Real Reason's Role

Why do certain policy proposals resonate with people while others do not?

How do people decide what to believe when they are inundated with information?

What motivates people to think and act democratically in service of the common good?

These are questions that need to be answered more effectively. Conventional polls and focus groups do not fully address them, and that is a serious problem. When the answers to questions such as these are not understood, there are real-world consequences, including the inability to rally public support for vital policy initiatives.

The current American political environment reflects this lack of clarity. There is a failure of political imagination as to how the workings of government, corporations, and the economy could better serve the common good. We have yet to utilize the full potential of democracy as a process of cooperative problem solving. In attempts to move people to action, too often appeals are made to fear and anger rather than to hopes and aspirations.

How can this situation be improved? It takes a movement — one involving collaboration among grassroots organizations, policy think tanks, and advocacy groups.

Real Reason plays a distinct supporting role in this movement. Applying the tools of cognitive linguistics to politics, Real Reason works to understand and convey what is at stake when people conceptualize problems and envision solutions, and why certain ideas resonate more than others. This effort is designed to be of strategic value to advocates for a wide range of issues, from reproductive rights to international cooperation.