How experts create legitimacy in decision making: a Critical Discourse Analysis in the first COVID-19 wave in the Netherlands

In December 2019, the first case of the SARS-Cov-2 virus was identified in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China (Lavazza & Farina, 2021). In the next few months, the virus spread rapidly across Asia, Europe and North America, many countries responding with far reaching COVID-19 measures: closing shops, travel bans and lockdowns (Taylor, 2021). In order to avoid social unrest and to create trust among the people, many governments appealed to experts to advise and justify unpopular and strict COVID-19 measures such as quarantine and lockdowns (Lavazza & Farina, 2020). In The Netherlands, the Outbreak Management Team (OMT) took on this role, by advising the Dutch government, as part of the RIVM, in case of a cross-regional/national outbreak of an infectious disease, like the COVID-19 virus (RIVM, 2021). In this thesis, the author analyses twelve press conferences by Dutch government officials during the first COVID-19 wave in the Netherlands. The aim of this research is to demonstrate how the...Show moreIn December 2019, the first case of the SARS-Cov-2 virus was identified in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China (Lavazza & Farina, 2021). In the next few months, the virus spread rapidly across Asia, Europe and North America, many countries responding with far reaching COVID-19 measures: closing shops, travel bans and lockdowns (Taylor, 2021). In order to avoid social unrest and to create trust among the people, many governments appealed to experts to advise and justify unpopular and strict COVID-19 measures such as quarantine and lockdowns (Lavazza & Farina, 2020). In The Netherlands, the Outbreak Management Team (OMT) took on this role, by advising the Dutch government, as part of the RIVM, in case of a cross-regional/national outbreak of an infectious disease, like the COVID-19 virus (RIVM, 2021). In this thesis, the author analyses twelve press conferences by Dutch government officials during the first COVID-19 wave in the Netherlands. The aim of this research is to demonstrate how the Dutch cabinet used the OMT to gain legitimacy for the build up and reduction of COVID-19 measures. A Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) is used to analyse linguistic aspects and identify discourses and themes wherein the Dutch government gains public support and justifies different actions taken (Van Dijk, 1993). This research will specifically compare how the role of OMT is portrayed differently between the build up and reduction of COVID-19 measures. The author hypothesized that the OMT is more often and strongly referred to in the build up of measures compared to the reduction of measures. This study sheds light on the broader topic of experts in the COVID-19 crisis, crisis communication and the broader tension between the role of experts and creating legitimacy in decision making.Show less

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How experts create legitimacy in decision making: a Critical Discourse Analysis in the first COVID-19 wave in the Netherlands