Without words: The use of an image-based instructional video to convey information to culturally diverse audiences

Abstract

The purpose of this project was to create a rubric from which researchers and filmmakers can begin producing media different from the existing English language, jargon-laden, instructional videos currently in use in the United States. From this rubric, one video detailing a clinic visit was produced, screened for a diverse audience and evaluated for its efficacy. This video utilized only images to convey information in an attempt to circumvent the confusion that may result while viewing media in a foreign language. Communication theories and strategies such as the Sabido method of edutainment and social cognitive theory guided the filmmaking process. Although it is impossible to create a universally comprehensible text, the development of potentially transcultural media helped identify key issues that should be carefully considered. Effective intercultural communication strategies and an awareness of cultural concerns factored into decisions on representations of gender and nationality, shot composition and editing, as well as the use of positive, negative and transitional characters. This task resulted in both a rubric for media production as well as a reflection on transcultural communication in a broader context. Pre- and post-screening feedback sessions were used to evaluate the comprehensibility of the video and results across varying cultures showed an improvement in knowledge of clinic procedures and protocol. This study represented an important first step in participatory transcultural media creation in partnership with the increasingly diverse patient population of the United States.