Sabido Methodology

"The Sabido methodology is an approach to development of mass-media serial drama. The methodology draws from five theories of communication and behavior change: a circular adaptation of Shannon and Weaver's Communication Model, Bentley’s Dramatic Theory (melodrama), Jung’s Theory of Archetypes and Stereotypes and the Collective Unconscious, the Social Learning Theory of Albert Bandura, and MacLean's Concept of the Triune Brain, supplemented by Sabido's own Theory of the Tone.

Sabido's methodology is based first on a communication model developed by Shannon and Weaver in 1949. Sabido adapted Shannon and Weaver's linear diagram to form a communication circuit that depicted the circular nature of the communication process. He then applied this circuit to a serial drama. In the case of a commercial soap opera on television, the communicator is the manufacturer of a product, the message is "buy this product," the medium is the soap opera, the receiver is the consumer, and the response is the purchase of the product and television ratings.

Sabido took this circular model one step further to represent two-step communication interactions. For this, he introduced the two-step flow theory of communication which states that messages in mass media have the most impact upon a minority of receivers. These people will then communicate the message to others, hence a two-step flow. Audience members often conduct discussions regarding important social issues with their peers that are similar to those of the characters' "on the air." This is because the characters provide a model on how to discuss issues that are sensitive, or even taboo, and discussions between characters indicate a certain social acceptance of these issues.

Dramatic Theory describes the structure and effects of five genres of theatre (tragedy, comedy, tragicomedy, farce, and melodrama). Among these genres, melodrama presents reality in a slightly exaggerated sense in which the moral universes of good and evil are in discord. Sabido employed the melodrama genre as a basis from which to design characters and plots. "Good" characters in Sabido-style serial dramas accept the proposed social behavior, and "evil" characters reject it.

Jung's theory states that there are certain scripts or stories with familiar patterns and characters that people play out throughout history. These universal scripts or stories appear in myths, legends and folktales around the world. Jung posited that these universal scripts or stories are the "archetypes of a collective unconscious" and share common characters. Sabido used the archetypes described in Jung's theory as a basis for developing characters that embody universal psychological and physiological characteristics to address themes within the serial drama. Through these characters, the viewer finds an archetypical essence of him or herself that interacts with the social message. Sabido portrayed these archetypes as positive or negative stereotypes, representing the societal norms of the target audience.

Social Learning Theory, as articulated by Albert Bandura, explains how people learn new behaviors from vicariously experiencing the actions of others. A key to the use of Social Learning Theory in Sabido-style serial dramas is use of appropriate models that are visibly rewarded (or punished) in front of the audience, in order to convert the values that are being promoted by the serial drama into behavior. Sabido determined that three types of characters are fundamental to successful modeling by audience members. The first two types of characters are positive and negative role models. The third type of character is the "transitional character."

Miguel Sabido began his career as a theater director. In his work in the theater, Sabido discovered that actors can have different effects on their audiences by channeling their energy through three different body zones. If actors focus their energy behind their eyes, the tone of the production would be conceptual. If the actor focused energy in the base of the neck, the tone of the production would be emotive. If the actor focused energy in the pubic area, the tone of the production would be primal. Sabido instinctively understood that in order to motivate or persuade, it is necessary to provide a complete message that speaks to these three levels of perception. However, he lacked a theoretical explanation for what he was observing. He eventually discovered Paul MacLean’s Concept of the Triune Brain, which presents a model of human brain structure with three levels of perception - cognitive, affective, and predispositional."

[The above excerpt is from "The Sabido Methodology" by Kriss Barker, Vice President, International Programs Population Media Center. It no longer appears to be available online.]

"[T]he Sabido methodology requires the use of a long-running serial drama, which builds loyal and committed fans through continuing identification with and attachment to the characters and concern for their fates.

Equally important, the Sabido methodology is based on various communication theories, each of which plays an essential role in the development of a serial drama, as illustrated in the box below.

How a Sabido-Style Drama is DevelopedThe development of a Sabido-style serial drama is always a collaborative process between PMC, local experienced producers, writers and broadcasters, relevant government ministries and NGOs. The process involves many steps – described below:

Formative Research: The first step in development of a Sabido-style serial drama is formative research, which is designed around the general hypothesis or issue, and is used to gather country- (or culture-) specific information about that problem or issue. The formative research also gathers information about the target audience: their characteristics, needs and preferences. This information is then used to design the characters, settings and storylines – and to determine the key values and issues the serial will address...

Policy Framework: The policy framework is based on the laws, international agreements to which the country is signatory, and the positions of influence/opinion groups, such as religious or traditional groups, political parties, etc...

The Values Grid: The creative team of producers and scriptwriters, with technical assistance from PMC trainers, uses the formative research and policy framework to create a values grid. The values grid is a series of statements of positive and negative values relating to each of the problems identified by the formative research and policy framework.

The values grid serves as the basis for the creation of three types of characters in the serial drama: Those that hold the positive values and behaviors; those who embody the negative values or behaviors... and those who start out being ambivalent, but change in the course of the drama into positive role models for the audience. These “transitional” characters are the real role models for the audience – as they pave the way for positive behavior change.

Writing and Production: The program then goes into extensive production, often with 30 episodes written and produced prior to the broadcast launch. This ensures that sufficient episodes are prepared to avoid any gaps in the broadcast schedule. The writing and production of all of the episodes are completed over time, allowing later episodes to be modified based on audience feedback.

Monitoring: Audience feedback provides valuable information about the public’s receptivity to the program and its characters. It shows how members of the target audience interpret the program’s characters and content, and helps to gauge their reaction to key messages and issues.

Impact Evaluation: And finally, an independent research team conducts an impact study after the broadcast period to quantify the program’s effects. The impact evaluation usually employs a quantitative survey of audience members and non-audience members (e.g., listeners and non-listeners, or viewers and non-viewers) to compare relative changes in knowledge, attitudes and behavior between these two groups. The Sabido methodology, as applied by PMC and others, is a system that works, time and time again, and in diverse cultures."

[The above excerpt is from "Sex, Soap & Social Change - The Sabido Methodology", by Kriss Barker, Vice President, International Programs Population Media Center, August, 2007.]