2. Public Works is dedicated to building public
will for the common good. We equip community
leaders, advocates and public servants with the skills
and knowledge they need to be articulate and
vigorous supporters of the role of government in a
functioning society.
In this presentation, we will share with you the
lessons we have learned from a decade of research
into how Americans perceive government and of
fieldwork with public policy organizations, coalitions,
advocates, and others interested in building support
for a well-functioning public sector.
3. America is at a Crossroads
There is a heightened awareness
of enormous public challenges
we face together – whether they
be health care, climate change,
or economic recovery. But,
possible solutions to these
challenges seem hard to
envision. In part this is because
we have lost faith in the ability
of our government to play an
active role in addressing our
shared challenges.
3
4. Dominant public perceptions of
government undermine efforts to
engage citizens in the day-to-day
work of the public sector and the
many challenges, decisions and
competing priorities that face our
public systems.
By Thomas Hawk
4
5. Research
To understand the challenge of current thinking and develop
strategies for better communication
In 2004, Public Works collaborated with the FrameWorks
Institute on a research project to understand how
Americans reason about public issues. From this research,
we learned how Americans think about government and
ways to engage the public more effectively in
conversations about the role of the public sector.
In 2009, we teamed up with the Topos Partnership. This
team of researchers re-tested and validated the strategies
and findings of our initial research.
Since the original research was completed, Public Works
staff have been working with organizations across the
country implementing the ideas from these research and
building upon them to make an effective case for the
essential role that government plays in our society.
5
6. What we are trying to understand
Unlike traditional polling, which
looks for visible attitudes,
our research was focused on
understanding the hidden -–
more obscured-- reasoning that
Americans use when they are
considering public issues.
6
8. GOVERNMENT
From our research we learned that the American public is only dimly
aware of what government is and does. Most of their top-of-mind
images of government are negative. In particular, the research
uncovered two dominant stereotypes about government and stance
towards government – all of which distort thinking about government.
8
9. The first of these dominant
images is that government is
“JUST POLITICS.”
When Americans think of
government using this mental
construct, they think of it as
political theater where partisans
squabble. They ascribe all the
attributes they dislike about
politics to government; they
think of it as corrupt and
focused on special interest.
They see it as a spectator sport,
and they see themselves as
outsiders.
9
10. The second image they have of
government is as a
MINDLESS
BUREAUCRACY.
When they think of government
from this perspective, they see it
as an undefined bureaucratic
blob. They are uncertain of its
purpose and what it does. And,
they believe that whatever it
does, it does it inefficiently and
wastefully. They believe it causes
more problems than it solves.
10
11. Lastly, they think of
GOVERNMENT AS A
VENDING MACHINE.
They see themselves primarily as
consumers – or customers -- of
government. This narrows their
relationship with government to a
transactional one. This “what’s in
it for me” perspective undermines
the civic mindedness that we
need.
11
12. The Challenge
The Good News
•
• Concrete images of the
The “idea” of government is not
lost. People see a need for
government to achieve its
essential purposes.
•
Americans value responsible
citizenship. They are pragmatic;
they want government to build
consensus and solve problems.
•
•
Americans see stewardship and
planning for the future as
unique roles for government.
•
These dominant and resilient
images consistently misdirect
thinking.
systems and structures of
government are missing from
Americans’ perception.
Consumerist thinking narrows
understanding and a sense of
responsibility.
12
13. Openings for New Conversations
In addition to identifying the
challenges presented by
Americans’ top of mind
understanding of
government. Our research
also revealed that more
productive perspectives
provide openings for new
conversations.
13
15. Overcoming Top-of-Mind
Understanding
Despite these stereotypes that
dominate the American mind, we
found in our research – and now
in our field work – that when
people are reminded of the public
goals of government and given
concrete images of the public
structures necessary to achieve
those goals, they can engage in
questions about government in a
more reasonable, pragmatic and
problem-solving manner.
Our research three key ideas that
are necessary to rebuild a more
robust understanding and
appreciation of government:
• We need to remind Americans
of the Mission and Purpose of
government.
• We need to help Americans see
the Systems and Structures
that make up our government.
• We need to reinvigorate Civic
Thinking.
15
16. Focusing on Mission and Purpose
Helps to overcome a sense that Government is “Just Politics”
16
17. Mission and
Purpose
Our research revealed that
public discourse about
government is missing a clear
articulation of the unique
mission of government, of
why it exists and what
differentiates it.
17
18. To overcome Americans’ lack of understanding of the unique mission
of government, we recommend talking about government's
embodiment of broadly shared values that we all hold dear and
highlighting the roles of government that the public recognizes as
ones that government is uniquely positioned to fulfill.
VALUES
ROLES
• Common Good
• Protector
• Quality of Life
• Manager & Planner
• Community Wellbeing
• Steward
• Public Purpose
• Consensus-Builder
18
19. Revealing Systems and Structures
Helps illuminate Government is more than a “Mindless Bureaucracy”
19
20. Systems and
Structures
of Government
When people are caught in an
image of government as a large and
wasteful bureaucracy, it is difficult
to grasp the many concrete and
essential activities of government.
The systems and structures that
make up our government – from
our court systems and the post
office to the services that support
families – are obscured.
20
21. To Bring into Focus the Systems and
Structures that make up Government….
…We recommend emphasizing the systems
and structures of government. We can
broaden Americans’ understanding of what
government is and does by:
• Providing concrete and vivid images
• Explaining that our public systems and
structures were purposefully created to
address our public challenges
• Revealing how these systems work
• Reminding people why these systems are
important
21
22. Changing the Limited View of
Our Relationships with Government
Currently, many people see an
“us” and “them” relationship to
government, in which their
primary role is to elect leaders.
22
23. Rounding out the Story
We can round out this understanding
by reminding people that government
is based on “we the people” (elected
leaders and the public) working
together to build and maintain the
public structures* that yield benefits
for the common good. This gives
people a different understanding of
their civic responsibility for, and
relationship to government. It is this
perspective that allows people to
contribute to public discourse about
government action.
23
24. Describing Public Structures
Public structures * such as the legal
systems, the public school systems, the
public water works, the communications
grids are the foundation of our society
and fundamental to our prosperity,
stability, opportunity and a strong middle
class.
Using this descriptive construct triggers
an appreciation of the role our public
systems play and the ongoing need to
create and maintain the public structures
that are essential to our quality of life.
24
26. Citizen Thinking
The dominance of a
“consumerist” mindset towards
government has undermined the
kind of “civic-thinking” that we
need to underpin an appreciation
of the role we all have in a
democracy. It is civic thinking that
promotes the important
perception that government is
“us.”
26
27. To create a citizen stance ….
…We recommend:
• Reinforcing notions of interdependence,
explaining that our quality of life and
prosperity depend on us working
together;
• Using “ownership language” to refer to
government to emphasize collective
ownership and responsibility of “our”
government;
• Focusing on the shared community
benefits of the public services and
structures we build and maintain; and
• Emphasizing our shared responsibility for
government.
27
28. We can overcome these
Dominant Narratives…
Just Politics
Bureaucracy
Vending Machine
. . .can’t solve anything . . . not my responsibility
28
29. By Purposefully Telling a New Story
About our Government….
Mission & Purpose
Systems & Structures
Citizen-Thinking
. . . our tool for solutions & the common good . . .
29
30. Our Story about Government
Building on Story Elements that Work
VALUES
We must articulate the public
good behind the policies and
programs
SYSTEM THINKING
We must help reveal our essential
public systems and structures.
AWAKEN THE CITIZEN
We must help people see our
shared stake and responsibility.
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31. For more information about changing the conversation about
government, we encourage you to visit www.publicworks.org.
