When Democracy Meets Efficiency: How Communication Can End the Pandemic

Most of these jurisdictions communicated rapidly to ensure that their populations complied with guidelines as quickly as possible.

What is fascinating is that the jurisdictions we pinpointed with effective communications have thus far either avoided a second wave (by containing outbreaks) or have dramatically lower second waves than neighbouring countries. My sense is that these effective communications strategies both ensured rapid compliance with public health guidelines and have helped to forestall pandemic fatigue.

What are the principles that can underpin any democratic public health communications strategy? 

My recent report pulled out five broad principles that underpin a communications strategy, which we call the RAPID principles. First, create Room for Autonomy, Not Just Orders. We found that overly granular guidelines with hefty enforcement could create resentment in the long run and ultimately undermine people’s will to comply.

Second, Attend to Emotions, Values, and Stories. Scientific facts matter, but we process facts far better if they come attached to emotional meaning, societal values, or stories of people like us.

Third, Pull in Civil Society. Too many jurisdictions have relied on public health officials and politicians alone to convey messaging. We saw instead that places like Senegal included key civil society leaders to incentivize compliance.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in has described the pandemic as a "relay race" where no South Korean should be left behind. Others used natural metaphors of storms and waves. It sounds simple but these metaphors encourage all to contribute and indeed, they seem to have contributed to electoral success. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was recently reelected in a landslide victory; South Korea’s election in April saw the highest turnout in several decades with Moon achieving victory once more.

It’s crucial to emphasize that these principles are highly achievable. We derived them from in-depth analysis of nine democracies around the world, many of which implemented all five of our principles. It is essential for other countries to adopt these principles both to mitigate this wave of Covid-19 and to improve preparedness for the next pandemic.

What are the most relevant crisis communication strategies you spotted during your research?

Beyond our broad principles, three really important strategies stand out. First, rapidity is essential. Another study found that the swifter public officials released guidelines on Covid-19, the less the public bought quack cures online. It is important to release high-quality information on as many channels as possible than to wait and have to fight rumours online. 

Second, the best public health communicators built rapport with their publics. They sought to communicate empathy with people’s difficulties, showed compassion for those who had passed away, and displayed their own emotions. They did not engage in blame games or stigmatizing certain groups of people, such as the young. This has helped to ensure that people want to get tested and to participate in contact tracing.

Third, they admitted mistakes. Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg, for example, admitted later in the summer that the lockdown was perhaps stricter than necessary. This earned trust, because Norwegians knew that Solberg would admit mistakes. As a second wave engulfs much of Europe, it is worth considering a reset if things are going poorly and going back to the basics we describe in our answers to these questions. It won’t be easy to rebuild trust but as we wait for more effective treatments or a vaccine, communications are one of the few NPIs left to us.

Copyright: William WEST / AFP