Storytelling for Researchers

The document argues that storytelling can bridge the gap between research and practice by making evidence emotionally resonant and memorable for decision-makers. It outlines the cognitive benefits of narratives, provides frameworks for crafting scientific stories—such as the 'story arc' and specific plot types—and offers a curated list of tools and resources to help researchers translate data into compelling narratives without compromising scientific accuracy.

• A significant amount of research is underutilized; World Bank analysis from 2008 to 2012 showed that nearly one-third of its reports were never downloaded, and 40 percent were downloaded fewer than 100 times.
• Storytelling is an effective tool for research uptake because it makes audiences emotionally receptive to facts, increasing the likelihood that they will remember and act on information. In climate change literature, research indicates that articles with more narrative abstracts are cited more frequently and are more common in higher-impact journals.
• Researchers can translate data into narratives by using a story arc consisting of an introduction, question, conflict, buildup, and resolution, and by applying specific plot structures such as 'Overcoming the Monster' for research against odds or the 'monomyth' (hero's journey) to illustrate the research process.
• To ensure a story is effective for a decision-maker, researchers should consider four key questions: identifying the specific target audience (micro-targeting), clarifying the 'big idea' or purpose, understanding barriers to action, and ensuring the story provokes empathy.

APA

L., T., S.L., M., H., B., T., D., N., D., M., M., Y., M., D., W., & L., G. (2020). Storytelling for Researchers. WWF International. https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/1042/3slbbhtf2r_ACES_Briefing_Storytelling.pdf

Chicago

L., Tanner,, Mahajan, S.L., Becker, H., Demirdjian, T., DeMello, N., Mills, M., Masuda, Y., Wilkie, D., and Glew, L. Storytelling for Researchers. WWF International, 2020. https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/1042/3slbbhtf2r_ACES_Briefing_Storytelling.pdf.

Wikipedia

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BibTeX

@techreport{l2020storytelling, author = {L., Tanner, and S.L., Mahajan, and H., Becker, and T., Demirdjian, and N., DeMello, and M., Mills, and Y., Masuda, and D., Wilkie, and L., Glew,}, title = {{Storytelling for Researchers}}, institution = {WWF International}, year = {2020}, url = {https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/1042/3slbbhtf2r_ACES_Briefing_Storytelling.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }