The intention of this special edition of the International Journal of Market Research (IJMR) is to draw attention to the contribution of market research to international development. Is market research capable of helping to change the world for the better? The top 30 donor countries currently give over $200 billion in development aid annually.1 Further substantial amounts come from charitable foundations, faith-based groups, United Nations (UN) agencies, and other sources. However, until the early noughties, surprisingly little market research and almost no opinion research was carried out either to inform or evaluate the use of these funds. The reasons are not entirely clear, although there has undoubtedly been some resistance to using market research techniques which have been viewed by some as inappropriately focused on making profit for the private sector and thus not helpful or relevant in the areas of health, welfare, education, or the relief of poverty. Now donors, governments, international nongovernmental organizations (INGOs), and philanthropic foundations have come to see the value of market research and marketing techniques to stimulate and advance social, economic, health, and other kinds of change. Social marketing used by governments is one example of this. Consumer segmentation has played a crucial role in promoting changes in behavior to prevent the spread of HIV/ AIDS in Africa; branding techniques have attracted young people in particular and been instrumental in their behavior change; and mass communications have helped shift attitudes and increase political engagement. Beyond this, market researchers have developed tools for consumer insight which can be used to engage beneficiaries, stakeholders, and gatekeepers in development programs. Focus groups, workshops, and “humancentered design” are used to create interventions which meet the real needs of local people. New technologies such as mobile apps are revolutionizing the way data can be collected in remote rural

中文翻译：

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市场研究能让世界变得更好吗？

国际市场研究杂志 (IJMR) 特刊的目的是引起人们对市场研究对国际发展的贡献的关注。市场研究是否能够帮助改善世界？排名前 30 位的捐助国目前每年提供超过 2000 亿美元的发展援助。1 还有大量资金来自慈善基金会、宗教团体、联合国 (UN) 机构和其他来源。然而，直到 20 世纪初，出人意料的是，很少进行市场研究，也几乎没有进行意见研究来告知或评估这些资金的使用情况。原因还不完全清楚，尽管在使用市场研究技术方面无疑存在一些阻力，一些人认为这些技术不恰当地侧重于为私营部门谋利，因此在健康、福利、教育或扶贫领域没有帮助或相关性。现在，捐助者、政府、国际非政府组织 (INGO) 和慈善基金会已经看到了市场研究和营销技术在刺激和推动社会、经济、健康和其他类型变革方面的价值。政府使用的社会营销就是一个例子。消费者细分在促进行为改变以防止艾滋病毒/艾滋病在非洲传播方面发挥了关键作用；品牌推广技术尤其吸引了年轻人，并有助于他们改变行为；大众传播有助于转变态度并增加政治参与度。除此之外，市场研究人员开发了消费者洞察工具，可用于让受益者、利益相关者和看门人参与发展计划。焦点小组、研讨会和“以人为本的设计”被用来创造满足当地人民真正需求的干预措施。移动应用程序等新技术正在彻底改变偏远农村收集数据的方式 “以人为本的设计”被用来创造满足当地人民真正需求的干预措施。移动应用程序等新技术正在彻底改变偏远农村收集数据的方式 “以人为本的设计”被用来创造满足当地人民真正需求的干预措施。移动应用程序等新技术正在彻底改变偏远农村收集数据的方式