Ten considerations for effectively managing the COVID-19 transition

Author(s)
Katrine Bach Habersaat, Cornelia Betsch, Margie Danchin, Cass R. Sunstein, Robert Boehm, Armin Falk, Noel T. Brewer, Saad B. Omer, Martha Scherzer, Sunita Sah, Edward F. Fischer, Andrea E. Scheel, Daisy Fancourt, Shinobu Kitayama, Eve Dube, Julie Leask, Mohan Dutta, Noni E. MacDonald, Anna Temkina, Andreas Lieberoth, Mark Jackson, Stephan Lewandowsky, Holly Seale, Nils Fietje, Philipp Schmid, Michele Gelfand, Lars Korn, Sarah Eitze, Lisa Felgendreff, Philipp Sprengholz, Cristiana Salvi, Robb Butler
Abstract

Governments around the world have implemented measures to manage the transmission of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). While the majority of these measures are proving effective, they have a high social and economic cost, and response strategies are being adjusted. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that communities should have a voice, be informed and engaged, and participate in this transition phase. We propose ten considerations to support this principle: (1) implement a phased approach to a ‘new normal’; (2) balance individual rights with the social good; (3) prioritise people at highest risk of negative consequences; (4) provide special support for healthcare workers and care staff; (5) build, strengthen and maintain trust; (6) enlist existing social norms and foster healthy new norms; (7) increase resilience and self-efficacy; (8) use clear and positive language; (9) anticipate and manage misinformation; and (10) engage with media outlets. The transition phase should also be informed by real-time data according to which governmental responses should be updated.

Organisation(s)
External organisation(s)
Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne, Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI), Harvard University, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn, Vanderbilt University, The University of Sydney, University of Bristol, University of Western Australia, Universität Erfurt, WHO - World Health Organization, University of Copenhagen, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Yale University, University of Cambridge, University College London, University of Michigan Health System, Université Laval, Massey University, Dalhousie University, European University at St. Petersburg, Aarhus University, University of Exeter, University of New South Wales
Journal
Nature Human Behaviour
Volume
4
Pages
677-687
No. of pages
11
ISSN
2397-3374
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-020-0906-x
Publication date
07-2020
Peer reviewed
Yes
Austrian Fields of Science 2012
501021 Social psychology
Keywords
ASJC Scopus subject areas
Experimental and Cognitive Psychology, Social Psychology, Behavioral Neuroscience
Portal url
https://ucrisportal.univie.ac.at/en/publications/1f817024-a6ce-4c8a-9bf3-afd8b6af0c2e