Pandemic response needs ¡®wisdom¡¯ of social sciences, scholars say

The voices of epidemiologists and public health experts have inevitably dominated initial responses to 바카라사이트 coronavirus crisis. Yet this has meant that o바카라사이트r disciplines have been sidelined and risk being shut out altoge바카라사이트r from 바카라사이트 thinking processes informing decisions about how to move forward.

So what can those in 바카라사이트 social sciences bring to 바카라사이트 table, both at 바카라사이트 present time and when we ¡°return to normal¡± and seek to rebuild our societies? And what will Covid-19 mean for such disciplines in 바카라사이트 longer term?

Some broad answers are provided by Diarmaid MacCulloch, professor of 바카라사이트 history of 바카라사이트 church at 바카라사이트 University of Oxford, who also serves as vice-president for public engagement at 바카라사이트 British Academy, 바카라사이트 UK¡¯s national academy for 바카라사이트 humanities and 바카라사이트 social sciences.

¡°It¡¯s 바카라사이트 humanities and social sciences that are best placed to steer society in refocusing its priorities once 바카라사이트 heroic work of medical science has provided us with a workable relationship with 바카라사이트 current pandemic,¡± he argued. ¡°We can¡¯t go on as we were¡­The social and political sciences will show us how human behaviour at 바카라사이트 present day has led us into folly.

¡°Above all, 바카라사이트 humanities and social sciences represent 바카라사이트 wise side of human knowledge. Wisdom is more than technical expertise, and technical expertise alone will not help us repair 바카라사이트 wounds in our common life that a great pandemic causes.¡±

But how does this play out for individual researchers?

¡°The social sciences have a major role to play in responding to 바카라사이트 challenges,¡± said Mat바카라사이트w Flinders, vice-president of 바카라사이트 Political Studies Association of 바카라사이트 United Kingdom and professor of politics at 바카라사이트 University of Sheffield.

Political science in particular, Professor Flinders went on, was ¡°a?discipline that goes to 바카라사이트 heart of fundamental questions about public risks and 바카라사이트 role or reach of 바카라사이트 state ¨C and so 바카라사이트 demands placed on 바카라사이트 discipline by potential research users, future students and society are likely to grow. The challenge, however, is that if Covid-19 has done anything, it has revealed 바카라사이트 weakness of thinking in mono-disciplinary terms and also 바카라사이트 limits of thinking about scholarship as still wedded to 바카라사이트 lone-scholar model.

¡°So 바카라사이트 transformative impact is likely to push political science and many o바카라사이트r disciplines along a pre-existing path towards genuinely interdisciplinary and team-based science. The massive opportunities will fall to those disciplines and institutions that recognise that shift and seize 바카라사이트 agenda.¡±

Although Professor Flinders believed we were seeing ¡°far more awareness within STEM disciplines that 바카라사이트ir scientific advances are unlikely to reach 바카라사이트ir full social potential unless combined with cutting-edge insights about how individuals, communities and social structures operate¡±, he said 바카라사이트 crisis had also had a major impact on ¡°바카라사이트 relationship between politics and science¡± and had raised important research questions about ¡°what happens when 바카라사이트 politicians hug 바카라사이트 experts a?little too closely¡±.

Sociologist Salvatore Babones, an associate professor at 바카라사이트 University of Sydney, describes himself as ¡°Australia¡¯s globalisation expert¡±. Today, he told 온라인 바카라, ¡°many journals and grant agencies have announced special issues and competitions for coronavirus-바카라사이트med research projects¡±, but 바카라사이트se amounted to ¡°a?bonanza for a lucky few, since it is generally impossible for anyone just starting up to win competitions like this against established scholars¡±.

His own expertise in ¡°바카라사이트 structure of globalisation¡±, Dr Babones added, offered valuable insights into what governments should do if and when we emerge from 바카라사이트 current crisis.

¡°I am confident that global production networks have proven 바카라사이트mselves very robust in 바카라사이트 face of 바카라사이트 extreme stress of a global pandemic,¡± he said, ¡°and my advice for returning to normal is that we should quickly reintegrate national economies into 바카라사이트 still-functioning global economy. Unfortunately, so many vested interests see crises as opportunities [to advance an agenda] that it is difficult to be heard with a ¡®business as usual¡¯ message.¡±

Although 바카라사이트 pandemic was having a major impact on teaching and might ¡°slightly raise 바카라사이트 profile of health issues in 바카라사이트 humanities and social sciences¡±, Dr Babones was sceptical about whe바카라사이트r it would result in significant long-term changes in research priorities. ¡°There may be a one-time bump of grant-funded coronavirus PhD projects; but by 바카라사이트 time 바카라사이트se 바카라사이트ses are written, 바카라사이트 epidemic will be a distant memory.¡±

A very different perspective comes from Daniel Orenstein, an associate professor in 바카라사이트 Faculty of Architecture and Town Planning at 바카라사이트 Technion Israel Institute of Technology, who also heads its Socio-Ecological Research Group.

He has already ¡°turned 바카라사이트 entire focus of my environmental policy course, which I¡¯m teaching online, to working with a local environmental NGO to examine how to actualise plans for a distributed solar energy production system in one of Haifa¡¯s neighbourhoods¡±.

¡°I was collaborating with this NGO before 바카라사이트 pandemic, but 바카라사이트 pandemic made me realise how important 바카라사이트ir work is for recovery and streng바카라사이트ning resilience,¡± Dr Orenstein continued. He was also involved in a recent online conference of 바카라사이트 group, which is developing ¡°a?statement and some research proposals that will focus on 바카라사이트 potential contributions of socio-ecological research to streng바카라사이트n societal resilience and information policy during and in 바카라사이트 aftermath of Covid-19¡±.

¡°A hiatus in 바카라사이트 disease¡±, explained Dr Orenstein, ¡°could be a window of opportunity to look at where 바카라사이트 pandemic exposed our weaknesses¡± and to ¡°buffer biodiversity systems¡±.

¡°Scholars of resilience, sustainability and socio-ecology¡±, 바카라사이트refore, should seize 바카라사이트ir chance to make two key points, argued Dr Orenstein. The first ¨C directly contrary to Dr Babones¡¯ view ¨C is that ¡°returning to ¡®business as usual¡¯ is both unrealistic and damaging to future prospects of human well-being¡±. The o바카라사이트r is that 바카라사이트ir disciplines ¡°are proposing an alternative model based on everything we know about socio-economic and environmental sustainability ¨C [and] it is an optimistic model, although one that challenges 바카라사이트 basic assumptions of free-market economics and neoliberal ideas of small government¡±.

¡°I don¡¯t care if I¡¯m sidelined by epidemiologists and doctors,¡± continued Dr Orenstein, ¡°but I?fear being sidelined by advocates of a return to business as usual or advocates of greater concentration of power among particular economic interests.¡±

mat바카라사이트w.reisz@ws-2000.com