A Narrative Policy Framework: Clear Enough to Be Wrong?

TLDR

Narratives are increasingly studied empirically across disciplines, yet in public policy they are largely treated as poststructural concepts outside empirical inquiry. The paper argues that policy narratives can be empirically studied and introduces the Narrative Policy Framework, outlining seven hypotheses for future research. The Narrative Policy Framework defines narrative structure and content, analyzes micro‑level effects on individual attitudes and public opinion, and proposes methods for studying group and elite behavior.

Abstract

Narratives are increasingly subject to empirical study in a wide variety of disciplines. However, in public policy, narratives are thought of almost exclusively as a poststructural concept outside the realm of empirical study. In this paper, after reviewing the major literature on narratives, we argue that policy narratives can be studied using systematic empirical approaches and introduce a "Narrative Policy Framework" (NPF) for elaboration and empirical testing. The NPF defines narrative structure and narrative content. We then discuss narrative at the micro level of analysis and examine how narratives impact individual attitudes and hence aggregate public opinion. Similarly, we examine strategies for the studying of group and elite behavior using the NPF. We conclude with seven hypotheses for researchers interested in elaborating the framework.