Overton Window (from group 3: Theories)

 The Overton Window is from the group 3 Theories

Ever wonder how far you can push an idea, concept or belief before it's too much for people to accept? Well let me explain.

The Overton Window is named after the political scientist Joseph Overton from his work in the 1990s. He called it the “The Window of Political Possibility". He made the window vertical to avoid associations with the political left or right views. It is a model that gauges what people find politically acceptable or within the range of policy ideas that are safe, and the public is ready to accept. It is organized into six stages both ways with policy in the middle. The further from the center the more extreme.

·      “Unthinkable” -  which are ideas furthest outside of mainstream norms and are rejected.

·       "Radical" - which are ideas outside standard debates, though sometimes are brought up by activists.

·       "Acceptable" - within the window, ideas that can be regularly discussed, even if they are controversial.

·       "Sensible" - ideas are viewed as practical and rational by a large portion of the public.

·       “Popular” - ideas are broadly supported by the public.

·       "Policy" - which are ideas that have been accepted into society and enacted into law and sit in the middle of Overton Window concept.

But ideas that are outside of the window might be viewed as too radical, or unthinkable. If something changes the public's perception of an idea for example the media, activism, social media posts, and influential speakers it can shift the window. Any method that gets the idea out in the open to be discussed/debated. It doesn't always move in one direction. The common misconception is that politicians themselves shift it, but the truth is that they are good at detecting where the window is and reacting to it at any given point. It can't tell you if a policy is good or bad, but it does tell us what policies are likely to be talked about. It's not just about what's popular today, but how the ideas and conversations can change into something acceptable in the future. It can either increase or decrease the number of ideas politicians can support without the risk of losing votes. The window reflects what society believes, which can be easily influenced both by truth and facts as well as popular thoughts at the time, it can still be inaccurate.

Some examples that came to mind for the Overton Window for me are the shifts in acceptance around socialism in American politics now seen through the recent elections in New York, and the media coverage of people like Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Zohran Mamdani. They all represent a Socialist political view which used to be way up top on the Overton Window as “Unthinkable” in the United States. But now it's moving from radical to acceptable. Other examples include acceptance of gay marriage 50 years ago vs. today, and mental health challenges used to be hidden, no one would ever talk about them, and now it is part of overall health discussions.

The concept of what is within the politically acceptable window has actually shaped the conversations we have at family gatherings about politics. Family members range across the political spectrum from very strong democratic beliefs to very strong conservative beliefs. And it used to be that politics weren’t discussed at holiday dinners, or at the dinner table. Now, it can be a source of division and sensitivities. Even among friends, and places of worship we all have different ideas and beliefs. It seems like conversations can get more opinionated or strong. I think it is because each side (democrats and republicans) see policy topics as closer to radical/acceptable than they are to sensible/popular.

The Overton Window is a model for understanding how ideas might change over time and influence politics. What are some beliefs and topics that came to mind for you? Leave a comment!

 

 

Sources: 

https://www.mackinac.org/OvertonWindow

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Overton-window

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/BcWU2ojQI14

https://sketchplanations.com/the-overton-window

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqw2OtWKY8c

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