Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

This study examines challenges of collaborative government response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. The study provides a review of theoretical issues about collaboration in disaster management and public health to identify influential factors, such as governance structure, effective leadership, public communication, and political polarization, to the collaboration. Based on the document analysis method, the study examines practical cases, academic studies and public opinion data that are related to these challenging factors. The study concludes with discussions about lessons of the COVID pandemic challenge and suggestions for future studies of collaborative governance response to public crises.

Keywords

COVID-19 pandemic government response disaster management collaborative disaster management intergovernmental collaboration

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Allcott

Boxell

Conway

Gentzkow

Michael Thaler

Yang

(2020). Polarization and public health: Partisan differences in social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic. Journal of Public Economics, 191, Article 104254. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpubeco.2020.104254

Altman

(2021, May 26). Persistent vaccine myths. Kaiser Family Foundation. https://www.kff.org/coronavirus-covid-19/perspective/persistent-vaccine-myths/

American Medical Association. (2020, April 28). AMA urges stronger federal leadership on Covid-19 testing. AMA. https://www.ama-assn.org/press-center/press-releases/ama-urges-stronger-federal-leadership-covid-19-testing

Porcher

Tang

S. Y.

Kim

E. E.

(2021). Policy design for COVID-19: Worldwide evidence on the efficacies of early mask mandates and other policy interventions. Public Administration Review, 81(6), 1157–1182. https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.13426

Ansell

Boin

Keller

(2010). Managing transboundary crises: Identifying the building blocks of an effective response system. Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management, 18(4), 195–207. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-5973.2010.00620.x

Ansell

Sorensen

Torfing

(2021). The COVID-19 pandemic as a game changer for public administration and leadership? The need for robust governance responses to turbulent problems. Public Management Review, 23(7), 949–960. https://doi.org/10.1080/14719037.2020.1820272

Balz

(2020, April 19). Government is everywhere now. Where does it go next? Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/politics/pandemic-government-role/

Bauer

Broady

Edelberg

O’Donnell

(2020, September). Ten facts about Covid-19 and the U.S. economy. The Hamilton Project, Brookings Institution, Washington, DC.

Benton

J. E.

(2020). Challenges to federalism and intergovernmental relations and takeaways amid the COVID-19 experience. American Review of Public Administration, 50(6–7), 536–542. https://doi.org/10.1177/0275074020941698

10.

Bezich

(2020, July 31). Do we need protection from ourselves to live healthy? PhillyVoice. https://www.phillyvoice.com/public-health-regulations-governmental-control-covid-19-pandemic-coronavirus-obesity-smoking/

11.

Boin

‘t Hart

(2003). Public leadership in times of crisis: Mission impossible? Public Administration Review, 63(5), 544–553. https://doi.org/10.1111/1540-6210.00318

12.

Boin

‘t Hart

Stern

Sundelius

(2005). The Politics of Crisis Management: Public Leadership Under Pressure. Cambridge University Press.

13.

Bond

(2021, May 14). Just 12 people are behind most vaccine hoaxes on social media, research shows. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2021/05/13/996570855/disinformation-dozen-test-facebooks-twitters-ability-to-curb-vaccine-hoaxes

14.

Brenan

(2021, February 22). Biden gets high marks for Covid-19 response. Gallup. https://news.gallup.com/poll/329948/biden-gets-high-marks-covid-response.aspx

15.

Brumfiel

(2021, July 15). The U.S. Surgeon General is calling COVID-19 misinformation an ‘urgent threat’. NPR. https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2021/07/15/1016013826/the-u-s-surgeon-general-is-calling-covid-19-misinformation-an-urgent-threat

16.

Bynander

Nohrstedt

(2020). Collaborative crisis management: Inter-organizational approaches to extreme events. Routledge.

17.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (2023, April 11). Daily update for the United States. COVID Data Tracker. https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#datatracker-home

18.

Chow

(2021, April 6). CDC’s messaging problems highlights pandemic’s uncertain future. NBC News. https://www.nbcnews.com/science/science-news/cdcs-messaging-problem-highlights-pandemics-uncertain-future-rcna602

19.

Collins

Diamond

Liptak

(2022, January 7). CDC director turns to media consultant as Covid-19 messaging frustrations mount. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/07/politics/rochelle-walensky-cdc-communications-covid-19/index.html

20.

Comfort

L. K.

(2007). Crisis management in hindsight: Cognition, communication, coordination, and control. Public Administration Review, 67(1), 189–197.

21.

Commins

(2021, April 5). COVID-19 pandemic shakes public trust in CDC. Healthleaders. https://www.healthleadersmedia.com/strategy/covid-19-pandemic-shakes-public-trust-cdc

22.

Crosby

Bryson

(2005). A leadership framework for cross-sector collaboration. Public Management Review, 7, 177–201.

23.

Cross

(2021, January 25). Will public trust in science survive the pandemic? Chemical & Engineering News. https://cen.acs.org/policy/global-health/Will-public-trust-in-science-survive-the-pandemic/99/i3

24.

Crosweller

(2022). Disaster management leadership and the need for virtue, mindfulness and practical wisdom. Progress in Disaster Science, 16, Article 100248. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pdisas.2022.100248.

25.

Cuomo

(2020). American crisis: Leadership lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic. Crown.

26.

Garza

(2020, March 16). How social media is shaping our fears of – and response to – the coronavirus. Time. https://time.com/5802802/social-media-coronavirus/

27.

Deane

Parker

Gramlich

(2021, March 5). A year of U.S. public opinion on the coronavirus pandemic. Pew Research Cener. https://www.pewresearch.org/2021/03/05/a-year-of-u-s-public-opinion-on-the-coronavirus-pandemic/

28.

Dimock

Wike

(2020, November 13). America is exceptional in the nature of its political divide. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/11/13/america-is-exceptional-in-the-nature-of-its-political-divide/

29.

Doherty

(2014, June 12). 7 things to know about polarization in America. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/06/12/7-things-to-know-about-polarization-in-america/

30.

Emerson

(2018). Collaborative governance of public health in low- and middle-income countries: Lessons from research in public administration. BMJ Global Health, 3(S5), Article e000381. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2017-000381

31.

Fitzpatrick

(2020, March 30). Why the U.S. is losing the war on Covid-19. Time. https://time.com/5879086/us-covid-19/

32.

Frazao

(2021, December 29). New CDC guidance brings perfect storm of confusion and frustration. KRCRTV. https://krcrtv.com/news/coronavirus/new-cdc-guidance-brings-perfect-storm-of-confusion-and-frustration

33.

Gollust

S. E.

Nagler

R. H.

Fowler

E. F.

(2020). The emergence of COVID-19 in the US: A public health and political communication crisis. Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law, 45(6), 967–981. https://doi.org/10.1215/03616878-8641506

34.

Gramlich

(2020, September 21). Americans give the U.S. low marks for its handling of Covid-19, and so do people in other countries. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/09/21/americans-give-the-u-s-low-marks-for-its-handling-of-covid-19-and-so-do-people-in-other-countries/

35.

Green

Edgerton

Naftel

Shoub

Cranmer

S. J.

(2020). Elusive consensus: Polarization in elite communication on the COVID-19 pandemic. Science Advances, 6(28), Article eabc2717. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abc2717

36.

Grossman

V. A.

(2020). Leadership essentials during a disaster. Journal of Radiology Nursing, 39(3), 156–157. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jradnu.2020.04.006.

37.

Gupta

(2020, November 13). The pandemic has become a humanitarian disaster in the United States. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2020/11/13/health/coronavirus-humanitarian-disaster-gupta/index.html

38.

Haddow

G. D.

Haddow

K. S.

(2014). Disaster communications in a changing media world (2nd ed.). Butterworth-Heinemann.

39.

Hao

Basu

(2020, February 12). The coronavirus is the first true social media “infodemic”. MIT Technology Review. https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/02/12/844851/the-coronavirus-is-the-first-true-social-media-infodemic/

40.

Hattke

Martin

(2020). Collective action during the Covid-19 pandemic: The case of Germany’s fragmented authority. Administrative Theory & Praxis, 42(4), 614–632. https://doi.org/10.1080/10841806.2020.1805273

41.

Heltzel

Laurin

(2020). Polarization in America: Two possible futures. Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences, 34, 179–184. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cobeha.2020.03.008

42.

Howard

(2020, October 7). Prestigious medical journal calls for US leadership to be voted out over Covid-19 failure. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2020/10/07/health/nejm-editorial-political-leadership-bn/index.html

43.

Howell

Harrison

L. M.

(2011). Leading change through collaborative partnerships: A profile of leadership and capacity among local public health leaders. Journal of Prevention & Intervention in the Community, 39, 19–34. https://doi.org/10.1080/10852352.2011.530162

44.

Hurley

Chung

(2022, January 13). U.S. Supreme court blocks Biden vaccine-or-test policy for large businesses. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-supreme-court-blocks-biden-vaccine-or-test-policy-large-businesses-2022-01-13/

45.

Institute of Medicine (IOM). (1988). The future of public health. The National Academy Press.

46.

Institute of Medicine (IOM). (2003). The future of the public’s health in the 21st century. The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/10548

47.

Institute of Medicine (IOM). (2015). Regional disaster response coordination to support health outcomes. Summary of a Workshop Series. The National Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/21713

48.

Iyengar

Lelkes

Levendusky

Malhotra

Westwood

S. J.

(2019). The origins and consequences of affective polarization in the United States. Annual Review of Political Science, 22, 129–146.

49.

John

(2021, January 13). Public trust crumbles under COVID-19, fake news: Survey. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-global-trust/public-trust-crumbles-under-covid-19-fake-news-survey-idUSKBN29I0NL

50.

Jones

J. M.

Saad

(2019, November 18). U.S. support for more government inches up, but not for socialism. Gallup. https://news.gallup.com/poll/268295/support-government-inches-not-socialism.aspx

51.

Jurkowitz

(2020, September 15). Majority of Americans disapprove of Trump’s Covid-19 messaging, though large partisan gaps persist. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/09/15/majority-of-americans-disapprove-of-trumps-covid-19-messaging-though-large-partisan-gaps-persist/

52.

Kapucu

Arslan

Demiroz

(2010). Collaborative emergency management and national emergency management network. Disaster Prevention and Management, 19(4), 452–468.

53.

Kessa

Sadiq

A-A.

Yeo

(2021). The importance of vertical and horizontal collaboration: United States’ response to Covid-19 pandemic. Chinese Public Administration Review, 12(1), 61–71.

54.

Krugman

(2020, July 7). How America lost the war on Covid-19. The New York Times, A.18.

55.

Lai

A. Y.

(2012). Organizational collaborative capacity in fighting pandemic crises: A literature review from the public management perspective. Asian Pacific Journal of Public Health, 24(1), 7–20.

56.

Leonhardt

(2021, August 1). A confusing message, The C.D.C. recommends indoor masking for the vaccinated, but only in some places. New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/28/briefing/mask-guidance-cdc-vaccinated.html

57.

Liptak

(2022, Jan 13). Supreme court blocks Biden’s virus mandate for large employers. New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/13/us/politics/supreme-court-biden-vaccine-mandate.html

58.

Liptak

Murray

(2021, February 15). Governors tell Biden in letter some vaccine efforts are creating confusion and inefficiency. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2021/02/15/politics/governors-biden-vaccine-distribution/index.html

59.

Lizza

Lippman

(2020, May 1). Wearing a mask is for smug liberals. Refusing to is for reckless Republicans. Politico. https://www.politico.com/news/2020/05/01/masks-politics-coronavirus-227765

60.

Macias

(2020, November 24). Biden transition team received official Operation Warp Speed briefing, HHS’ Azar says, after weeks of delays. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2020/11/24/biden-team-receives-operation-warp-speed-briefing-after-weeks-of-delays.html

61.

Mahmud

Mohammad

Abdullah

K. A.

(2020). Leadership in disaster management: Theory versus reality. Journal of Clinical and Health Sciences, 5(1), 4–11.

62.

Malâtre-Lansac

Schneider

(2020, March 27). How Covid-19 is unveiling US healthcare weaknesses. Institute Montaigne. https://www.institutmontaigne.org/en/expressions/how-covid-19-unveiling-us-healthcare-weaknesses

63.

Malecki

K. M. C.

Keating

J. A.

Safdar

(2021). Crisis communication and public perception of COVID-19 risk in the era of social media. Clinical Infectious Diseases, 72(4), 697–702. https://doi.org/10.1093/cid/ciaa758

64.

Mallinson

Popay

Kowarzik

(2006) Collaborative work in public health? Reflections on the experience of public health networks, Critical Public Health, 16(3), 259–265. https://doi.org/10.1080/09581590600986481

65.

Martin-Misener

Valaitis

Wong

S. T.

MacDonald

Meagher-Stewart

Kaczorowski

O-Mara

Savage

Austin

, & the Strengthening Primary Health Care through Public Health and Primary Care Collaborations Team. (2012). A scoping literature review of collaboration between primary care and public health. Primary Health Care Research & Development, 13, 327–346. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1463423611000491

66.

McEntire

D. A.

(2006). Disaster response and recovery. John Wiley & Sons.

67.

McGuire

Brudney

Gazley

(2010). The “new emergency management”: Applying the lessons from collaborative governance to twenty-first-century emergency planning. In O’Leary

Van Slyke

Kim

(Eds.), The future of public administration around the world (pp. 117–128). Georgetown University Press.

68.

McKay

(2020, October 16). More than 1,000 current and former CDC officers criticize U.S. Covid-19 response. The Wall Streat Journal. https://www.wsj.com/articles/more-than-1-000-current-and-former-cdc-officers-condemn-u-s-covid-19-response-11602884265

69.

McKay

(2021, July 31). Florida governor blocks school mask mandates, says parents can choose. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/florida-gov-desantis-issue-order-giving-parents-choice-mask-children-school-2021-07-30/

70.

Mendez

(2021, August 24). WHO says Covid misinformation is a major factor driving pandemic around the world. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2021/08/24/who-says-covid-misinformation-is-a-major-factor-driving-pandemic-around-the-world.html

71.

Milosh

Painter

Sonin

Dijcke

D. V.

Wright

A. L.

(2020, December 23). Political polarisation impedes the public policy response to Covid-19. VoxEU. https://voxeu.org/article/political-polarisation-impedes-public-policy-response-covid-19

72.

Mitchell

Liedke

(2021, August 24). About four-in ten Americans say social media is an important way of following COVID-19 vaccine news. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/08/24/about-four-in-ten-americans-say-social-media-is-an-important-way-of-following-covid-19-vaccine-news/

73.

Molla

(2021, March 1). Posting less, posting more, and tired of it all: How the pandemic has changed social media. VOX. https://www.vox.com/recode/22295131/social-media-use-pandemic-covid-19-instagram-tiktok

74.

Newport

(2019, November 27). Public opinion, the role of government and the candidates. Gallup. https://news.gallup.com/opinion/polling-matters/268799/public-opinion-role-government-candidates.aspx

75.

Nohrstedt

Bynander

Parker

‘t Hart

(2018). Managing crises collaboratively: Prospects and problems—a systematic literature review. Perspectives on Public Management and Governance, 4(4), 257–271

76.

OECD. (2020, July 3). Transparency, communication, and trust: The role of public communication in responding to the wave of disinformation about the new coronavirus. OECD Policy Response to Coronavirus (COVID-19). https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/transparency-communication-and-trust_bef7ad6e-en.html

77.

Parker

C. F.

Nohrstedt

Baird

Hermansson

Rubin

Baekkeskov

(2020). Collaborative crisis management: A plausibility probe of core assumptions. Policy and Society, 39(4), 510–529. https://doi.org/10.1080/14494035.2020.1767337

78.

Pazzanese

(2020, May 8). Battling the ‘pandemic of misinformation’. The Harvard Gazette. https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2020/05/social-media-used-to-spread-create-covid-19-falsehoods/

79.

Peters

B. G.

(2004). American public policy: Promise and performance (6th ed.). CQ Press.

80.

Peters

(2021, August 21). Biden backs school districts in fight against GOP mask mandate bans. Vox. https://www.vox.com/2021/8/21/22635272/biden-school-districts-gop-mask-mandate-bans

81.

Pollard

M. S.

Davis

L. M.

(2021). Decline in trust in the centers for disease control and prevention during the COVID-19 pandemic. RAND Corporation. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA308-12.html

82.

Puppim de Oliveira

J. A.

Barabashev

A. G.

Tapscott

Thompson

L. I.

Qian

(2021). The role of intergovernmental relations in response to a wicked problem: An analysis of the COVID-19 crisis in the BRICS countries. Brazilian Journal of Public Administration, 55(1), 243–260. https://doi.org/10.1590/0034-761220200501

83.

Raju

Van Niekerk

(2013). Intra-governmental coordination for sustainable disaster recovery: A case-study of the Eden District Municipality, South Africa. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 4, 92–99.

84.

Raungratanaamporna

I.-S.

Pakdeebureea

Kamikoa

Denpaiboon

(2014). Government-communities collaboration in disaster management activity: Investigation in the current flood disaster management policy in Thailand. Procedia Environmental Sciences, 20, 658–667.

85.

Reiss

Almasy

(2021, August 10). Florida governor’s office says state could withhold salaries of officials who enact school mask mandates. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2021/08/09/us/florida-desantis-school-mask-mandates/index.html

86.

Rothewell

Makridis

(2020, September 17). Politics is wrecking America’s pandemic response. Brookings. https://www.brookings.edu/blog/up-front/2020/09/17/politics-is-wrecking-americas-pandemic-response/

87.

Sadiq

A. A.

Kessa

(2020). US procurement in the age of COVID-19: challenges, intergovernmental collaboration, and recommendations for improvement. The American Review of Public Administration, 50(6–7), 635–641.

88.

Salvanto

De Pinto

Backus

Khanna

(2022, January 16). Biden at year one: Not enough focus on inflation leaves many frustrated. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/biden-inflation-first-year-opinion-poll/

89.

Santiago

Weisfeldt

(2021, August 27). Judge rules against Florida Gov. DeSantis’ ban on mask mandates in schools. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2021/08/27/us/florida-school-mask-ban-governor-desantis/index.html

90.

Soergel

(2020, April 7). States competing in ‘global jungle’ for PPE. US News. https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/articles/2020-04-07/states-compete-in-global-jungle-for-personal-protective-equipment-amid-coronavirus

91.

Steenkamer

Drewes

Putters

van Oers

Baan

(2020). Reorganizing and integrating public health, health care, social care and wider public services: A theory-based framework for collaborative adaptive health networks to achieve the triple aim. Journal of Health Services Research & Policy, 25(3), 187–201. https://doi.org/10.1177/1355819620907359

92.

Talev

(2021, September 28). Axios-Ipsos poll: Biden trust takes a blow as COVID lingers. Axios. https://www.axios.com/axios-ipsos-fall-biden-trust-drops-covid-69b57014-9878-4d15-81ce-08fd37ceefae.html

93.

The Editors. (2020, October 8). Dying in a leadership vacuum. The New England Journal of Medicine. https://www.nejm.org/coronavirus

94.

Valaitis

R. K.

O’Mara

Wong

S. T.

MacDonald

Murray

Martin-Misener

Meagher-Stewart

(2018). Strengthening primary health care through primary care and public health collaboration: The influence of intrapersonal and interpersonal factors. Primary Health Care Research & Development, 19, 378–391. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1463423617000895

95.

Van der Wal

(2020). Being a public manager in times of crisis: The art of managing stakeholders, political masters, and collaborative networks. Public Administration Review, 80(5), 759–764. https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.13245

96.

Varda

Shoup

J. A.

Miller

(2012). A systematic review of collaboration and network research in the public affairs literature: Implications for public health practice and research. American Journal of Public Health, 102(3), 564–571. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2011.300286

97.

Venegas-Vera

A. V.

Colbert

G. B.

Lerma

E. V.

(2020). Positive and negative impact of social media in the COVID-19 era. Rev Cardiovasc, 21(4), 561–564. https://doi.org/10.31083/j.rcm.2020.04.195.

98.

Waugh

W. L.

Streib

(2006). Collaboration and leadership for effective emergency management. Public Administration Review, 66, 131–140.

99.

Webby

R. J.

Webster

R. G.

(2003). Are we ready for pandemic influenza? Science, 302(5650), 1519–1522. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1090350

100.

Weixel

(2022, January 10). CDC leader faces precarious political moment. The Hill. https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/589097-cdc-leader-faces-precarious-political-moment

101.

White House. (2020a, March 3). The president’s coronavirus guidelines for America. 30 days to slow the spread. White House. https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/03.16.20_coronavirus-guidance_8.5x11_315PM.pdf

102.

White House. (2020b, April 16). Guidelines: Opening up America again. White House. https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Guidelines-for-Opening-Up-America-Again.pdf (archives.gov)

103.

White House. (2021, November 4). Fact sheet: Biden administration announces details of two major vaccination policies. White House. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/11/04/fact-sheet-biden-administration-announces-details-of-two-major-vaccination-policies/

104.

WHO. (2011). Intersectoral action on health: A path for policy-makers to implement effective and sustainable action on health. World Health Organization Centre for Health Development.

105.

Wolf-Fordham

(2020). Integrating government silos: Local emergency management and public health department collaboration for emergency planning and response. The American Review of Public Administration, 50(6–7), 560–567. https://doi.org/10.1177/0275074020943706

106.

Wright

D. S.

(1988). Understanding intergovernmental relations (3rd ed.). Brooks-Cole.

107.

Yin

R. K.

(2009). Case study research: Design and methods (4th ed.). Sage.

108.

Yong

(2020, September 9). America is trapped in a pandemic spiral. The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/09/pandemic-intuition-nightmare-spiral-winter/616204/?gclid=CjwKCAiA-_L9BRBQEiwA-bm5fvfniwOZQmWUp7DnmOeWjcmRYWgatXXyuL-R2DvrM7AaOH_ALWYVfRoCyxoQAvD_BwE

109.

Zhou

Huang

Zhang

(2011). Identifying critical success factors in emergency management using a fuzzy DEMATEL method. Safety Science, 49, 243–252.

110.

Zimmerman

(2017, February 24). Government’s role in public health. PA Times. https://patimes.org/governments-role-public-health/

Challenges of Collaborative Government Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Study of Factors and Cases in the United States

Abstract

Keywords

Get full access to this article

References