The social evolution of COVID-19: pandemics as total social facts
Metadatos
Mostrar el registro completo del ítemEditorial
Frontiers Media
Materia
total social fact COVID-19 pandemic
Fecha
2024-07-08Referencia bibliográfica
Labora González, J.J. & Fernández Vilas, E. Front. Sociol. 9:1397826. [https://doi.org/10.3389/fsoc.2024.1397826]
Patrocinador
Xunta de Galicia for Groups with Potential Growth (GPC). Reference ED431B 2022/31Resumen
The COVID-19 pandemic was an unprecedented global event in recent history.
Beginning with an initial outbreak in Wuhan, China, in December 2019, the
virus spread rapidly across the globe, causing millions of deaths and triggering
an unprecedented health, economic, and social crisis. The initial response to
the outbreak in many countries was the implementation of social distancing
measures, including the closure of schools and businesses, the cancellation of
mass events, and the banning of travel. These measures were aimed at reducing
the virus’ spread and preventing health systems from being overwhelmed by
the numerous severe COVID-19 cases. However, these measures also had a
devastating economic impact, especially on precarious workers and freelancers,
as well as those who were unable to work from home. As the pandemic
(also considered a syndemic or synergistic epidemic) dragged on, countries
adopted more flexible approaches to dealing with the virus, adopting mitigation
measures rather than social distancing measures. These included the use of
masks, testing and contact tracing, and the opening of businesses and schools
with the implementation of additional safety measures. This paper highlights the
social consequences of the pandemic, ultimately arguing that it is a total social
fact (from the French fait social total), based on Marcel Mauss’ categorization,
since it encompassed and impacted all facets of human life.