reframing

Reframing of issues in new contexts is a fundamental process in policy making. Interest frame are aggregated and integrated in policy processes, hence the cognitive environment of an issues changes. This change affects basically everyone involved – or rather: everyone who follows the current developments of a specific topic. Thus on a private level, the reframing phenomenon can be seen as related to the personal intellectual stamina, i.e. do I follow a new way of looking at an issue or do I stay with my preconceived opinion (possibly in the face a mounting conflicting evidence)? However, in public such a reframing event is related to the intellectual reputation of an individual, i.e. referring to the question: do I want to be regarded as an innovative mind or do I stick to defending “old thinking”.

Hence, a reframing event puts actors in of an intellectual environment under pressure to adapt to the new frame, provided the reframing event is staged in a public forum that guarantees enough attention underpinned by a sufficient opinion leader-reputation.