In April, I posted about the power of improv (and comedy and humor) on medicine and healing, and how improvisation skills are being used in medical education.
Did you know that the fundamentals of improv can be used to facilitate civic engagement and discourse? Neither did we, until recently.
Improv is used in many contexts (medical education!) to train people to engage with one another in ways that promote empathy and understanding. In a new book, professor Don Waisanen says successful leaders—and democratic societies—need to cultivate the twin skills of improvisation and inclusion to ensure that citizens’ voices are heard. Drawing on research from the field of improvisational theater, Improv for Democracy demonstrates how improv-based teaching and training methods can improve the communication, leadership, and civic skills our world needs.
Has anyone read this book? Do you agree with the author’s premise?
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Stephanie Weiner
Director, Digital Strategy & Engagement
Association of American Medical Colleges
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