A New Way to Talk About The Social Determinants of Health

Abstract

In 2006, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), a philanthropic institution dedicated to improving health and health care, embarked on four years of research and message development around the question: “how do we find a common language that will expand Americans’ views about what it means to be healthy – to include not just where health ends but also where it starts?” (p.3) The result is this readable 37-page report. In it, the authors outline their methodology, then present seven lessons for using language to frame the social determinants of health (p. 4), and six ways to talk about the social determinants of health (p. 7). They offer definitions for terms such as “poverty” and “health disparities” (p. 8).

Within the broad spectrum of this research, the authors keep returning to the very different, “deep metaphor frames” held by Democrats and Republicans. Strikingly, researchers found that the term “the social determinants of health” did not resonate with audiences, regardless of their political affiliation or educational background. However, when the core concept was re-phrased using emotional, “values driven” language, it was found to be more convincing. Other findings include: “use one strong and compelling fact” rather than two or three, and “prime audiences […] with messages they already believe” to make the new message more credible.