Communication

The role of frames and framing in communication and change

Edited by Gabriele Bammer

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What are frames and framing? What roles do they play in making change happen? What are some essential principles of framing? Can framing be used to manipulate people?

This editor’s addition draws on the 2014 updated edition of George Lakoff’s classic work “Don’t think of an elephant.” Lakoff provided these ideas in the US context of the contest between progressive and conservative ideas, and here they are adapted to be more general, including highlighting issues relevant to dealing with complex problems.

What are frames?

There is no simple definition of frames, with key elements including that they are embedded in neural circuits, that they are linked to morals or values, and that they are evoked by language. Lakoff highlights that:

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Metalogues and their role in communities of practice

By Janet J. McIntyre-Mills

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Janet J. McIntyre-Mills (biography)

What is a metalogue? How can metalogues support the work of communities of practice?

A metalogue is a series of asynchronous, iterative conversations, and commentary on transcripts from dialogues, to enable exploring diverse ways of knowing in a community of practice (Wenger et al., 2009).

The term ‘metalogue’ draws on the work of Gregory Bateson (1972) and Nora Bateson (2021) to encourage people to think ecologically and to avoid what Shiva (2012) calls ‘monocultures of the mind’ when addressing areas of concern. In other words to think about relationships within context and to foster ‘an ecology of mind’ with members of a community of practice. The aim is to address an area of shared concern by pooling ideas in a reciprocal manner in order to achieve an agreed goal with people from similar or diverse backgrounds spanning spaces and places.

How can metalogues support the work of communities of practice?

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Structured dialogical design

By Yiannis Laouris

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Yiannis Laouris (biography)

How can heterogeneous groups reach consensus on complex issues in a reasonably limited amount of time? What kind of process allows for meaningful community involvement that is genuinely participatory and democratic?

Structured Dialogical Design is a process that achieves both these aims. The key aspects of the process and steps are presented.

Triggering questions

Structured Dialogical Design processes are always structured around triggering questions, which frame the discussions and help define the stakeholders of the issues under consideration. The idea is that those primarily concerned with and/or affected by the issues under consideration should become the primary participants.

For Structured Dialogical Design all stakeholders (or their representatives) concerned with the issues at stake must be included, including those seemingly without a voice (which many of us may not be hearing and are not responsive to listening to, such as the voice of nature).

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Understanding exclusion, sharing benefits and building in reflection in transdisciplinary collaborations

By Annisa Triyanti, Corinne Lamain, Jessica Duncan and Jillian Student

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1. Annisa Triyanti (biography)
2. Corinne Lamain (biography)
3. Jessica Duncan (biography)
4. Jillian Student (biography)

How are ways of knowing excluded in transdisciplinary collaborations? How can transdisciplinary collaborations provide fair compensation for all who dedicate time and effort to the collaboration? How can transdisciplinary processes be made more fair, inclusive and equitable by including reflective processes?

Transdisciplinary collaborations aim to bring together different forms of knowledge, for example academic knowledge with knowledge of practitioners, activists, community groups, etc. Important questions to unpack the politics of transdisciplinary collaborations include:

  • Who decides which societal challenges are addressed?
  • Who has the most access and power to mobilize actions and resources?
  • Who decides who will be involved?
  • Who receives benefits?

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Eight tips for collaborations between researchers and visual artists

By Erin Walsh and Alice Wetherell

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1. Erin Walsh (biography) (photo credit: Kristina Kraskov)
2. Alice Wetherell (biography)

Visual abstracts, media releases, infographics, posters, and publications….

More and more often, to enhance their outreach, engagement and impact, researchers need to present their work in a visual way. For some, this can feel like being asked to present their work in a different language. Not everyone has the time or the skills to translate their research into visual form. Working with visual artists can help, but sometimes the barrier between metaphorical text and visual language can make effective collaboration difficult.

What are some easy steps for both researchers and visual artists to make this collaborative process work smoothly?

We are, respectively, a scientific illustrator and multimedia artist. Between us, we have over twenty years of experience helping researchers illustrate their work.

Here are eight tips that we’ve found can make collaboration between researchers and visual artists more efficient, productive, and enjoyable. Seven of the eight tips apply to researchers; five of the eight to visual artists.

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Integration and Implementation Sciences (i2S) 3.0: An updated framework to foster expertise for tackling complex problems

By Gabriele Bammer

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Gabriele Bammer (biography)

How can researchers interested in tackling complex societal and environmental problems easily find and draw on what they need from inter- and transdisciplinary approaches, systems thinking, action research, post-normal science and a range of other ways of combining disciplinary and stakeholder perspectives in order to bring about improvements? How can the necessary expertise be fostered and supported in a systematic way?

These are the questions that I have been addressing for more than 20 years in considering whether a new discipline – Integration and Implementation Sciences or i2S – could provide a way forward. i2S 3.0 is the third conceptualization of this discipline and the current version is summarised in the figure below.

At this stage in its development, i2S is focused on providing a framework and conduit for sharing concepts, methods, processes and other tools that are currently fragmented across inter- and transdisciplinarity, systems thinking, action research, post-normal science and other approaches.

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Not just in our heads: Embodied and creative practices for creating connection

By Corinne Lamain and Jillian Student

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1. Corinne Lamain (biography)
2. Jillian Student (biography)

How can embodied and creative practices, such as dance and poetry, be used to bridge different forms of knowledge?

Transdisciplinarity requires crossing many boundaries, including knowledge fields, perspectives, languages, personalities, and geographic areas. This is often somewhat uncomfortable. Arts-based and embodied approaches can support creative thinking, perspective-taking and communication. For some, these art-based methods feel more natural than for others, but we suggest that the willingness to leave our comfort zone (‘embracing the discomfort’) opens up space for shared vulnerability that is much needed for integrating perspectives. Moreover, doing these practices under time pressure helps remove the tendency to self-criticise and strive for perfection in artistic expression. To be fair, creative practices are not everyone’s style. It is important to note that the effort is not about co-creating beautiful artwork, but rather to facilitate alternative means of expression.

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Living labs are learning labs: Creating and mapping conditions for social learning in transdisciplinary research

By Marina Knickel and Guido Caniglia

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1. Marina Knickel (biography)
2. Guido Caniglia (biography)

What is required for social learning in living labs? How can social learning be mapped in living labs?

Living labs are conceived as spaces for social learning across difference in real-world situations through transdisciplinary research with diverse actors. We argue that the following conditions, often intertwined and building on each other, are required to set up living labs as learning spaces:

1. Epistemic: Learning to foster knowledge pluralism

We suggest supporting research and practice partners in developing a capacity for knowledge pluralism as the ability to appreciate and work with multiple kinds of knowledge and ways of knowing. Knowledge pluralism could be fostered by learning to recognise differences in knowledge, perspectives and socio-cultural identities as strengths and by strategically valorising them.

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Participatory video

By Pamela Richardson

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Pamela Richardson (biography)

What is participatory video? How can it enhance participatory research? What’s required to make participatory video work well?

Participatory video involves the co-production of videos in a group setting and can be used for community development, research and advocacy. The focus here is on research and, as a tool for communication and reflection, participatory video can support many different steps along a research journey, including:

  • co-creation of video-based funding proposals or the development of group plans,
  • project documentation and reflection,
  • participatory monitoring and evaluation,
  • dissemination of “best practices” or communication of results and lessons learned.

In these ways, video-making by participants can support both internal and external communication processes within a research project.

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Learning to use Appreciative Inquiry

By Rachel Arnold

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Rachel Arnold (biography)

What is Appreciative Inquiry? How does one shift from research that focuses on problems and negative details to the strengths-based approach of Appreciative Inquiry? What are the benefits and requirements of such an approach? And what is it about Appreciative Inquiry that fosters change?

Appreciative Inquiry, developed by David Cooperrider and Suresh Srivastva, is a five-step process (originally four steps), as shown in the figure below. The steps are:

  1. Definition – deciding what to study is critical in moving humans in a positive direction
  2. Discovery – discovering and appreciating best experiences
  3. Dream – imagining the ideal – how it would be if those valued experiences happened most of the time
  4. Design – defining the dream more clearly and discussing steps towards realizing it
  5. Destiny – implementing wide ranging actions, improvisation, learning, and adjustments.

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Knowledge translation and multilingualism

By Chalani Ranwala

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Chalani Ranwala (biography)

How can knowledge translation be made more effective in countries where multiple languages are spoken, including many countries in the Global South, as well as countries with large immigrant or refugee populations?

Anywhere in the world, knowledge translation is facilitated through a process of communicating messages to an audience, who will ultimately use that information to inform their own opinions and actions. However, the way that information is perceived, digested, discussed, and passed on is shaped by the environment in which an audience lives. For example, factors such as education, economic status, political climate and cultural norms play a part in how we consume information. Here I focus on one factor – language – building on my work in research communication in Sri Lanka.

Language has a significant influence on the way knowledge translation takes place in bilingual and multilingual countries.

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Challenging societal barriers: The power of metaphors and analogies in addressing stigma

By Alemu Tesfaye

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Alemu Tesfaye (biography)

How can we overcome stigma, regardless of whether it’s associated with health conditions, socio-economic status, or individual identities? How can we use metaphors and analogies to convey how stigma hinders effective dialogue, intervention, and inclusion, contributing to a cycle of fear and misunderstanding, and discouraging affected individuals from seeking help or intervention due to fear of judgment, discrimination, or isolation?

Metaphors and analogies are powerful cognitive tools that shape our understanding and perception of the world around us. We employ both in our everyday language and thought processes, often without realizing it, and they heavily influence how we interpret new experiences and information. They allow us to create meaning, understand complex concepts, and connect with others in more profound ways.

In my work, I have developed the following metaphors and analogies for grasping the silent battles of individuals with two neglected tropical diseases – podoconiosis and scabies – as a vital first stride towards tearing down the wall of stigma, neglect, and discrimination that surrounds these conditions.

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