ABSTRACT
Public communication is an exchange of information among individuals, groups and agencies through various channels such as the mass media, print materials and face-to-face interaction. The difference between delivering a communication approach that empowers others compared to simply changing their behaviour is in the selection of the strategy. Disease outbreak responses are controlled by agencies that use top-down approaches to change people's behaviours rather than giving them more control over their lives. The link between education and empowerment involves more than simply acquiring new information. Communication strategies to promote a change in knowledge and behaviour change have mainly relied upon messages that are delivered to the target population by using mass media techniques. The development of effective messaging is core to behaviour change communication and depends on an understanding of the audience. Social marketing reflects commercial sector approaches applied to social and health problems that are then resolved by behaviour change.
