Covid-19 Pandemic Coping Strategies in a Complex Landscape of Crisis Communication: A Participatory Study with Disability Organisations in Sweden

The article challenges the notion that crisis communication is a matter of outreach of a single message communicated as “one voice” from official channels speaking to the public about how to prepare for and manage crisis situations. The Covid-19 pandemic has made it evident that the general public is accessing multiple channels for crisis information while the crisis situation, the rules and knowledge are constantly changing. An array of different voices, facts, (fake) news and recommendations are channeled via public service, social media, national and international media. Most of this content is accessed and shared via digital channels, but also via communities, workplaces, and between friends and families living in the same country or abroad. This article presents insights gained from a qualitative study addressing disabled people whose everyday lives have always been characterized by extraordinary circumstances, and continuously so also during the Covid-19 pandemic. The aim was to create an understanding of disabled people’s crisis-specific media practices and their ways of coping with situations caused by the pandemic. Through a national online survey study and workshops, it explores how disabled people experience the pandemic, and how crisis information flows affect trust between authorities and the disability movements. The study should be read in the light of the Swedish Covid-19 strategy, which put a strong emphasis on the individual’s responsibility and that every citizen is expected to follow the recommendations and take precautionary measures to limit the spread of the virus. This approach requires that both public agencies and citizens are capable of navigating the emerging complex crisis communication landscape and requires them to make responsible decisions and take relevant measures.