Course 7 Preview

Building Narrative Power

Stories and ideas shape societies and represent our values. We can communicate narratives that build health equity. Looking for the full Course 7? Access Course 7 here.

Course 7: Building Narrative Power

Learning Objectives:

We must engage in changing the structure of society to eliminate health inequity. Structural social change is a central requirement to enable action on the root causes of health inequity. One way that we can engage in structural social change is by building narrative power. Narrative power is the ability to influence those who set the incentives, rules, values, and norms that shape society and human behavior.1 These rules and norms are often connected to the unobserved root causes of health inequities. This course examines how narrative power can expose harmful dominant narratives and disrupt the influence they have on how we practice public health, and the decisions that determine our ability to more effectively confront the root causes of injustice that produce health inequity. It explores the need to develop compelling narratives for public health, in alliance with committed cultural organizers and community organizers to sustain those narratives.


Course 7 Highlights

Screenshot of Corporate Euphemisms vs Clarification
Interactive
:
11min
The free-market narrative obscures the role of corporate decision-making in shaping our social and economic conditions.
screenshot of constraints page
Screenshot of the reveal card interactive: Shifting the Public Health Narrative
Interactive
:
5min
Public health’s own narratives, informed by harmful dominant narratives, can make action against root causes difficult.

Next Steps

Illustration of a group of people of various genders and races stand and sit around a table conversing
Start a group

Learn together about the roots of health inequity by starting a group for your organization. Our course provides step-by-step guidance on how to facilitate healthy dialogue and exploration.

Illustration of a black man sitting on the ground with a laptop open in his lap
Learn independently

Enroll in the Independent Learners group and complete the course with a community of learners interested in health equity.