HIGHLIGHTS

  • ideas42 partnered with D.C. residents and local organizations to create “Our Truth, Our Stories,” an event that amplified community narratives to challenge harmful stereotypes about poverty.
  • Behavioral insights informed our approach to interrogate/examine false beliefs and reinforce themes of solidarity and dignity.
  • The event strengthened connections among participants, encouraging dialogue and reflection on poverty’s true causes and the importance of collective care in solving it.

The Challenge

Some of the most deeply held narratives are about poverty: why it exists, why it persists, and what should be done about it. Many of these narratives are based on demonstrably false and outdated tropes that make their way into the public imagination and directly influence how we vote, and in turn how policies are designed and implemented. They also influence how we treat others and how we think about ourselves. When policies and programs are based on false narratives, they’re less effective at addressing poverty, and in some cases, can perpetuate or exacerbate it.

 

Our Approach

Since 2020, ideas42 has been collaborating with Washington, D.C. residents and local organizations to use insights from behavioral science to shift away from myths about the experience of poverty toward more accurate narratives of collective care, solidarity, and generosity. Our work in D.C. contributes to a multi-year, multi-city effort across the United States that is transforming harmful narratives about poverty and ultimately contributing to narratives that center agency, dignity, and collective well-being.

In Washington, D.C., we formed a Local Narrative Team (LNT) composed of four local organizations working to promote economic mobility and health equity. Together, we conducted local and national surveys, qualitative interviews, and open-ended questionnaires to uncover narratives in D.C.

While D.C. residents endorsed harmful narratives about poverty at lower rates than the national average, we identified two highly endorsed narratives about poverty: meritocracy and welfare exploitation. The meritocracy narrative suggests that success can be achieved through hard work alone, while the welfare exploitation narrative claims that people intentionally misuse the system.

Next, we co-designed a narrative change campaign to shift away from meritocracy and welfare exploitation, replacing them with authentic community narratives.

 

Designing "Our Truth, Our Stories"

Working together with local organizations and residents, we  created an alternative narrative to the false and harmful narratives about poverty. This counter narrative reflects the experiences, perspectives, and values of the Southeast community in D.C., who are most affected by these narratives. To achieve this, we leveraged three behavioral science principles to create "Our Truth, Our Stories": A cultural intervention that centered the stories of those with lived experiences of poverty and amplified community values such as solidarity, generosity, and standing in one's truth. Our behavioral design principles included:

  • First-person storytelling to combat fundamental attribution error or the tendency to attribute others’ behaviors to their character rather than external circumstances beyond their control.
  • Unifying cultural elements to address in-group/out-group bias or favoring people perceived as belonging to our own group (in-group) while having more negative attitudes towards members of other groups (out-group).
  • Postcard reminders and guided reflection to celebrate collective care and shift away from negativity bias or the tendency to weigh negative events more heavily than positive ones in our minds.

The celebratory event featured storytelling, facilitated conversations, and the work of local artists.

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Our Impact

Our evaluation showed a modest decrease in harmful narrative endorsement among attendees, which was supported by qualitative feedback highlighting an increased sense of solidarity and community connectedness.

Quantitative results were not conclusive due to the small sample size. However, qualitative feedback provided a more in-depth understanding of the event's impact; storytellers expressed a feeling of closeness and bonding among the group, appreciating the connections that were developed during the workshops, while attendees shared positive feedback on the event's emotional resonance, noting how it facilitated a deeper understanding and empathy towards the experiences of others.

Read more about our impact here.

 

Takeaway

In our next phase of work, we will continue shifting harmful narratives related to poverty, with a particular focus on changing narratives around gun violence to increase support for prevention efforts that prioritize community investment.

Simultaneously, we are enhancing our methods for measuring how narratives show up and shift over time. This includes the use of techniques like natural language processing to analyze how narratives circulate in mainstream media, alongside audience segmentation based on psychological and sociological variables.

Interested in learning more about our work applying behavioral science to economic justice? If you’d like to work with us, reach out to us at ematos@ideas42.org