Times of Crisis: Arguing for a Public Health Model of Compliance

It is not always easy to see positives in times of crisis. One would be forgiven for failing to do so lately. Over the past two years we have lived through a centenary event, a global pandemic that has killed almost six million worldwide and set the global economy back some $16 trillion. As we emerge from the pandemic’s grip, the world now faces an escalating war in Europe, the likes of which we have not seen since the Second World War. 

Behavioral science tells us we are hardwired to focus on the negative, making it difficult to see past these catastrophic events. Yet there have been positives. We have done some incredible things amid the pandemic. Neighbors delivered food to those quarantined in their homes, donations poured in to support struggling small business owners, and people have volunteered in droves, making everything from homemade surgical masks to quarantine shelters for the homeless. The same is happening in Ukraine. Neighboring countries have opened their borders for those displaced by fighting, corporations have universally condemned Russian aggression, and average citizens are defending their countryman.