Canadian Government Executive - Volume 24 - Issue 07

VALENCE Is the issue a problem or challenge? A danger or opportunity? Politically left-wing or right- wing? These are all questions about valence , or where an issue falls on a continuumwith emotional or ideological resonance. For example, it is easier to shoot down a proposal by describing it in terms of potential losses (negative valence) instead of gains (positive valence) given humans’ loss-aversion bias. REFERENCE POINTS What features of an issue, argument, or claim are most salient? On what basis are those features evaluated? What criteria are used? What comparisons are made, both explicitly and implicitly? Many ideas are evaluated in relative terms. Moreover, the associations we make can put an idea in a favourable or unfavourable light. Thus, persuasuon is often about picking the right reference points . PREMISES John Dewey pointed out, “A problemwell- defined is a problem half solved.” That is why those with a stake in a particular solution will dwell on the problematique . What type of issue is it? Environmental or economic? Political or legal? What are the basic facts of the case? Core assumptions? Reasons for caring? What values apply? The answers narrow down what is considered relevant. Framing contests come with a curse for communication. When decision- makers negotiate plans and policies around the table, they share under- standings of issues at a tacit (unstated) level. Yet those who were not privy to the conversation will not share those implicit frames. When com- municating more broadly, messages have to be explicitly reframed for the outside audience too, not treated as self-evident. That is unlikely if decision-makers are only mildly attentive to how things were framed in the first place. CONTEXT Executives tell stories, parables, and caution- ary tales. These narratives set the stage by describing the players and their motivations. They fill in the backstory with important historical considerations. They describe the predicament in an neuanced way. All told, these retellings highlight important issues and situate themwithin a bigger picture, while giving that picture greater coherence. Executive meetings are full of conversations aimed at getting everyone “on the same page” by negotiating a shared understand- ing. Highly persuasive executives will try to influence others by reframing issues; that is, by changing the language and implicit mental models that help a group make sense of things. These conversations are called framing contests (Kaplan, ����). Have you ever wondered why executives can get so preoccupied with setting context, word-smithing, defining terms, and tone-policing around an issue? Such talk may seem overly finicky but without a shared frame of reference there is a risk people will talk past one another. Moreover, gaining early acceptance of a particular “spin” on issues can have an enduring impact on an agenda. This graphic descibes the main features of these contests. R��������: Sarah Kaplan, “Framing Contests,” Organization Science , vol. ��, no. � (����), pp. ���-���. FOUNDATION BACKDROP How the problem or predicament is defined at the level of assumption How the smaller pieces relate to a much bigger picture ... b�t a�s� a 3�% c�a�c� o� f�i�u�e! Th�r� i� a 7�% c�a�c� o� s�CceSs! T�E GL�Ss �S H�LF-F�Ll, N�T H�LF E�P�Y. �T’S S�MPL�, A�T�ALlY. �T’S ALl A�O�T ... R�ALlY? W�A� A�E Y�U� P��O�S? �T’S A� “X” P�L�C� N�T A “Y” P�L�C�. T�A� R�M�N�S M� O� A�O�H�R P�O�E�T ... A B�G D�A�? C�MP�R�D T� W�A�? J�D�E �T B� T�E�E T�REe C��T�R�A ... Th�t o�l� m�k�s s�n�e i� y�u a�s� c�n�i�e� ... F�O� T��S P�R�P�C��V�, �T LOoK� D�FfE�E�T. T�A�’S N�T T�E W�O�E S�O�Y. 16 / Canadian Government Executive // February/March 2019