Storytelling and Evidence-Based Policy: Lessons from the Grey Literature

"Storytelling remains a crucial communications tool for researchers seeking uptake of their evidence into policy. It does, however, mean that storytelling needs to be approached strategically."

It has been recognised by those interested in how to translate evidence into policy that advocates of scientific evidence need to tell good stories to grab the attention and appeal to the emotions of policymakers. This article outlines some of the ways in which an understanding of policymaker psychology and factors such as group dynamics and political context are reflected in the "grey" literature - that which is not controlled by commercial publishers - and the implications of this for understanding the role of storytelling in political advocacy. Brett Davidson highlights practical advice about storytelling that emerges from the literature, and presents four case studies illustrating aspects of storytelling in action. He concludes by identifying the implications for scientists and other advocates of "evidence-informed policymaking".

Davidson begins by examining some of the arguments for why storytelling is a vital tool for those seeking to ensure uptake of evidence in policy. He organises the discussion into two broad groupings of grey literature sources:

1. Literature focusing on cognitive and psychological factors impacting the way in which individual policymakers make decisions - These sources draw on recent findings in fields such as cognitive science, neuroscience, psychology, behavioural economics, and anthropology, and explicitly make a link between such research and its implications for messaging strategies. They make the point that the way in which information is presented is crucial. Because people think by making use of mental models, evidence has to be packaged or "framed" in ways that connect with people's values and take account of the narratives in people's heads of how the world works. Stories help people make sense of "the facts" by situating them within particular narratives about how the world works.
2. Literature focusing on how to ensure evidence-informed policymaking, which focuses more on the complex organisational and political context of policymaking - When the so-called "inside track" of influencing policy (engagement takes place directly through meetings, negotiations, and in-person discussions) is followed - where policymakers are already interested in what researchers have to say - stories are effective ways of summarising key issues and concepts simply, quickly, and effectively. At the same time, they are able to appeal directly to policymakers' values and interests through their emotional content. In the case of the outside, more confrontational track (engaging in public campaigning and messaging, including through the mass media), there is a need to build popular interest and support. In this case, stories are key in mobilising large numbers of people behind an issue and encouraging them to take action that places pressure on the decisionmakers.

Ideally, scientists would present the "facts" or "evidence" to policymakers, who should then make purely rational choices. Yet several authors problematise the very concept of "evidence-based policy" and question what the concept of "evidence" means. Firstly, often the most important questions that need to be answered are not ones that can be answered simply by turning to research. Secondly, there is the question of whose knowledge is valued, and whose evidence counts. Thirdly, leaving aside the question of a debate over ends, even when the decision is about means, there is not always a clear and obvious solution; decisions are always made within particular power relationships. Davidson suggests that stories are an important mode through which deliberations take place over ends, as opposed to means (although even when the discussion has to do with means, stories can highlight the alternative courses of action and what might happen under each).

Davidson turns to the practical advice on storytelling available within the grey literature - often in the form of practical toolkits. With some variations, most of this literature focuses on a similar group of factors or steps that must be considered as part of a strategic plan to ensure policy impact. These include:

• Identifying the policy issue;
• Identifying and mapping the audience;
• Selecting an appropriate messenger;
• Getting the timing right and understanding the rhythms of the policy process;
• Building relationships and networks, and mapping the broader political context;
• Developing a theory of change;
• Developing a communication strategy along with appropriate messages;
• Developing a clear monitoring and evaluation strategy.

Once a strategy has been developed, the messaging can be worked on with a clear audience in mind. The next section provides a brief overview of some the practical storytelling advice that is available in the grey literature. In brief:

• The goal of the storytelling will vary, depending on the strategic context. Is the aim to convey the importance of a particular course of action, or is it simply to get an issue onto the top of the political agenda so that it gets the attention it deserves? VanDeCarr (2013) is one of the writers cited; he outlines several functions that he believes stories can fulfil, including organising (stories can help mobilise people around an issue), advocating (stories can act as powerful persuasive tools), and educating (stories can simply help people better understand an issue and enable informed dialogue). Through these functions, stories can help bring about changes in attitudes, behaviour, culture, and policy.
• With regard to story structure, researchers should aim to tell thematic stories - those that elicit social attributions of responsibility and point to systemic solutions - rather than episodic ones that make individualistic attributions of responsibility and thus point to individualistic solutions. Furthermore, according to Ganz (2011), the plot of an effective story is structured around the elements of challenge, choice, and outcome. A character is moving towards some sort of goal, but is faced with a challenge. To move forward, the character must make a choice, which leads to an outcome. Ganz teaches a particular model of storytelling, which he calls "Public Narrative", that can be useful in "outside track" situations. VanDeCarr (2015) offers tips for constructing a good story that include: establishing a protagonist (whether an individual or a community), identifying what the protagonist wants or needs and the obstacles in their way, distilling a turning point or moment of change, and wrapping up with an ending that points the audience in the desired direction. It is also important that the story highlights the stakes involved - what stands to be lost or won. Davidson cites a range of organisations focusing specifically on providing advice on story construction to scientists and other academic researchers.
• In their book Made to Stick, Heath and Heath (2008) highlight several elements of impactful or "sticky" messages: simplicity, unexpectedness, concreteness, credibility, and emotion. Imagery and metaphor are also deemed vitally important.
• The way in which numbers are handled within stories requires particular thought and attention, Davidson argues. Baron (2010) provides tips on ways to talk about numbers that are easily grasped, memorable, and faithful to the data. For example, she recommends that in communication with lay audiences, scientists should sum up and simplify, use frequencies instead of probabilities, compare and contrast (explaining what a number means by putting it into context), and talk about magnitude rather than significance.
• Several resources highlight the importance and effectiveness of visual storytelling, offering detailed guidance on use of photography, graphics, and data visualisations. For example, Resource Media (2016) offers tips based on their own field tests, such as: use images the audience can recognise as local; include elements that help viewers relate personally; avoid images that spark interests unrelated to the key ask; and juxtapose visuals to create contrast.

Davidson next presents four few case studies to illustrate some ways in which storytelling can be used to influence policy. These examples include:

• Health Action International (HAI) Africa's efforts to stop stockouts through a Pill Check Week - This case is an example of the creation of an initiative making use of text messaging and online mapping tools that played into the media’s preference for episodic storytelling (focusing on particular concrete instances, such as single events or individuals) - only to make use of the resulting media attention (press conferences) in order to tell a thematic story. The initiative also made effective use of visual storytelling to establish the credibility of evidence that policymakers had previously been able to dismiss as inadequate. The numbers conveyed were not precise measures of the extent of the problem, but the numbers in visual form (as red flags clustered on a map) effectively conveyed the widespread nature of the problem.
• The Global Fund Advocates Network (GFAN)'s Here I Am Campaign - This is an example of storytelling that put a human face/s to anonymous statistics - in this case, with the aim of rewarding decision-makers for their financial support (by showing concrete examples of success) in order to encourage them to continue and renew their existing efforts. Each individual episodic story (198 short video testimonies of people alive thanks to the Global Fund to Fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria) was placed within a thematic context through the use of graphics at the beginning and end of each video, while the large number of episodic stories from around the world, also served to tell a broader, thematic story.
• The advocacy organisation interACT's use of personal experience as evidence - This case illustrates the strategic choice of storytelling medium in order to give legitimacy to voices that are often ignored and help ensure that people's personal experience is taken seriously as evidence, by a skeptical audience. (interACT accepted the invitation to have stories of intersex people featured in the academic journal, Narrative Inquiry in Bioethics and then subsequently pursued a grant that enabled them to purchase the rights to the stories, which they republished (as the free-of-charge Normalizing Intersex) in a format and layout that is more accessible and appealing to lay audiences.) As with the previous example, it illustrates the use of a large number of episodic stories in order to convey a thematic, systemic story.
• The Open Society Foundations (OSF)'s work with game designer Lien Tran to produce a role-play board game, named Cops and Rubbers - This example shows the use of storytelling in game form, in order to assist audience members to identify with the protagonist (sex worker)'s plight. The quotes used within the game include concrete, sense-based details that convey the characters' lived reality and that convey the systemic nature of the problem (problematic laws), rather than being encouraged to attach blame to individual behaviour. The game makes use of the key elements of story outlined earlier - the protagonists have a goal (to make x amount of money), face challenges, and must make choices - but the outcomes turn out not to be the result of individual choices, but of a system that places obstacles in the way.

Davidson concludes by suggesting that, for a scientist or social researcher interested in exploring storytelling as a communication tool, many of the resources and toolkits mentioned in this paper offer a good place to start. His hope is that the paper has served to highlight the wealth of resources that exists, enabling those interested to combine the insights available within the grey literature with those offered by more academic policy studies.