Missed opportunity: Covid-19 pandemic as a throwback to the national individualism

"The problem in the pandemic is that the individual has been so much highlighted that we have forgotten about society."   

The Covid-19 pandemic happened to be a fertile ground for nationalist and protectionist political forces. By bringing national politics to the forefront, European integration suffered fundamentally. With the restoration of nation-territorial borders as well as “vaccine nationalism”, the European nation-states have acted as active competitive managers in opposition to a coordinated inclusive pan-European approach.   

What were the reasons for this national individualism and can such policies be prevented in future crises? What consequences has the pandemic on the perception of European integration and which narratives have been strengthened within the societies across Europe?  

Daniel Martinek (IDM) discusses with Anna Durnová, Professor of Political Sociology at the Department of Sociology of the University of Vienna, whose research focus lies among others on the interface between expertise, culture and politics or social polarization in times of crisis.     

Artwork recommended by the guest: Camus, Albert, The Plague, Paris, Gallimard, 1947  

Read more on the sociological consequences of the pandemic or policy discourses in Czechia in Anna Durnová's articles. 

CEE - Central Europe Explained is a podcast series produced by the Institute for the Danube Region and Central Europe, powered by Erste Group.    

Guest: Anna Durnová, Professor of Political Sociology at the Department of Sociology of the University of Vienna   

Host: Daniel Martinek, Research Associate IDM   

Production and editing: Emma Hontebeyrie, Research Associate IDM 

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