be said that respondents of thisstudy believe communication media forinstruction are different from those mediaintended for information dissemination. Thisgroup of respondents is also more likely torecord a difference throughout the mediaproduction process.

To further comprehend respondents'perceptions about the suitability of particularmedia for knowledge transfer, the means ofmedia regarded as appropriate for instructionand media appropriate for informationdissemination were averaged. As a result, anotherlist of media ratings was developed. The list oftop 10 media is shown in Table 3. Since the listconsists of media for instruction and media forinformation dissemination, this new media ratingis simply called "media appropriate forknowledge transfer".

Type of medium

RealiaVideoSlidesFilmsOHP TransparenciesSlide-tape seriesTelevisionFlipchartsRisalahPhotographs

Averaged mean ( =95)

5.985.915.895.615.435.385.365.355.315.30

"real," a coefficient of concordance (Kendall w)was computed. A w of .1132 was found at p < .05,Chi Square = 85.6026, and d. f. = 9. Thus, thereis a significant difference in the way therespondents rated the media for knowledgetransfer.

It should be noted that not all mediaconsidered by the respondents to be appropriatefor knowledge transfer are available within theiragencies. For example, the agencies did not owntelevision and radio stations, and they did notpublish newspapers. However, the agenciesusually take part or contribute in the productionof television and radio programmes that areintended for farmers. Also, it is a commonpractice for producers of television and radioprogrammes to consult the agencies forprogramme contents. On the other hand,facilities are available for production of realia,video, slides, and slide-tape series, to mountexhibitions, and publish risalah.

Armed with knowledge of the types ofcommunication media the respondents considerappropriate for knowledge transfer, we willexamine the elements or factors they considerimportant when selecting appropriate mediumor combination of media for particular purposes.

Factors Considered in Selecting Media

It is useful to note at this point that the presentstudy assumes that the respondents would basetheir choice of a particular medium orcombination of media for instruction orknowledge dissemination on the potential and/or proven effectiveness of certain criteria,according to certain procedures, and afterconsidering a number of factors or elements.The questionnaire listed 25 possible elementsthat respondents could consider when making amedia selection, and they were asked to rate theimportance of the listed elements, on a scale of1 (not at all important) to 7 (most or veryimportant) .

It was found that, overall, 53 respondents(55.79%) rated "purpose of communication"with a scale of "7" which means that therespondents considered it to be the mostimportant element in selecting media. This wasfollowed by "audience characteristics", chosenby 47.37% of the respondents who also gave ascale of "7." However, when mean values arelisted in order to better present the ratings ofselection elements, "audience characteristics" had

PertanikaJ. Soc. Sci. & Hum. Vol. 3 No.2 1995 109

Musa Abu Hassan

TABLE 4Elements rated for media selection

a higher value than "purpose of communication".Table 4 shows the ratings of the top 10 selectionelements considered important by therespondents.

As shown in Table 4, the respondentsindicated that, based on the mean values,"audience characteristics", "purpose ofcommunication", "audience media preference","time to complete media production" and "userof media" were the top five elements to beconsidered when selecting media.

To further explain the importance of the 25listed elements in media selection, principalcomponents analysis was performed. This analysisyielded seven factors with Eigen ~al.ues of n:orethan 1.0, (using Kaiser (1960) mlllimum Elgenvalue) and cumulative percentage of about 70%.The range of communality for the seven factorswas between .4489 and .8517, and only 35% ofthe residuals was less than .05. Thus, it appearsthat a 7 factor solution best fits the model forthe 25 selection elements.

The first factor consisted of four items:"objective of communication," "audiencecharacteristics," "user of media," and "audiencemedia preferences," with loadings ranging from.5334 to .8606. The second factor consisted ofthree items:"full colour," "ease of mediaproduction," and "ease of updating content"with loadings ranging from .6511 to .7594. Thethird factor consisted of the items:"audio need,""visual movement," "media flexibility," and"media portability" with loadings ranging from.6226 to .7628. The fourth factor included

Selection element

Audience characteristicsPurpose of communicationAudience media preferenceTime to complete media'User' of mediaUnits capabilitiesVisual illustrationTime to disseminate informationAvailability of equipmentLocation of media use

Mean (N = 95)

6.296.246.005.985.865.835.795.795.775.72

"location of media use," "time to disseminateinformation," "media durability," and "ease ofmedia usage" with loadings ranging from .4765to .7532. The items:"own capabilities," "colleaguecapabilities," and "units capabilities" were foundin the fifth factor, with loadings ranging from.6872 to .8149. The sixth factor consisted of"time given to complete media production,""printed texts," and "visual illustration" withloadings ranging from .5797 to .8232. Finally,the seventh factor consisted of "production cost,""instruction from above," "availability ofequipment," and "media selection guidelines"with loadings ranging from .4560 to .8083.

After ascertaining the media which therespondents consider to be appropriate forinstruction and information dissemination orcampaign and the kinds of selection factors thatrespondents considered important when decidingon the most appropriate media for knowledgetransfer activity, perhaps now we have a betterunderstanding of how the communication unitstaff of the agricultural extension agencies selectand make decisions on the most suitable mediafor their knowledge transfer activities. Can themedia selection experience obtained from thisstudy be shared by other development agenciesin other parts of the world? Obviously, thepotential is there.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

It should be stressed that the main purpose ofselecting communication media was to bestfacilitate the transfer of information orknowledge from a source to intended receivers.Theoretically, using suitable media that will carryappropriate content (information, message, orknowledge) can help the process in at least twoways: improve both reach and access and facilitateteaching-learning activities. However, methodicalmedia selection has become necessary becauseinformation agencies can only disseminateinformation through media they can produce orget access to; and, on the other end, manypotential receivers of information do not own orhave access to certain media, resulting in thelimitations on their access to information.

The types of media the staff members of thecommunication units considered right forknowledge transfer revealed a striking balancebetween the media that they considered to behighly appropriate for instruction and the mediathey considered to be highly appropriate for

110 PertanikaJ. Soc. Sci. & Hum. Vol. 3 No.2 1995

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information dissemination. According to them,methods of knowledge transfer that employactual objects in face-to-face communication arebest. However, if this is not possible then mediathat convey reality with a high degree of fidelityare highly recommended.

Respondents' choice of realia as the mostappropriate medium for knowledge transfer ishighly revealing - realia has always been idealfor any kind of teaching- learning, as it involvesall human senses. Furthermore, in agriculture,use of real-life examples is highly recommendedbecause farmers can relate to them directly, andusually the real things are particularly convincing.Respondents also considered video, television,and films to be appropriate for knowledgetransfer. These media visually present real actionsor motions of subjects in conjunction with audio,a portrayal of reality that is as close to reality ascommunication technology can get. Even thoughradio was rated tenth as a medium for knowledgetransfer, it had been rated second by respondentsas appropriate for information dissemination.Radio was rated slightly lower in this case by therespondents, perhaps due to its inability to

present visual information. evertheless, it shouldbe noted that radio has always been popular inproject work in many developing countries.

Thus, it can be concluded that therespondents consider those communicationmedia which can present reality with the greatestfidelity to be the most appropriate media forknowledge transfer. If it is not possible to usethe kind of media just mentioned, then a mediamix is preferred. If a media mix is also notpossible, then an audio medium is suggested.

With regard to selection elements thatrespondents consider to be important whenmaking media decisions, the top-ten elements(Table 4) can be categorized into three groups.The first group can be labelled as "theoretical"comprising the elements of audiencecharacteristics, purpose of communication,audience media preference and user of media(extension agents or instructors). The secondgroup can be labelled as "practical or logistic"consisting of the elements of time to completemedia, unit's capabilities, time to disseminateinformation, availability of equipment andlocation of media use. The remaining element,visual illustration, can be categorized as "mediaattribute."

From these groupings we can see that theresponden ts consider theoretical andpractical or logistic elements to be veryimportant when deciding on the mostappropriate media for knowledge transferactivities, followed by media attributes. Clearly,the respondents placed theoretical elementshigher in their ratings than practical orlogistic elements, and media attributes.

Thus, it can be concluded that therespondents regarded the theoretical elementsto be the most important in deciding whichmedium or media combination is appropriatefor a particular knowledge transfer activity,followed in order by the elements of practical orlogistic, and media attributes. After all, in thefinal analysis, media are vehicles that facilitatethe transfer of information from a source to anaudience. However, communication media mustbe selected and developed carefully becausewithout proper planning and consideration theiruse in development work could actually bringabout negative outcomes.

Likewise, as noted by the respondents ofthis study, it is very important to treat a mediumfor instruction differently from a mediumintended for an information campaign.

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ACADEMY for EDUG.UIONAL DEVELOPMENt (AED). 1985.Beyond the Flipcha1t: Three Decades of DevelopmentCommunication. Washington, D.C: Clearinghouseon Development Communication, AED.

ADHlKARYA, R. and J. MIDDLETON. 1979.Communication planning at the institutionallevel: A selected annotated bibliography.Honolulu: East-West Communication Institute,East-West Center.

ADHIKARYA, R. and H. POSAMENTIER. 1987.Motivating farmers for action: how strategicmulti-media campaigns can help. Eschborn:Deutsche Gesellschaft fur TechnischeZusammenarbeit (GTZ).

ANDERSON, R.H. 1983. Selecting and Developing Mediafor Instruction. 2nd edn. New York: VanNostrand Reinhold.

BELTRAN, L.R. 1974. Rural development and socialcommunication: relationships and strategies.In Communication Strategies for Rural Developmented. R.H. Crawford and W.B. Ward. Proceedings

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CHAFFEE, S.H. 1991. Communication Concepts 1:Explication. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

GAGNE, R.M. and L.J. BRIGGS. 1979. Principles ofInstructional Design 2nd edn. New York: Holt,Rinehart and Winston.

HORNIK, R.C. 1988. Development Communication:Info17nation, Agriculture, and Nutrition in the ThirdWorld. New York: Longman.

KAISER, H.F. 1960. The application of electroniccomputers to factor analysis. Education andPsychological Measurement 20: 141-151.

KEAlu., B.E. 1978. Communication for agriculturaldevelopment. In Communication and Change:The Last Ten years and the Next ed. W. Schrammand D. Lerner, 163-183. Honolulu: UniversityPress of Hawaii.

KEMP, J.E. and D.C. SMELLIE. 1989. Planning,Producing, and Using Instructional Media 6thedn. New York: Harper & Row.

MAYO, J.K. 1989. Unkept promises: Educationalbroadcasting in the Third World. Paperpresented at the International CommunicationAssociation Annual Convention.

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POUNDS, D. 1985. Putting extension informationwhere people will find it. Joumal of Extension23: 20-23.

REISER, R.A. and R.M. GAGNE. 1983. Selecting Mediafor Instrltction. Englewood Cliff, New Jersey:Educational Technology Publications.

REYNOLDS, A. and R.H. ANDERSON. 1992. Selectingand Developing Media for Instruction, 3rd edn.New York: Van ostrand Reinhold.

ROMISZOWSKI, AJ. 1988. The Selection and Use ofInstructional Media 2nd edn. New York: NicholsPublishing.

ROGERS, E.M. and J.D. STOREY. 1987.Communication campaigns. In Handbook ofCommunication Science ed. C. R. Berger and S.H. Chaffee 817- 846. Beverly Hills: Sage.

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SCHRA,MM, W.L. 1977. Big Media Small Media: Toolsand Technologies for Instruction. Beverly Hills:Sage.

WATTS L.H. and J.B. CLAAR. 1983. Knowledgeu-ansfer for agricultural development: History­limitations-importance. In Knowledge Transferin Developing Countries: Status, Constraints,Outlook. Proceedings of a Conference onInternational Extension at Steamboat Springs,Colorado ed. J.B. Claar and L.H. Watts 3-13.Urbana-Champaign, IL: Interpaks.

(Received 13 March 1995)

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