A risk science perspective on the COVID-19 risk handling

Abstract

This paper provides some reflections on the risk handling of the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide: What went wrong, and what worked well? On many issues – for example the origin of the coronavirus, societal lockdowns, and the effectiveness and safety of the vaccines – there are still considerable uncertainties and discussion. The paper aims to provide a new perspective on the risk handling, by studying such issues through the lens of risk science. This perspective stimulates considerations of the dilemmas the authorities faced because of the uncertainties about the development of the disease and the effectiveness of measures to meet the risks, by looking into the role of science, the appropriateness of the precautionary principle, the need to establish some official narratives, and the use of misinformation/disinformation. The main conclusion of the paper is that the COVID-19 risk handling failed in many critical ways, many of which are due to the authorities’ failure to adequately provide information about the dilemmas and convey relevant risks and uncertainties.