Expert-knowledge on Covid-19 provoked a wide spectrum of behaviours: Some might have been driven into fear, anxiety, panic-buying, domestic violence, others into precaution, creativity, empathy and acts of solidarity. Hence, expert-knowledge may both deepen the anxiety and provoke social unrest through generating strong feelings of fear, and increase the risk of virus transmission through “downplaying” the numbers.
The societal responses to the pandemic have largely revealed the central role that nation-states and nationalisms play in the organisation responses and the perceptions of the pandemic. On the one hand, the states react differently in relation to their organisational capacities, the levels of popular trust in governments and the presence of dominant ideological frameworks within each society. On the other hand, the ways in which people internalize expert-knowledge might be linked with the interplay between the collective and individual past and previously conceptualized comprehension of what certain numbers depict, hence shaping diverse sets of behaviours and attitudes.
Hence, clear guidance on how to use expert-knowledge is essential. We propose conducting a large sample qualitative and quantitative survey in different countries/regions (Ireland, Sweden, Serbia, Germany and England, 1) to understand relationship of trust/distrust between peoples and their governments and how those shape behaviours to expert-knowledge; and 2) to understand the role of the perceptions of national past play in shaping behaviours to expert-knowledge. The main aim of the survey is producing research-based recommendation policy-reports that will be distributed to the relevant governmental bodies, stakeholders and NGOs in each country. To do so, we will initiate series of formal and informal talks within the academic community and outside of it, to secure our finding are being incorporated into policy to guide governments and thereby help to foster the overall well-being of the general population.
