Framing and global health governance: Key findings

Abstract

Despite widespread agreement that collective action to address shared health challenges across countries is desirable and necessary, the realm of global health governance has remained highly problematic. A key reason for this is the manner in which health issues are presented (‘framed’). Because multiple frames are operating simultaneously, confusion and a range of competing policy recommendations and priorities result. Drawing on the previous articles published in this Special Supplement, these key findings explore how health issues are framed, what makes a framing successful, what frames are used for and what effects framing has.

Keywords:

• global health
• global health governance
• framing

Acknowledgements

This research has been made possible through funding from the European Research Council under the European Community's Seventh Framework Programme – Ideas Grant 230489 GHG. All views expressed remain those of the authors.

Notes

1. Michael Williams (2003), for example, argues that speech acts need not be the only method by which an issue is framed. For Williams, visual representations including televised acts (such as the terrorist attacks of 9/11) may also be significant. In a related vein, David Campbell (2008) has identified how the ‘visuals’ of HIV have been important in constructing our understanding of the disease.

2. The term ‘facilitating conditions’ is from Buzan et al. (1998), but similar terms are common in much of the literature on the processes whereby issues are constructed or framed.