Storytelling to Enhance the Value of Research

The article by Neta et al.¹ introduces a much-needed structure for advancing discussions about how researchers might build a bridge between practice, policy, and research. Each phase is outlined with important factors to consider. I appreciate reading a conclusion that emphasizes the importance of recognizing (1) the interrelatedness of all issues described in the framework and (2) the risk of “guideline fatigue” when researchers face an expanding number of recommendations that could hinder the use of reporting guidelines.

Without diminishing the contributions of this article, the authors may have overlooked a critical need for researchers to step back as scholars in writing reports with a narrative voice that is both informative and compelling or engaging. Reports designed to influence public policy may need to be written with great attention to communicating a human story that offers a solution.

The art of storytelling may be more than the sum of tasks involved in reporting relevant information to stakeholders or bringing together multiple stakeholders to the planning table. It is about writing reports in a way that inspires readers to care enough to move forward. It is about showing readers rather than telling readers what it is like to be in a given situation. It is about opening a window for readers to enter a world experienced by research participants, such as the dilemmas faced by parents who encounter any number of access-to-care problems when caring for their children with disabilities. This may also include the need to uncover systemic struggles faced by organizations that serve families of children with disabilities, including the challenges that might come with interagency or intra-agency collaborations.^2,3 Aside from the merits of research methodology and the politics of political timing, one of the greatest challenges in disseminating research for public policy use may ultimately rest in how the story is packaged for presentation.