The Pennsylvania State University The Graduate School EXAMINING THE ROLE OF NARRATIVES IN POLICY AGENDA SETTING AMID A “MANUFACTURED CRISIS” A Dissertation in Public Administration by Michael Smith Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy December 2020 ii The dissertation of Michael Smith was reviewed and approved by the following: Bing Ran Associate Professor of Public Administration, School of Public Affairs Professor-in-Charge, Doctor of Philosophy in Public Administration Professor-in-Charge, Master of Public Administration Professor-in-Charge, Juris Doctor and Master of Public Administration Professor-in-Charge, Certificate Program in Public Sector Human Resource Management Dissertation Advisor Chair of Committee Beverly Cigler Distinguished Professor Emerita of Public Policy and Administration Younhee Kim Associate Professor of Public Administration Steven Peterson Professor Emeritus of Politics and Public Affairs Elizabeth Tisdell Professor of Lifelong Learning and Adult Education, School of Behavioral Sciences and Education iii ABSTRACT Narrative elements and strategies have long been recognized as significant inputs into policymaking, but little research has occurred to date linking the use of these tools directly to agenda setting. Using the Narrative Policy Framework and Multiple Streams Framework as theoretical foundations, this exploratory research examines through qualitative content analysis narratives policymakers employed amidst a partial shutdown of the United States government from late December 2018 through January 2019. Using a typological map of news media accuracy and bias from Ad Fontes Media, a sample of 100 articles from seven programs on four different broadcast networks were coded using a coding worksheet inspired by that used in Shanahan et al.’s study of a Cape Cod, MA, wind farm project. The worksheet tracked codes developed a priori based on narrative elements and strategies as conceptualized in the Narrative Policy Framework, as well as emergent codes identified in a grounded-theory-like manner. Interview transcripts were coded on two separate occasions and coefficients of agreement were calculated for each code. Only those codes demonstrating agreement were analyzed. The data reveal new story lines that expand the Narrative Policy Framework’s plot element and reinforce existing literature on the importance of group cohesion, suggesting shared messaging among political actors and coalitions is important for determining a narrative’s efficacy at advancing or blocking an issue from the decision agenda. The research also suggests narratives play an important role in constructing the legitimacy of problem definitions, focusing events, the political environment, and policy alternatives. The paper offers a new model for conceptualizing the role of narratives in agenda setting as theorized through the Multiple Streams Framework, including the introduction of four legitimacy checkpoints at which evaluations are made and are theorized to influence an issue’s prospects of reaching the decision agenda. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................... vi LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................... viii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................ x Chapter 1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 1 Statement of the problem .................................................................................................3 Research questions ...........................................................................................................5 Significance of the study ..................................................................................................7 Chapter 2 Literature Review ............................................................................................ 11 Crises and organizational change ...................................................................................12 Framing ..........................................................................................................................16 Agenda setting ................................................................................................................22 Narrative policy framework ...........................................................................................28 Integrating theoretical perspectives ................................................................................31 Problem definitions and focusing events ................................................................... 33 Narrative cognition and information processing ....................................................... 35 Narratives as framing tools ........................................................................................ 36 Building discourse coalitions..................................................................................... 37 Modeling narratives in the Multiple Streams Framework ......................................... 38 Critiques of NPF and MSF .............................................................................................40 Power ..............................................................................................................................45 Chapter 3 Research Design and Methods ........................................................................ 47 Philosophical assumptions and role of the researcher ....................................................48 Theoretical framework ...................................................................................................51 Research design ..............................................................................................................52 Jansick’s three-stage model ....................................................................................... 52 Use of content analysis .............................................................................................. 55 A qualitative approach ............................................................................................... 57 Sample selection .............................................................................................................59 Sample selection criteria ............................................................................................ 59 Sample size and breakdown ...................................................................................... 65 Data collection ................................................................................................................67 Coding ....................................................................................................................... 68 Data analysis .............................................................................................................. 71 Validity, reliability and trustworthiness strategies .........................................................74 v Chapter 4 Findings ........................................................................................................... 78 Round 1 vs. round 2 with coefficients of agreement ......................................................79 Republicans vs. Democrats ............................................................................................86 Codes by week................................................................................................................93 Interview counts ........................................................................................................ 93 Narrative elements and strategies .............................................................................. 95 Emergent codes ............................................................................................................106 Chapter 5 Contextual Data Analysis .............................................................................. 111 Setting the stage............................................................................................................112 Presidential controversies ........................................................................................ 112 November 2018 election consequences ................................................................... 114 The Oval Office meeting ......................................................................................... 115 The narratives: elements and strategies ........................................................................120 Heroes ...................................................................................................................... 120 Villains..................................................................................................................... 123 Victims..................................................................................................................... 130 Plot ........................................................................................................................... 133 Morals of the story ................................................................................................... 138 Narrative strategies .................................................................................................