Wed 2017-03-29
Many studies are finding that the best way to frame an argument is to use their values. The studies have a simple format: they take an issue like climate change, and describe it to a conservative in liberal-sounding
First, these studies consistently ignore team dynamics. All of these studies conflate liberal values with liberal team-identifiers. What if you had a Christian religious source that has at least mildly conservative team-identifiers request compassion for refugees? Are these studies really getting at values, or team identity? Because if it's team identity, then Hillary Clinton would completely fail if she just used more neutral conservative values. What liberals should be doing then is finding conservative-sounding people who agree with them on each issue.
Second, these studies happen in an instant. People read an article and say how they feel. That's not a real framing campaign. If you want people to agree with you, George Lakoff recommends using your values -- over and over, with clarity and truth. You can't do "over and over" in a one-article study. The science isn't studying the topic it pretends to study.