Rachel Carson revolutionized the way in which science arrived at the eyes of any curious but unexpert reader: she was convinced that literature and science inhabit in a vital symbiosis as they both illuminate the nature of reality. As Maria Popova (in Figuring) shares “This may seem like an obvious truth today, but in 1926 it was a countercultural notion.”
It may still be considered unconventional in the realm of evidence-informed policy/knowledge translation (or however you prefer to refer to it, we at P&I discuss the connection between knowledge and policy). Despite the widespread acknowledgment of the importance of narratives and the power of storytelling, we tend to exclude creative fields from most of our discussions, activities, and projects. This leads me to question whether our perceived stagnation or frustration in advancing the utilization of knowledge in policy may be due to overlooking the potential contributions of literature, poetry, and various other art forms, creations, and imaginations.
Many times, when my family, friends, or new acquaintances inquire about my occupation, they struggle to comprehend my response. This highlights the vast disconnect between my daily work and their familiar "real" lives. Am I the only one who feels this way? I try to explain it concisely, mentioning terms like research, public policies, policy influence, and advocating for policymakers to base their decisions on research... but this seems foreign to many individuals in my country, Argentina. How can I bridge this gap?
Embark on an exciting journey where the brilliant brain takes center stage! For decades, this remarkable organ has been the driving force in our field, shaping the way we craft and execute processes to create, share, and leverage evidence, research, and knowledge. But here's the twist - are we truly empowering both the creative right and analytical left hemispheres to join forces and unleash their full potential?
Today, I invite you to consider whether it's time to give the right hemisphere a more prominent place in our field, equal to the space traditionally occupied by the left hemisphere. The left hemisphere has long dominated in areas such as culture, science, technology, reason, logic, and rules. On the other hand, the right brain is associated with creativity, emotions, and intuition. It also plays a crucial role in various cognitive functions like attention, processing visual shapes and patterns, and spatial abilities. Perhaps it's time to give it the attention it deserves.
Source: Rossen, Shaina at Atlassian (2023)
The alchemy of two hemispheres working together
In the 1960s, Perry conducted research on the distinct functions of both hemispheres by severing the corpus callosum in cats and monkeys, leading to extensive studies on the brain's functions and interconnections. It is now understood that certain brain functions are more localized to one hemisphere, but individuals do not have a dominant side that influences their personalities and behaviors.
Still, the metaphor is valuable for potential new developments in our field. Going further in this exploration, there is an old-dated but very insightful article by Henry Mintzberg where in reference to how leaders make decisions he shares that there are “three fundamental modes of selection [that] can be distinguished—analysis, judgment, and bargaining. The first involves the systematic evaluation of options in terms of their consequences on stated organizational goals; the second is a process in the mind of a single decision maker; and the third involves negotiations between different decision makers.”
The author continues to explain that judgment is most commonly used on how managers select what to do: typically, the options and all kinds of data associated with them are pumped into the mind of a manager, and somehow an election is made him/her. But how this happened was never explained until Yehezkel Dror, a leading figure in the study of public policy making, faced the issue revealing that:
“Experienced policy makers, who usually explain their own decisions largely in terms of subconscious processes such as ‘intuition’ and ‘judgment’, unanimously agree, and even emphasize, that extrarational processes play a positive and essential role in policymaking. Observations of policymaking behavior in both small and large systems, indeed, all available description of decisional behavior, especially that of leaders such as Bismarck, Churchill, De-Gaulle, and Kennedy, seem to confirm that policy makers’ opinion.” (Mintzberg)
Yes, my eyes were wide open when I read this while researching for this article. We have acknowledged that evidence is one among many other factors that affect how policy decisions are made (see figure below by Davies, 2005), but do we interact with these factors or try to minimize their roles? Should we maybe revisit how we frame our work and interactions with them?
I believe we have reached a point at which the right hemisphere may start to shine and counterbalance the left one. Mintzberg continues to state: “This conclusion does not imply that the left hemisphere is unimportant for policymakers. I have overstated my case here to emphasize the importance of the right. The faculties identified with the left hemisphere are obviously important as well for effective management.”
The right brain is important: I have been advocating to expand the space for imagination, creativity and arts to inspire our field, fertilize the soil for creativity, co-create new concepts, approaches and even habits.
We can embark on a journey of inspiration by delving into the captivating and scientifically rich works of Rachel Carson. Her creations are not only beautiful but also profound. Let's draw motivation from her unwavering perseverance and patience. Maria Popova, in her book Figuring, narrates the remarkable tale of Carson's determination. Despite facing seven years of disappointment due to her publisher's neglect of her first book Under the Sea-Wind, Carson took a bold step to cancel the contract, even though she couldn't afford to repurchase the publishing rights for a mere $150. It was her profound dedication to the beauty and significance of her subject that uplifted her spirit as she embarked on the creation of a more ambitious masterpiece.
After significant economic and health challenges, she was finally able to publish The Sea Around us. “Praise poured in from the pages of nearly every esteemed publication, along with fan letters from every corner of the country (…) Carson had accomplished the improbable feat of enchanting lay readers and scientists alike.”
Do we want to entertain the possibility of such an improbable feat in how we weave knowledge and policy within an increasingly complex and challenging global issues scenario?
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