When we hear the phrase ‘comedian’, graphic novels oozing with superheroes, villains and different colourful characters are prone to come to thoughts.
It’s true that comics are, historically, fictional tales condensed into compelling visible narrative. But since their infancy within the Nineteen Twenties, and evolution to superhero fiction within the Nineteen Sixties, comics have been tailored to numerous fiction subgenres — and to non-fiction contexts too.
Today, comics are more and more used to coach and affect attitudes and habits in numerous settings. Comics can help our understanding of well being info — an space we name “graphic medicine”. They can be used as an academic software in relation to environmental points — these are generally referred to as “eco-comics”.
graphic medication
Comics which visually clarify well being remedies and complicated medical procedures can enhance bodily and psychological well being literacy and assist individuals to maintain taking their drugs. They can even assist alleviate anxiousness in sufferers earlier than surgical procedure.
By offering accessible well being info and recommendation, comedian novels can even encourage individuals to have interaction in well being screening, serving to stop power situations.
Today, comics are more and more used to coach and affect attitudes and habits in numerous settings. (Representative picture/Pexels)
During the present pandemic, comics and pictures extracted from comics have been used to convey how COVID-19 is unfold, and the way our habits can have an effect on its unfold.
Health researchers imagine that comics not solely present a extra accessible medium for disseminating essential public well being info, however that readers can relate to and develop empathy for the comedian characters. This can affect their perceptions of well being threat. In flip, they could be inclined to mimic the habits of those characters (an idea referred to as modeling) if the noticed habits ends in a good end result.
There has additionally been a gradual development of comics used to convey sufferers’ lived experiences of power bodily sickness and psychological well being situations. These comics present a useful resource for others who’re coping with comparable well being challenges, by validating experiences corresponding to worry, uncertainty, and isolation, and presenting recommendation and options by means of the narrative.
Comics depicting lived expertise of sickness may assist healthcare suppliers empathise with their sufferers, which might enhance the standard of care they supply.
I not too long ago developed a comic book referred to as Diabetes Cyberspace along with a comic book artist and a gaggle of younger individuals dwelling with sort 1 diabetes from the UK, Ireland and Denmark. The narrative of the comedian was knowledgeable by themes generated by means of interviews with these younger individuals (our findings are printed as a pre-print).
The comedian tells the story of an adolescent with sort 1 diabetes and the affect that diabetes-related social media content material has on their psychological wellbeing.
The comedian is meant for use as an academic useful resource to convey a number of the challenges that younger individuals with sort 1 diabetes expertise. It additionally supplies recommendation and ideas to assist younger individuals with the situation take care of unhelpful content material on-line.
Research has demonstrated the potential advantages of comics as communication instruments within the areas of bodily and psychological well being. But many of the current proof on comics is speculative, primarily based on theoretical research (the place researchers observe and analyze the contents of the comedian) and small qualitative research.
With an absence of empirical research inspecting the effectiveness of comics to affect health-related outcomes corresponding to information and habits change, it is obscure the dimensions of their affect.
We hope the Diabetes Cyberspace comedian will be evaluated to discover its effectiveness as an academic useful resource and communication software for younger individuals with sort 1 diabetes and their caregivers, and in flip go some option to fill this data hole.
eco-comics
Comics have additionally been used to reinforce studying about environmental points. As with graphic medication, the physique of proof exploring the capability for ecological comics to affect environmental attitudes and habits is sparse.
But not too long ago the usage of an eco-comic in main colleges in east Africa demonstrated optimistic outcomes. Questionnaires indicated the kids had enhanced conservation information instantly after and, once more, one 12 months after they had been uncovered to the comedian.
In different analysis, a comic book which illustrated extra sustainable methods of disposing of waste resulted in vital enhancements in waste disposal habits amongst individuals in Nigeria.
By offering info in a extra accessible means, these research spotlight the potential for eco-comics to extend environmental literacy and promote conservation.
We have additionally not too long ago developed an ecological comedian, referred to as Tales of Ecological Terror , A Plastic Nightmare, We hosted face-to-face and on-line workshops with college students and employees from various disciplines throughout Queen’s University Belfast to co-design the comedian.
The comedian goals to boost consciousness of the dangerous affect of plastic waste and the significance of waste discount and recycling by means of a enjoyable but emotive narrative. We envisage that the comedian will likely be piloted in several academic settings to measure its potential affect on ecological literacy, attitudes and behavior.
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With inputs from TheIndianEXPRESS
