Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic is one of the most significant challenges to global health and economic and social aspects. This disease has spread to millions of people and caused hundreds of thousands of deaths worldwide. The COVID-19 pandemic not only posed unprecedented and unforeseen challenges to public health systems in the early 21st century but also created a set of challenges for police departments and law enforcement agencies worldwide.
Methods: We conducted a scoping review to map the existing literature on the relationship between government type and police enforcement in controlling COVID-19. We searched electronic databases such as PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and Google Scholar. We included studies that were conducted in countries with different types of governance and published data on their police deployment in controlling COVID-19. We identified 18 countries that met our inclusion criteria. We used a four-quadrant composition model to plot the countries based on their government type and the extent of police deployment. We found a complex relationship among government type, police enforcement, and COVID-19 control.
Results: Based on the studies conducted and the literature review on the subject in various parts of the world, the four-zone model (Governance Policing Types - GPT) is proposed in accordance with the type of governance and the extent of police use in controlling COVID-19. This model indicates a clear relationship between the type of government and the extent of police use in controlling epidemiological crises. Research findings suggest that in pandemic emergencies, the type of governance and effective response of the police can keep individuals away from potential risks and ensure public safety and well-being.
Conclusion: Governance quality and police involvement are essential in managing pandemics; however, a balanced approach is needed to protect both public health and individual rights. Democratic countries generally have better decision quality, but authoritarian countries can make decisions more quickly. Countries that combined both quality and speed of decision-making achieved exceptional results. More research is needed to understand the long-term effects of different pandemic management strategies.