Unfolding, Intensification, Stabilising: The 3 Stages of Transition from Paper 1

Our first study, published in the Journal of Documentation, found that lockdown catalysed a period of transition, which is defined as a complex and iterative process of reconstruction shaped by participants’ growing awareness of information dissemination. This is represented in three phases, and constitute an enmeshed, iterative and evolving set of arrangements, actions and activities that allowed information and knowledge to intensify and stabilise as governmental, medical, economic and social conditions continued to evolve.

Phase 1: Unfolding
In phase one, the COVID-19 information environment begins to unfold in both the participants’ understanding of ‘pandemic theatre’ and a sense of disbelief. Incredulity meant that participants started to focus on authoritative professional resources that would invoke confidence and direction. This includes government and scientific sources found mostly through first-generation technologies (such as TV and radio). However, the complexity of the situation meant these proved to be insufficient, and participants noted that they supplemented traditional media with information from on-demand news sites. For some, this approach helped ‘build a picture’, however, for others it became ‘all consuming’. Demonstrating the anxiety of the time as participants sought to find a sense of control, and create a form of ‘risk ritual’. ‘Observing’ also played an important part in helping participants to recognise the potential danger to themselves as well as to build an appropriate physical response to the pandemic.

Phase 2: Intensification
Phase two formed a period of intensification that was marked by increasing anxiety and stress as people actively tried to ‘grasp’ the pandemic and understand the potential short- and long term implications. It also indicated more complex processes of production and co-production in disrupted everyday practices as participants started to form new information landscapes. Participants began ‘hoovering’ up information from across media to get every ‘scrap’ of news, often pooling and mediating this together within their communities, especially as distrust in government information grew. At the same time, concerns about the wellbeing of family and friends meant that many participants reported deciding to withhold or refrain from sharing information that was perceived to be upsetting. Finally, ‘being present’ is evidenced by creative and reflexive responses to lockdown life and further situated participants in relation to the discourses and actors of the pandemic information environment.

Phase 3: Stabilising
Phase three emerged as a more stable yet increasingly desensitised stage with participants understanding the information sources, practices and activities required to maintain an informed view of the pandemic. ‘Compartmentalising’ became a core information practice, as participants became ‘saturated and overwhelmed’ by information. For some, this was a self-preserving or wellness strategy, for others, it was a way to continue to access the information that they needed, as the volume of information continued to increase. This stage included ‘tapering off’, wherein participants, with an increased sense of stability in this new environment, began narrowing down or targeting information sources, as they felt more confident that they would not miss anything new.

 

The full paper can be found here.