Synthesis and storyline for an issue paper
Course subject(s)
6. Synthesis and storyline for an issue paper
Synthesis and storyline for an issue paper
Once you have explored a complex issue from various angles you need to put the different pieces together into one coherent picture. Furthermore, you need to report your results in an issue paper. A good issue paper present the main insights in a clear and concise way. For this, a convincing storyline is essential. When you have completed this tutorial, you be able to draft a storyline for your own issue paper.
Additional Resources
- Course Book “Policy Analysis of Multi-Actor Systems” (Not online see course readings). Chapters 6 (Synthesis), 8 (Issue paper) and Appendix (Storyline)
- Storyline example: waste recycling. The file listed below contains the full storyline for the example that is discussed in Clip 3.
- Issue paper Waste recycling. In this file (available for download below), the issue paper that was written by Joris Satolli based on the storyline presented in the Example. This full issue paper is available in Dutch only.
- Self-check storyline. This document (see download link below) helps you to check your own storyline. It complements Clip 4, on checking your work.
- How Not To Do It. Take a look at the YouTube clip below and check for yourself why it is a funny clip, but NOT a good storyline example. What is wrong? And what is good?
Below are the tutorial videos of this module, as well as the slides that are presented in these videos.
What & why: going from analyses to issue paper
You have completed various analyses of a problem. What do you do next? How to put the different pieces together in an issue paper? This clip explains how a storyline is helpful in making the transition from analyzing various dimensions of a complex policy problem, to writing an issue paper
What & why: going from analyses to issue paper
Main steps in developing a storyline
This clip presents the main steps through which you can develop a storyline. The steps are covered in an abstract format. An example that applies these steps is discussed in the next clip in this tutorial.
Main steps in developing a storyline
Example: waste recycling in the Netherlands
Joris Satolli and Leon Hermans present the storyline that Joris developed for his issue paper in 2012. The storyline is about waste recycling in the Netherlands.
Example: waste recycling in the Netherlands
Checking your own storyline
Once you have developed your own storyline, you can check if it is good enough with the help of this clip. It covers three items: The requirements a good storyline should meet, a practical way to check your own storyline, and some of the common pitfalls and mistakes.
Checking your own storyline
Problem Structuring Methods by TU Delft OpenCourseWare is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Based on a work at https://ocw.tudelft.nl/courses/problem-structuring-methods/.