Institutionalization and Implosion of Communication for Development and Social Change in Spain: A Case Study

Abstract

This chapter offers an overview of the institutionalization of the academic field of communication for development and social change (CDSC) in Spain in the twenty-first century, following a period of neglect and marginalization. The ongoing expansion of this field in the Spanish context is understood as a process of implosion, i.e. an inward collapse deriving from the inconsistencies and weaknesses of its tardy and hasty institutionalization. A triple methodological approach has been implemented in this case study: a) an historiographical analysis of the field of the CDSC in Spain; b) a bibliometric analysis of the papers published on this subject in the main Spanish journals between 2000 and 2015; and c) four significant and relevant Spanish case studies in this regard. The results of this research basically point to: 1) a late consolidation of the field in Spain, which has led to its implosion during its expansion and institutionalization stage (2011-to date); 2) a marginal production of scientific papers in comparison with the general academic production in the field of communication in Spain; 3) a certain subsidiarity in other more closely related fields (education for development, for example) which has covered existing gaps and lacunas; 4) the fundamental role played by Spanish community radio; and 5) the potential of virtual communication spaces such as those deriving from the experience of the “Indignados” or 15-M movement (2011).