Seeing Context through Metaphor: Using Communications Research to Bring a Social Determinants Perspective to Public Thinking about Child Abuse and Neglect

Abstract

Human beings think in metaphor and reason through analogy. The metaphors through which we think influence how we understand and feel about social issues as well as the actions that we see as appropriate and important. Metaphors can be used to increase understanding of how issues work and increase the salience of a given issue, build support for programs and policies necessary to address the issue, and instigate demand for change and civic action. In this paper, we use a mixed methods research design, including brief qualitative interviews, experimental surveys, and focus groups, to test the ability of different metaphors to influence public understanding of the social determinants of child abuse and neglect in the UK. We find one metaphor in particular that improves people’s understanding of the social causes of child maltreatment and increases support for structural solutions. This metaphor can be used to build support for preventative public health solutions.

‘Mental Wealth’ and ‘Mental Fitness’: The discursive construction of mental health in the Australian news media during the COVID‐19 pandemic

“…For example, metaphors for mental health which have less individualising effects could be explored, such as a metaphor of ‘levelness/balance’ (Kendall‐Taylor & Stevens, 2017). Relatedly, an ‘overloaded’ metaphor, suggesting that a problem is due to a person being overloaded with burdens or pressures, has been found to be effective in increasing appreciation of social determinants (Kendall‐Taylor & Stanley, 2018). Metaphors such as these are broadly consistent with a life stress theory of public well‐being (Fisher, 2019), and could be more helpful in prompting needed changes in society, than metaphors foregrounding personal effort and strength.…”