Learning From the Past: Distributed Cognition and Crisis Management Capabilities for Tackling COVID-19

• DOI: 10.1177/0275074020942412
• Author: Seulki Lee,Jungwon Yeo,Chongmin Na
• Published date: 01 August 2020
• Date: 01 August 2020
• Subject Matter: Using COVID-19 to Advance Learning, Management, & Policy OutcomesLessons for Expanding Crisis Management Techniques & Pedagogy

https://doi.org/10.1177/0275074020942412

American Review of Public Administration

2020, Vol. 50(6-7) 729 –735

© The Author(s) 2020

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DOI: 10.1177/0275074020942412

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Lessons for Expanding Crisis Management Techniques & Pedagogy

Introduction

The world is suffering miserably from the unprecedented and

unforeseen spread of a new coronavirus disease 2019

(COVID-19). Conventional approaches do not seem to work

in the face of new challenges with extreme uncertainty and

complexity. Many developed countries such as the United

States and Japan have not been successful, at least initially,

in their efforts to address this “wicked problem” despite solid

foundation, infrastructure, formal procedures, and resources

for managing disastrous events.

Although the numbers of confirmed and death cases are

still adding up around the world as we write this article,

some countries are impressing the rest by reversing the

curve early on and even declaring zero daily confirmed

case of domestic origin. Among them, South Korea has

shown notable performances:

Korea is the only country with a population of over 50 million

that has slowed the spread of the virus, and flattened the curve of

new infections without shutting down the country nor the city at

the epicenter of the outbreak, without imposing an extreme

personal travel or movement restriction, and without closing

airports or taking other authoritarian actions. (The Ministry of

Economy and Finance, 2020, p. 3)

Since the first case was reported on January 20, followed

by several spikes of cases in February, the number of daily

cases has declined to an average of 9 in the first week of

May. The number of active cases surged to 7,362 on March

11 but dropped to 1,264 as of May 10. Considerable world-

wide attention has been paid to South Korea’s response to

COVID-19 and what happened behind the scenes.

In this commentary, drawing on the literature of emergency

and crisis management, we examine how South Korea has

responded to the COVID-19 outbreak and managed the public

health crisis. We highlight the role of “distributed cognition” in

South Korea’s well-structured but remarkably adaptive crisis

management system. Distributed cognition refers to the cogni-

tive properties of a group implemented in the minds of mem-

bers of the group (Hutchins, 2000; Salomon, 1993). South

942412ARPXXX10.1177/0275074020942412The American Review of Public AdministrationLee et al.

research-article2020

1New York University, New York City, USA

2University of Central Florida, Orlando, USA

3The City University of New York, New York City, USA

Corresponding Author:

Chongmin Na, John Jay College & The Graduate Center, The City

University of New York, 524 West 59th Street, New York, NY 10019,

USA.

Email: chongmin20@gmail.com

Learning From the Past: Distributed

Cognition and Crisis Management

Capabilities for Tackling COVID-19

Seulki Lee1, Jungwon Yeo2, and Chongmin Na3

Abstract

The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has presented an unprecedented public health crisis across the globe.

Governments have developed different approaches to tackle the complex and intractable challenge, showing variations in

their effectiveness and results. South Korea has achieved exceptional performance thus far: It has flattened the curve of new

infections and brought the outbreak under control without imposing forceful measures such as lockdowns and travel ban.

This commentary addresses the South Korean government’s response to COVID-19 and highlights distributed cognition

and crisis management capabilities as critical factors. The authors discuss how the South Korean government has cultivated

distributed cognition and three core capabilities—reflective-improvement, collaborative, and data-analytical capabilities—

after its painful experience with 2015 Middle East respiratory syndrome-coronavirus (MERS-CoV). South Korea’s adaptive

approaches and its learning path examined in this commentary provide practical implications for managing potential additional

waves of COVID-19 and a future public health crisis.

Keywords

COVID-19, public health crisis, emergency and crisis management, distributed cognition, state capability