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A Social Analysis of the Limitation of Governmental MERS Risk Communication

  • Crisisonomy
  • Abbr : KRCEM
  • 2015, 11(10), pp.91-109
  • Publisher : Crisis and Emergency Management: Theory and Praxis
  • Research Area : Social Science > Public Policy > Public Policy in general

Kim Eun-sung 1

1경희대학교

Accredited

ABSTRACT

Risk communication was one of the most serious challenges surrounding the MERS crisis that occurred in 2015 in Korea. As the Korean government postponed to disclose the names of the hospitals where confirmed MERS cases were exposed, the MERS spread from hospitals to hospitals and public anxiety was amplified significantly. This article examines social causes for the failure of governmental risk communication during the MERS outbreak in Korea. This article views the MERS risk communication strategy of the Korean government as the “deficit model” and analyzes its problems and limitations from the perspective of the “contextual model.” In particular, it addresses the roles and implications of scientific uncertainty, mutual interests, governmental trust, the construction of citizens’ identity, and the social effect of sigma in risk communication. Finally, it suggests a guideline on how to improve risk communication process in handling emerging infectious diseases such as the MERS.

Citation status

* References for papers published after 2023 are currently being built.

This paper was written with support from the National Research Foundation of Korea.