Cascading Crises: Society in the Age of COVID-19

Abstract

The tsunami of change triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic has transformed society in a series of cascading crises. Unlike disasters that are more temporarily and spatially bounded, the pandemic has continued to expand across time and space for over a year, leaving an unusually broad range of second-order and third-order harms in its wake. Globally, the unusual conditions of the pandemic—unlike other crises—have impacted almost every facet of our lives. The pandemic has deepened existing inequalities and created new vulnerabilities related to social isolation, incarceration, involuntary exclusion from the labor market, diminished economic opportunity, life-and-death risk in the workplace, and a host of emergent digital, emotional, and economic divides. In tandem, many less advantaged individuals and groups have suffered disproportionate hardship related to the pandemic in the form of fear and anxiety, exposure to misinformation, and the effects of the politicization of the crisis. Many of these phenomena will have a long tail that we are only beginning to understand. Nonetheless, the research also offers evidence of resilience on several fronts including nimble organizational response, emergent communication practices, spontaneous solidarity, and the power of hope. While we do not know what the post COVID-19 world will look like, the scholarship here tells us that the virus has not exhausted society’s adaptive potential.

Family risk and resilience in the context of cascading COVID-19 challenges: Commentary on the special issue.

“…The studies of the special issue as a whole also have a number of limitations. Studies rarely included the most vulnerable families disproportionately affected by the pandemic, already at risk due to poor health or disabilities, poverty, social exclusion or structural racism, displacement, regional violence, and other adverse conditions for human development and well-being (Darmody et al, 2021; Perry et al, 2021; Robinson et al, 2021). In addition to the unrepresentative nature of the samples studied, there were considerable (although understandable) inconsistencies in measurement which will pose challenges to future scholars undertaking systematic reviews.…”

“…The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the functioning of systems that support human well-being and development at many levels, from individual biology to families, health care, education, local and national government, economies, and many other interconnected systems in profound and varying ways around the world (Masten & Motti-Stefanidi, 2020; Prime et al, 2020; Robinson et al, 2021; Walsh, 2020). At the time this commentary is being written, the pandemic is far from over, with cases surging again across the globe due to low vaccination rates combined with the ongoing spread of the virus and its variants.…”

Resilience to Nested Crises: The Effects of the Beirut Explosion on COVID-19 Safety Protocol Adherence During Humanitarian Assistance to Refugees

“…The compounded crises have significantly impacted Lebanese quality of life and wellbeing, leading to sophisticated community organizing calling for an end to corruption and improved governance, including a human chain that stretched across Lebanon in 2019 (21,22). While all three countries have faced challenges from both the Syrian refugee crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic, Lebanon's political and economic difficulties have been more intense that what has been felt in Turkey or Jordan 2 .…”

“…For example, Shrecker ( 1 ) argued that the 2008 global recession led to increases in food prices and devaluing of local currencies, which contributed to an increase in food insecurity and chronic undernutrition, and in the long-term resulted in a number of deleterious health outcomes. Robinson et al ( 2 ) argues that the impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak themselves constitute a condition of cascading crises of economic insecurity, mental health problems, addiction, and crises of governance, security, and discourse including misinformation. Quigley et al ( 3 ) noted the need for preparations to be made to mitigate the impacts of natural disasters (floods, hurricanes, cyclones, earthquakes, etc.)…”

Building Resilient Coalitions: Health and Medical Response Through Covid-19 Concurrent Events

“…Indeed, "Transitioning from pandemic response to recovery in a spiral fashion: there is a high probability of the second and even the third wave of a pandemic if there is no vaccine or immunization, each new wave pushing the disaster risk reduction cycle from the recovery back to response phase" [1, p. 3]. Concurrently, the pandemic has ushered second and third-order harms affecting many sectors of the economy and society [4]. Most critically, the temporal persistence of the pandemic has created an opportunity for multiple intersections with cyclical weather events such as storms, earthquakes, wildfires, or other concurrent or systemic crises thus compounding the complexity of required disaster management practices [2].…”