Many of the issues illustrated there are things we deal with as emergency managers when it comes to risk perception and the trust level in government and the media. I thought that this extract from the article had significant meaning for me, since we see it playing out today:
"In the U.S., health officials are asking people to think about the collective good in a country rooted in individualism. Countries that emphasize the importance of duty and obligation, such as Asian societies, have an easier time motivating people to do what's right over what's desirable.
"If you look at countries that are more collectivistic ... people feel more pressure to go along with what's good for the group," Van Bavel said. "Here we have traditions of individualism, which most of the time are great, but in a context of a pandemic are not so great, and often very dangerous for everybody."
In 2021 the next public information and education mountain to climb will be on vaccinations, this quote shows where we are today, "... a recent Gallup poll found 81% of Democrats are willing to be vaccinated if a free and FDA-approved one were available, while 47% of Republicans say the same."
One of the big challenges for today is where people get their information, "So-called filter bubbles – where people only encounter information that aligns with their existing beliefs – can create alternate realities around risks and actions necessary to mitigate them. Social media is ripe for conspiracy theories and misinformation, making it difficult for some people who get their news online to separate fact from fiction."
I'm reminded of the phrase, "No one said it was going to be easy!"
Joanne Brower shared the link above.
