An Investigation on the Effectiveness of Igad’s Communication Messages in Mediating the South Sudan Conflict Parties
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Date
2016-07
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
The study investigates the effectiveness of the communication messages imparted by IGAD to
impact the conflict parties’ behaviour during the mediation process of the South Sudan
conflict that broke out on December 15, 2013. Since, the mediation process has ended on
August 17, 2015 and transformed to the implementation phase, the study culled the messages
IGAD conveyed within the last six months of the mediation process, March, 1, 2015 – August,
30, 2015, in its press releases, newsletters and brochure to be analyzed. The study used social
cognitive theory and elaboration likelihood model as the principal frames to investigate how
the regional institution designed its messages to have influence on the behaviour of the
conflict parties. Employing qualitative content analysis, the study examined what types of
communication messages the regional institution imparted and the nature of the persuasive
techniques IGAD’s communication used to enhance its messages effectiveness. The analysis
found out that in its different types of messages IGAD described somewhat the desired
behaviours and provide encouragement and encomium to the attuned behaviours of the
conflict parties in the mediation process adequately and repetitively to motivate and enhance
the self-efficacy of the conflict parties. Moreover, the study revealed that IGAD used
attractive messages that acclaim its efficiency and proficiency as an institution to enhance its
credibility and trustworthiness to engross the conflict parties’ in consuming its themes. The
study also disclosed that the communication messages IGAD conveyed were inadequate in
providing information about the situation of the conflict and the challenges the mediation
process encountered from the conflict parties. Since, informing the conflict parties about the
risk and benefits of their behaviour would make them exert an effort to change their
behaviour. Moreover, it is argued principally in this study that the effectiveness of the
communication messages in expediting the mediation is limited by the inadequacy and
feebleness of the messages contents. Finally, the study makes some suggestions what the
communication messages should subsume in their design to have a cogent impact on conflict
parties’ behaviour to expedite IGAD’s mediation processes.
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Keywords
Communication Messages in Mediating the South Sudan Conflict Parties