The Art and Science of Framing

“Since 1999, a rare collaboration between communications scholars and practitioners at FrameWorks Institute has worked to develop a new approach to explaining social issues to the public. Strategic Frame Analysis is a proprietary approach to communications research and practice that pays attention to the public's deeply held worldviews and widely held assumptions.” Listen to this E-Workshop to learn “more about Strategic Frame Analysis and how it can be applied to non-profit communications and advocacy.”

“This Toolkit was created by the FrameWorks Institute to help issues advocates learn and apply new communications thinking to frame their work for better public understanding and engagement. We hope that these tools will inspire new thinking and new techniques among policy experts and advocates who seek to resolve social problems.”

In this blog, Nat Kendall-Taylor, CEO of the FrameWorks Institute, and Sean Gibbons, CEO of The Communications Network, explore “how [the way in which] we frame social issues profoundly influences our understanding of them, and how we think and talk about solutions.” They believe that “to effect broad and transformational change…social change leaders of all stripes must develop a deep understanding of how frames work. Framing is what we choose to say and how we choose to say it. But it’s also what we leave unsaid. It’s the values we use to build support for our cause.”

“Frames matter because they can foster certain understandings and hinder others. Often, all it takes is a single word or image to activate an entire frame that then determines the deeper meaning of that word or image. Once activated, frames trigger emotions, associations, values, judgments, and causal explanations. They create tracks for a train of thought. And once on that track, it’s hard to get off.” Visit this webpage to learn more about framing from the Berkeley Media Studies Group.

“Framing is the process of making choices about how to communicate – where to start, what to emphasize, how to explain it, and what to leave unsaid. In Strategic Frame Analysis, the various points where communicators make these choices – intentionally or not - are called ‘frame elements.’ While frame elements work together, it can also be helpful to think of each of them as doing a certain communications ‘job’. Check out these job descriptions to learn more.”