Tomas Bergström
Affiliated
Between lockdown and calm down. Comparing the COVID-19 responses of Norway and Sweden
Author
Summary, in English
This article studies the difference in the government response to COVID-19 in Norway and Sweden drawing upon theories of agenda setting, crisis management and multi-level governance. Despite having virtually identical systems of government and, initially, facing similar infection threats, Sweden opted for far less strict countermeasures than Norway. While Norway’s government response was similar to that of many European countries, Sweden received international attention for choosing befuddlingly soft measures, mostly recommendations and guidelines. This divergence is discussed vis-à-vis the multiple streams lens of agenda setting theory, highlighting differences in institutional and organisational legacies (e.g., the autonomy of government agencies) and intergovernmental relations (e.g., whether infectious disease expertise and authority is located at the local level).
Department/s
- Department of Political Science
Publishing year
2022
Language
English
Pages
291-311
Publication/Series
Local Government Studies
Volume
48
Issue
2
Document type
Journal article
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Topic
- Economics and Business
- Political Science
Keywords
- autonomy
- COVID-19
- expertise
- intergovernmental relations
- local governments
- multiple streams
- norway
- sweden
Status
Published
ISBN/ISSN/Other
- ISSN: 0300-3930