Finding the story

Abstract

Story is the oldest known way of sharing knowledge and information and engages us in our collective humanity. In research settings, story brings meaning to complex ideas making them feel palpable and connects us with our audience. Historically the disciplines that take a research interest in the importance of narrative have been largely fields like the philosophy of science/medicine, medical humanities, and sociology though story is "always already" a part of scientific research. Humanities has gained traction in medical and science education, and researchers are seeking such curricula to communicate more effectively with the public and their students. We believe story is an effective tool to enable CTS investigators to be effective educators and communicators of translational science. Story-based interdisciplinary pedagogy emphasizes an approach encouraging clinical researchers to keep the human story as the driving force of research design, dissemination and application of research to diverse audiences. In this article, we provide backgrounds on successful programs that have used story in science communication and education as well as a tool researchers can use to incorporate story into their own work. © 2022 Cambridge University Press. All rights reserved.