The Netherlands is in the grip of the coronavirus, which is reaching us from China, Italy, and as yet unknown locations via a difficult-to-trace route. The government is meeting in crisis consultation, doctors are working overtime, and healthcare institutions are trying their best to
to organize. Every day, virologists appear in the news and on talk shows to provide information. There are still many questions to be answered. What will this new virus mean for people? How long will public life be shut down because of it? Will it get worse in the fall of 2020? Members of parliament are already calling for a daily corona news program to counter fake news. The pandemedia has certainly broken out.

In the SOM field, we focus on professionally and carefully managing all interests affected by a task or change. From that perspective, several interesting lessons can be drawn from the approach and development of the coronavirus. Releasing news about corona elicits all sorts of reactions. For example, concerned residents from a neighborhood where an infected person has been placed in home quarantine, worried hospitals and schools seeking support in policy determination, and angry companies unable to receive their products on time.

These reactions are directly linked to underlying interests, and that is recognizable in our work. Whether it concerns new rules for your parents' healthcare or the arrival of a chemical plant in your neighborhood, or a reorganization by your employer. These are changes that occur close to home and evoke all sorts of emotions. Professor of Social Psychology Postmes discusses this in de Volkskrant on February 29th: the closer the danger, the more direct the fear.

Elementary interests

In the case of the coronavirus, people are dealing with something whose impact they cannot truly grasp. This makes it difficult to form an accurate picture. ‘The virus is elusive and undetectable to our senses,’ according to Postmes in De.

As the perception grows that our health, that of our parents, and that of our children is threatened in the case of corona, emotions quickly escalate. The health and safety of our loved ones are, after all, basic needs, low down on Maslow's hierarchy. We see the same happening when the future of a company is at risk because products from China are not being delivered. When basic needs are threatened, people take action to protect what is valuable to them.

Dealing with anxiety

In the Volkskrant, Professor Jeffrey Beekman, head of the psychiatry department at Amsterdam UMC, calls the current situation with corona a prevention issue. People differ enormously in their preventative actions. The more real a danger is (and the threat more concrete), the stronger the urge to act.

When such news comes to light, it automatically creates tension and stress for the recipients. Whether justified or not. There are all sorts of ways to deal with stress or problems, also known as coping mechanisms. (see, for example, the stress-coping theory of Lazarus and Folkman). One person actively gathers information and protests, another seeks out like-minded people, and yet another wants nothing to do with it. In general, the more real a danger is to people, the sooner they will act.

There is a lack of knowledge about the virus (reliable facts) and we have no experience with it. Something needs to be done about that, because it makes the situation vulnerable. Postmes says about this: ‘the better we are acquainted with a threat, the more rationally we deal with fears.’ Being familiar with something makes people more resistant to (nonsense) stories. In a situation with many uncertainties, there is a great danger that people will be susceptible to doomsday scenarios. The situation is highly flammable, as stories or rumors can easily circulate that confirm the developed fear images. These can stubbornly remain, especially if they are not adequately addressed.

But if only it were as simple as scattering reliable information to combat nonsensical stories. Unfortunately, that often only works partially. Knowledge certainly makes one more resilient, but when emotions take over, it's questionable whether spreading more knowledge is the right strategy at that moment. A commonly seen reflex of a party that goes public with an exciting message is to switch into persuasion mode. With good intentions, those directly involved are overloaded with knowledge. Based on the idea that if people don't understand the provided information, the solution is to explain it to them again. Unfortunately, persuading others of your own rightness doesn't always work when fear, dejection, and anger are involved. The question then becomes what is needed to increase the level of knowledge while simultaneously working on the credibility of the sender.

Get in touch

In our field, we also deal with various stakeholder emotions, and we can draw some parallels with the coronavirus outbreak. Stakeholder emotions provide a wealth of information about others' perspectives and are very useful for the subsequent approach (to a project or issue). For example, what facts do they mention, when does their story begin, what do they leave out, where does tension become visible, etc. This is killing two birds with one stone, because by truly investigating someone's perspective, space is created to supplement that story. Then it helps to be well-prepared at the table. The strongest reaction can be expected from the individuals or organizations that could be hardest hit. By identifying these in a timely manner, you can anticipate what is almost certain to come.

When you launch an exciting initiative, people might perceive it as a crisis. In such situations, it's crucial to be in direct contact with the people or organizations involved. Offer people an outlet and address all their questions. Show that you are taking their feedback seriously. For instance, connect them with credible experts or individuals with lived experience. This is where trust begins and the key to moving forward constructively to address all concerns, enabling you to collectively devise solutions.

Director

Thijs Kraassenberg