The Covid pandemic has put all modern societies to a serious test of resilience. The interdisciplinary research on which this book is based examined how four European governments behaved in these circumstances. During the months of the crisis, the team of experts coordinated by the editors of this volume took a close look at the decision-making processes in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia – the so-called Visegrad Four.
The inquiries focused on experiences from the academic, health, economic and social fields. The methods of comparison included surveys, interviews, discourse analysis, for which the adaptive leadership theory provided the conceptual framework.
The conclusions are both academic and practical. Aside the description of the pandemic responses, the research had a formative dimension: how can an adaptive leadership approach better help societies manage the health and societal impacts of similar challenges? The spectrum of emerging anti-democratic tendencies in the region provided the specific context of the exercise. The four states face varying degrees of democratic backsliding as well as illiberal influences that have affected their response to the pandemic, which gives this research on the Visegrad Four a worldwide resonance.
Milada Polišenská is a Czech professor and researcher specialized in history of diplomacy and international relations, and modern and contemporary history of Central and Eastern Europe. Currently she works in Prague as Provost of the Anglo-American University.
Dr. George Hays II is the Chair of International Relations in the School of International Relations and Diplomacy at Anglo-American University in Prague. He received his doctorate in International Relations from Charles University in Prague. Dr. Hays lectures in the areas of International Relations theory, war studies, Central European politics, and Post-Structural analysis. He has published works analyzing identity formation in both American and Czech discourses, as well as works that analyze Czechoslovak history, and numerous commentaries on contemporary politics and international conflicts.
Joshua M. Hayden, Ed.D. is Chair of Department of Social Sciences in the school of Humanities and Social Sciences and lecturer in Leadership Studies at Anglo-American University in Prague, Czechia. Joshua Hayden earned his doctorate in higher education leadership and policy from Vanderbilt University in the U.S. and has published and taught in the field of leadership studies for the past ten years. He is experienced in corporate, nonprofit and public sector leadership consulting and training.
Table of Contents
List of Tables
List of Figures
List of Appendices
List of Boxes
Introduction
Joshua Hayden, George Hays II, Milada Polišenská
Introduction
Leadership Framework
Chapter Outline
1. The Czech Republic: The “Best in Covid”
Joshua Hayden, George Hays II, Milada Polišenská
Introduction
The Czech Case
Survey: Czech Covid Leadership Response Questionnaire
Discussion and Conclusion
Appendix CZ 1: Czech Covid Leadership Response Questionnaire
Appendix CZ 2: Covid Pandemic Leadership Open-ended comments
2. Slovakia: In the Shadow of Sputnik
Nikoleta Jakuš, Mária Murray Svidroňová
Introduction
The Slovak Case
Opinion Polls: Analysis of Slovak Public Opinion During Covid-19
Conclusion
Appendix SK 1 - Overview of selected events
3. Poland: A Two Front Battle
Izabella Łęcka, Weronika Michalska, Tomasz Ochinowski
Introduction
Sources of Data and Background
The Polish Case
Interview: The Attitude of Entrepreneurs in Poland During the First Wave of the Covid-19 Pandemic and After the Adoption of the Vaccine
Discussion and Conclusion
Appendix PL 1. Questionnaire intended for the first and second stage of the study
4. Hungary: The Enemy is Everywhere
Tamás Tóth, Anna Ujlaki
Introduction
The Hungarian Case
Discourse Analysis: The Communication Style of Viktor Orbán in the Epidemic
Discussion and Conclusion
5. Conclusion: Following the Leader
Joshua Hayden, George Hays II, Milada Polišenská
Introduction
Meta-Analysis
Adaptive Leadership and Democracy
Conclusion
Bibliography
List of Contributors
Index
