From Storytelling and Narrative Persuasion to Storylistening and Narrative Evidence

Abstract

This paper proposes that the uses of narrative in policy fall within two categories: storytelling to persuade, and storylistening to inform. First, we outline the mechanisms of narrative persuasion and review the risks and benefits of using storytelling in science communication and science evidence provision. We then turn from storytelling and narrative persuasion, to storylistening and narrative evidence. We present the theory of storylistening, focusing on the four cognitive functions of stories, and give two examples of storylistening in practice drawn from recent collaborative projects gathering narrative evidence to inform nuclear policy, and future uses of Space. We conclude by pointing to the need for plural, innovative and novel evidence (PINE) in policy-making.