Our research explored the question: What would it take for narrative change work to have more real-world impact?
Our Communications Director Nicky Hawkins reflects on what we’ve been hearing – and what we’re recommending.
There’s a lot of talk of “changing the narrative” in charities, campaigns and among creatives.
This is for good reason: stories matter. They shape how we see the world, how we act, who we trust – and what we ask, expect or tolerate from those in power. To change our world we need to change how we see our world and this means changing the stories we hear about it.
But actually changing narratives in practice? This can feel far fetched. A nice idea but something that’s beyond anyone’s reach. I’ve often picked up on a sense that narratives should change. But it’s not felt to be something that we can actually do.
The good news is that the last few years have seen a surge in research and expertise in the field of narrative change. Lots of time, energy, thinking and resource is going into exploring how narratives work and how they could be changed. Our recent research explored this emerging field in the UK.
The bad news is that narrative change remains very hard work. And the burgeoning research and expertise has sometimes reinforced the tendency for us to talk a lot – but not necessarily do. We can miss out the bit where we bring new stories and experiences to people via their soaps, songs and news feeds – and via cherished institutions like our or NHS or religious institutions.
What keeps this work stuck?
There are good reasons we can get stuck. Narrative change is complex. It draws on a range of academic disciplines dedicated to better understanding people, cultures, societies and politics. It invites us to research and reflect. To contemplate and confer. Turning all of this into tangible actions can feel like a leap.
This work can be inaccessible. We heard this a lot in our research and it chimes with my experience. When I first set out to understand this area better my request for guidance was met with multiple impenetrable academic textbooks.
Given that narrative change work is all about communicating and connecting with people, it’s ironic that it comes with its own bewildering jargon – we include a long list of terms we encountered during our research. This creates a real barrier to wide learning and action.
The lack of diversity in the narrative change space also holds this work back. This emerging field is largely made up of white, middle class, highly educated professionals, limiting our ability to ignite the diverse, representative and inspiring stories we know we need to see. To change narratives we need more diverse groups of people collaborating, leading and delivering this work.
Making the audacious actionable: the to-do list
There was a palpable sense of potential among our interviewees – and remarkable agreement about what should be next for funders and practitioners in this space:
- Invest. Durably shifting the deeply entrenched narratives that harm people, communities and our collective future is a big job. This needs to be properly funded over longer timeframes.
- Be flexible. Flexible and innovative use of funding, including more funding that goes directly to shaping and creating content. Bringing this work to life is the work – and funders need to invest in voices and creativity as well as theory and insight.
- Seek out and support a more diverse pool of storytellers, content creators and narrative strategists.
- Make this work accessible and useful to more people. Provide more user-friendly training and resources. Make it easier for people to learn about insights and best practice.
- Foster connection, collaboration and learning. This work relies on collaboration which takes time and resource.
Some thank yous
At Heard we work as part of an ecosystem – a huge and varied extended team. Partnerships and collaborations are critical to our work and to the world of narrative change. We’re so grateful to all who spoke to us and helped us as we explored these important questions, especially to our advisors Rinku Sen, Mandy Van Deven, Abigail Scott-Paul, Adeela Warley and Ella Saltmarshe and to Cassie Robinson who commissioned this research in her previous role at the National Lottery Community Fund. Most of all we’d like to thank our expert research partner Shelley Dorrans.
This article was originally published on 16 June 2022.
