GV422-5-SP-CO:
Resilience to Disease and Disaster
2020/21
Government
Colchester Campus
Spring
Undergraduate: Level 5
Current
Sunday 17 January 2021
Friday 26 March 2021
15
01 February 2021
Requisites for this module
(none)
(none)
(none)
GV420, GV421
(none)
The module will explore how disease and disaster affect society and the state, and how states and societies can respond and be resilient. We will look at the economic, social, psychological and political implications and responses to disease and disaster from an inter-disciplinary perspective.
We also examine how states build capacity, and the importance of state -societal, and interpersonal trust. In doing so, we also look at the changing definitions of human security.
1.To develop students knowledge and understanding of the conceptual and methodological issues associated with the study of disease and disaster
2.To provide the opportunity for students to learn about existing research on disease and disaster, and offer an overview of the key concepts along with an introduction to competing theories on human security and state capacity
3.To develop and promote students’ general analytical skills and capacities to undertake subsequent academic study and for employment, personal development and participation.
4.To maintain an intellectual environment that is exciting and challenging, fostering students' capacities for study and dialogue and maintaining high standards of teaching and learning.
5. To enhance students’ skills in teamwork, technical skills, research techniques, critical thinking and writing.
More specifically, the course aims to help students:
To understand the impact of disease and disaster on the state and society
To be knowledgeable about diseases and disasters
To understand the interrelation of diseases, disasters and human security
To understand the effects of diseases on political and economic stability
To understand the role of international actors in cooperation on fighting diseases and disasters.
To understand the implications of disease and disaster on mental health.
To contrast the experience of different regimes, states, economies and societies and dealing with disasters.
To understand how to be resilient in the wake of a crisis at a societal and psychological level.
To understand the impact of globalization on disease and disaster
1. To develop an in-depth understanding of what we mean by resilience, including economic, political, societal and psychological forms of resilience
2. To understand how to define and measure state capacity, and analyse how state capacity is critical to responding effectively to disease and disasters
3. To acquire a capability to examine models of governance for their achievements in dealing effectively with disease and disaster
4. To understand what we mean by regime type, and how regime type can explain variation to state effectiveness in responding to a crisis
5. To understand and analyse how states cooperate or fail to cooperate in addressing a crisis
6. To evaluate the role of international actors in responding to a crisis
Week 16: What is the state?
What do we mean by the state? This week will provide an overview of what role the state plays in providing: public health care system, environmental management, engineering, urban planning, education, nutrition, agriculture, sanitation. The seminar then explores how states can build capacity (such as effective institutions for public health and water management) to handle these challenges posed by diseases. The key success stories are highlighted to illustrate what states can do to reduce the prevalence and alleviate the adverse effects of disease.
Week 17: Political resilience, part I
Democracies, Dictatorship and disease
Are democracies better than authoritarian regimes at managing crises posed by disease and natural disaster? This seminar explores the questions about authoritarian exceptionalism and investigates how regimes react to these crises? The seminar covers the work by authoritarian regimes to conceal valuable information that is critical to dealing with a crisis early on and demonstrates how personalist regimes are particularly ineffective and dangerous in dealing with crises.
Week 18: Political resilience part II
Populism, disease and disaster
Disease and disaster management often necessitates technical and scientific expertise, something that populist leaders eschew. This week explores how populist leaders have responded to these crises compared to technocratic counterparts.
Week 19: Economic resilience part I
This week looks at what governments can do prevent economic collapse during a crisis, including looking at how to avert spiralling unemployment, inequality and negative economic growth.
Week 20: Economic resilience part II
This week looks at what industries are often hard hit by a crisis, but also how industries and businesses are able to bounce back and survive crisis conditions.
Poster due
Week 21: Societal resilience
This week looks at the societal response to disease and disaster, and how societies with high levels of trust can respond effectively.
Week 22: Psychological resilience
This week looks at the psychological response to a crisis and how individuals can be more resilient in dealing with extraordinary situations.
Week 23: International cooperation
This week looks at the role of states in cooperating to respond to a crisis. In many cases diseases, and even some natural disasters know no borders, requiring cooperation at a global scale to help other countries deal effectively with a crisis. This week looks at successful cases of international cooperation and also at the challenges of cooperating.
Week 24: World Health Organization and International Response
This week looks at the role of international institutions in managing a response to a crisis and some of their limitations in containment, mitigation and coordination. This week also looks at the role of vaccines, medication and how international organizations and NGOs can deliver services that are vital to ensuring public health.
Week 25: Reading week and assignments due (take home test and paper)
1 hour pre-recorded lecture and a 50 minute online seminar per week. Students will be given prepared content ahead of time in the style of a flipped classroom so that they are able to use the seminar/class to discuss key concepts in depth. This gives students more flexibility with how they want to consume information provided by the lecture and gives them a chance to follow up with discussions. The teaching is designed to help students gain breadth and more in depth understanding of the intersection of disease, disaster, the state, and society.
- Heymann, David L; Chen, Lincoln; Takemi, Keizo; Fidler, David P; Tappero, Jordan W; Thomas, Mathew J; Kenyon, Thomas A; Frieden, Thomas R; Yach, Derek; Nishtar, Sania; Kalache, Alex; Olliaro, Piero L; Horby, Peter; Torreele, Els; Gostin, Lawrence O; Ndomondo-Sigonda, Margareth; Carpenter, Daniel; Rushton, Simon; Lillywhite, Louis; Devkota, Bhimsen; Koser, Khalid; Yates, Rob; Dhillon, Ranu S; Rannan-Eliya, Ravi P. (2015-05) 'Global health security: the wider lessons from the west African Ebola virus disease epidemic', in The Lancet. vol. 385 (9980) , pp.1884-1901
- Rushton, Simon. (2011-11-07) 'Global Health Security: Security for whom? Security from what?', in Political Studies. vol. 59 (4) , pp.779-796
- How much will lifting lockdown start to reverse the UK’s economic slump? | Economics Observatory, https://www.coronavirusandtheeconomy.com/question/how-much-will-lifting-lockdown-start-reverse-uks-economic-slump
- Van Aalst, Maarten K. (2006-03) 'The impacts of climate change on the risk of natural disasters', in Disasters. vol. 30 (1) , pp.5-18
- Morawska, Lidia; Tang, Julian W.; Bahnfleth, William; Bluyssen, Philomena M.; Boerstra, Atze; Buonanno, Giorgio; Cao, Junji; Dancer, Stephanie; Floto, Andres; Franchimon, Francesco; Haworth, Charles; Hogeling, Jaap; Isaxon, Christina; Jimenez, Jose L.; Kurnitski, Jarek; Li, Yuguo; Loomans, Marcel; Marks, Guy; Marr, Linsey C.; Mazzarella, Livio; Melikov, Arsen Krikor; Miller, Shelly; Milton, Donald K.; Nazaroff, William; Nielsen, Peter V.; Noakes, Catherine; Peccia, Jordan; Querol, Xavier; Sekhar, Chandra; Seppänen, Olli; Tanabe, Shin-ichi; Tellier, Raymond; Tham, Kwok Wai; Wargocki, Pawel; Wierzbicka, Aneta; Yao, Maosheng. (2020-09) 'How can airborne transmission of COVID-19 indoors be minimised?', in Environment International. vol. 142, pp.105832-
- Hotez, Peter J.; Brindley, Paul J.; Bethony, Jeffrey M.; King, Charles H.; Pearce, Edward J.; Jacobson, Julie. (2008-4-1) 'Helminth infections: the great neglected tropical diseases', in Journal of Clinical Investigation. vol. 118 (4) , pp.1311-1321
- (no date) Yuuyaraq: The Way of the Human Being: Harold Napoleon..
- Sifri, Ziad; Chokshi, Aastha; Cennimo, David; Horng, Helen. (2019) 'Global contributors to antibiotic resistance', in Journal of Global Infectious Diseases. vol. 11 (1) , pp.36-
The above list is indicative of the essential reading for the course. The library makes provision for all reading list items, with digital provision where possible, and these resources are shared between students. Further reading can be obtained from this module's reading list.
Assessment items, weightings and deadlines
| Coursework / exam |
Description |
Deadline |
Coursework weighting |
| Coursework |
Poster (PDF) |
|
20% |
| Coursework |
Take Home Essay Test |
|
80% |
Exam format definitions
- Remote, open book: Your exam will take place remotely via an online learning platform. You may refer to any physical or electronic materials during the exam.
- In-person, open book: Your exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer to any physical materials such as paper study notes or a textbook during the exam. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, open book (restricted): The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer only to specific physical materials such as a named textbook during the exam. Permitted materials will be specified by your department. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, closed book: The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may not refer to any physical materials or electronic devices during the exam. There may be times when a paper dictionary,
for example, may be permitted in an otherwise closed book exam. Any exceptions will be specified by your department.
Your department will provide further guidance before your exams.
Overall assessment
Reassessment
Module supervisor and teaching staff
Prof Natasha Lindstaedt, email: nezrow@essex.ac.uk.
Professor Natasha Lindstaedt
Professor Natasha Lindstaedt nezrow@essex.ac.uk
Module administrator Lewis Olley govquery@essex.ac.uk
Yes
Yes
No
Dr Arzu Kibris
University of Warwick
Associate Professor
Available via Moodle
Of 990 hours, 0 (0%) hours available to students:
990 hours not recorded due to service coverage or fault;
0 hours not recorded due to opt-out by lecturer(s).
Government
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