Includes bibliographical references and index.

Storytelling is the primary means through which humans define reality, make sense of their experiences, and express their beliefs and values. This meaning-making process does not only happen in our personal lives, but it also occurs in the public sphere, including the policy-making process. Narrative analysis can illuminate a lot about the making of public policy, as public policy is an expression of meaning, values, and beliefs. Narrative analysis can uncover the arguments and assumptions underlying the definition and design of particular public policies. Using examples from her research that examined the policy discourse on mifepristone (medication abortion) and emergency contraception, the author discusses practical strategies for conducting narrative analysis from data collection to analysis. The author discusses how she uses classical rhetoric to analyze policy stories and shows how stories can be collected from a variety of sources, including interviews, documents produced by organizations and governmental agencies, and secondary sources, such as news articles. She also briefly discusses how she incorporated character development into her analytical strategy.

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