Document Type
Thesis
First Faculty Advisor
Nicole Freiner
Second Faculty Advisor
Andrea Boggio
Keywords
COVID-19; government; leadership; response; global
Publisher
Bryant University
Rights Management
CC-BY-NC-ND; CC-BY; CC-BY-SA; CC-BY-ND; CC-BY-NC-SA; CC-BY-NC
Abstract
This study reviews a global sample of noteworthy governmental responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. The coronavirus first discovered in 2019, officially known as SARS-CoV-2, sparked radical change in every country across the globe, but as we enter the post-pandemic era, it is clear that some nations fared better than others when it came to addressing the situation. Some countries were better prepared to handle a viral outbreak before COVID-19 even began to spread, while others were aided by swift and effective leadership to ensure national success in the face of an international dilemma. This study makes use of both qualitative research and quantitative analysis to explore the relationships between potential success factors and actual results of the pandemic. Factors from the Hofstede Cultural Dimensions such as low individualism, low indulgence, and high power distance all correlated to low relative case counts across this study’s countries. Additionally, high trust in government correlated to lower average death counts. Effective leadership was pivotal in successful responses, as many countries that were seemingly well prepared greatly underperformed pre-pandemic expectations. The results of this study provide valuable insights for understanding how countries can better respond to future times of crisis.
