In today’s world, comics are increasingly being utilized to educate and change mindsets in a variety of contexts.
Graphic novels brimming with superheroes, villains, and other colourful characters are likely to come to mind when we hear the word “comic.”
True, comics are generally fictional stories reduced into a visually engaging narrative. However, since its inception in the 1920s and expansion towards superhero fiction in the 1960s, comics have been adapted to a wide range of fiction subgenres — as well as non-fiction contexts too.
In today’s world, comics are increasingly being utilised to educate and influence attitudes and behaviour in a variety of settings. We call this subject of “graphic medicine” because comics can help us interpret health information. They can also be used to educate people about environmental issues, and these are referred to as “eco-comics.”
Medical illustration-
Comics that visually explain health treatments and difficult medical procedures can help people improve their physical and mental health literacy while also encouraging them to continue taking their meds. They can also help people relax before surgery.
Comic books can encourage people to get involved in routine checkups, which can help prevent chronic illnesses, by giving easily available health information and guidance.
During the current pandemic, comics and graphics inspired from comics have been used to illustrate how COVID-19 spreads and how our actions might influence it.
Comics, according to health specialists, not only provide a more accessible medium for conveying important health information, but also allow readers to relate to it and develop empathy for the comic characters. Their perceptions of health risk may be influenced as an outcome of this. If the witnessed behaviour results in a positive consequence, kids may be encouraged to replicate the behaviour of these characters.
In fact, the use of comics to explain patients’ lived experiences of chronic physical sickness and mental health disorders has grown steadily. By recognising experiences like anxiety, uncertainty, and isolation, and giving guidance and answers through the narrative, these comics serve as a resource for others suffering with similar health difficulties.
Together with a comic artist and a group of young individuals living with type 1 diabetes from the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Denmark, I just created a comic called “Diabetes Cyberspace”. The comic’s plot was shaped by the topics that emerged from the conversations with these young people.
The cartoon depicts the mental health of a young person with type 1 diabetes, as well as the impact of diabetes-related social media content.
The comic is meant to be used as an informative tool to help young people with type 1 diabetes understand some of the issues they face. It also offers information and recommendations on how to deal with unhelpful online content for young people with the disease.
The potential benefits of comics as communication tools in the domains of physical and mental health have been established in research. However, the majority of available information on comics is speculative, based on theoretical studies (in which researchers examine and analyze the contents of a comic) and tiny qualitative investigations.
We intend to evaluate the Diabetes Cyberspace comic to see how useful it is as an educational resource and communication tool for young people with type 1 diabetes and their families, and therefore contribute to closing this gap of knowledge.
Eco-comics-
Environmental issues have also been taught through the use of comic books. The body of research on the ability of ecological comics to influence environmental attitudes and behaviour is narrow, exactly as it is with graphic medicine.
However, the usage of an eco-comic in East African primary schools recently yielded favorable outcomes. The children’s conservation skills enhanced immediately after they were exposed to the comic and again one year later, according to questionnaires.
In another study, a comic showing more environmentally friendly disposal habits resulted in significant improvements in waste disposal habits among Africans.
These studies illustrate the potential for eco-comics to boost environmental literacy and encourage conservation by making information more accessible.
We’ve also recently released Tales of Ecological Terror — A Plastic Nightmare, an ecological comic. To co-design the comic, we performed face-to-face and online workshops with students and faculty from many disciplines at Queen’s University Belfast.
Through a humorous yet emotional narrative, the comic attempts to raise awareness of the detrimental effects of plastic waste and the significance of trash reduction and recycling. The comic will be tested in a variety of educational contexts to see if it has an impact on ecological literacy, attitudes, and behaviour.
Copyright © © 2022 Copyright. All Rights Reserved with Arth Parkash