Psychologist Paul Slovic’s research on "psychic numbing" suggests that as the number of victims in a tragedy increases, our empathy actually decreases. One starving child elicits donations; a million starving children elicits a statistic. Survivor stories solve this problem by personalizing the crisis.
The ultimate goal of any campaign is change. Survivor stories serve as the "Why" behind the "What."
But a graph has never made a stranger stop to help. A spreadsheet has never convinced a legislature to change a law. A number has never pulled a victim out of the shadows.
Psychologist Paul Slovic’s research on "psychic numbing" suggests that as the number of victims in a tragedy increases, our empathy actually decreases. One starving child elicits donations; a million starving children elicits a statistic. Survivor stories solve this problem by personalizing the crisis.
The ultimate goal of any campaign is change. Survivor stories serve as the "Why" behind the "What."
But a graph has never made a stranger stop to help. A spreadsheet has never convinced a legislature to change a law. A number has never pulled a victim out of the shadows.