THE TIPPING POINT[1], a comment by Ron Ivey

This widely read book does not discuss international development.  But it does discuss something that should tantalize interesting for international development practitioners.  Gladwell writes on social epidemics like crime, shoe styles, and Sesame Street, but, if we allow our imaginations to roam a bit we can see how this, always in a positive sense of course, is what we are really working for in international development.  We’re trying to create positive social epidemics.  Too often, however, our well-intended messages and capacity building have little effect.

What are the fundamental elements that cause a positive social epidemic?  Gladwell says that social epidemics do not need a lot of money, immense public information campaigns, or other large investments.  Social epidemics are a function of the people who transmit the message, the message itself, and the environment in which the epidemic is taking place.  He calls this the three rules of epidemics:  1) the Law of the Few, 2) the Stickiness Factor and 3) the Power of Context.

In this age of mass communication (what you’re reading is just another example of that to the nth degree), people become bored and tune out quickly.  There are more than numerous internet blogs, mass advertising, and other types of instant and multidimensional communication, all meant to reach a vast audience.  Most of the time those communications fall short; the receivers of the communication are “immune.”  Gladwell writes that Law of the Few meansmthat in certain kinds of communications and efforts, some people matter more than others.  These are what he calls the Connectors, Mavens and Salespersons.  Connectors are people who have a large number of acquaintances (1600 people on their Outlook – 1000 people on LinkedIn.  Mavens are people who are highly technically knowledgeable and just like to educate people around them.  Salespersons are those who can transmit an idea in a way that it will appeal to someone and “stick”.  Who are those people in international development settings?  IDEA feels that these are natural local leaders, but perhaps an even more precision definition must be found.  They may be leaders, but we must also be aware of others in a particular development context who can help shape a specific message and transmit it in a way that people will listen.  Gladwell demonstrates in various examples that these few people are somehow and amazingly linked into to everyone else, and the majority of people are linked to the world through these special few people.  We need to identify these special types and include them in our project planning.

The Stickiness Factor means that the idea needs to be memorable and move us to action.  The line between acceptance and rejection of a development message is often a lot narrower than it seems.  While this may be challenging, we need to shift our unsuccessful messages as there will be a simple way to package information that, under the right circumstances, will make it irresistible.  Word-of-mouth communications are definitely more powerful through Connectors, Mavens and Salespersons than other types of communications. To achieve Stickiness we need to recruit Connectors, Mavens and Salespersons to create the social epidemic.

The Power of Context requires that we reframe the way we think about the world.  A leader can shift how we define the context in which we’re living, operating and working.  The Power of Context is an environmental factor, implying that the positive or negative behavior is a function of social context.  Not everything in the environment needs changing, however, to achieve Tipping Point effects.  The Power of Context and the examples in Gladwell’s book imply that a group intend to develop themselves don’t need to solve all the big problems to resolve their underdevelopment.  Small indications of a positive shift may be enough to shift the entire context (removing graffiti from subway cars to reduce crime).

The implication from Gladwell’s book is that we need to think about new ways to design development programs and projects.  A mere project website won’t be adequate to shift how people see their world.  Fast internet fixes are unlikely to be successful. We need to think about how Connectors, Mavens and Salespersons can be identified and incorporated in the design.  They need to help create a message that has a social “ring” that’s recognizable and appealing to the people. We need to develop local leaders who can re-define and shift the context in which people are living.  These can cause people to take action to improve their own lives.