ANALOGY OF THE COVID-19 CRISIS AND THE BOSNIAN WAR-SIEGE; PSYCHOLOGICAL, SOCIOLOGICAL AND POLITICAL SECURITY PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

The study qualitatively explores the pandemic and Sarajevo War-Siege from the psychological, sociological, and political security perspectives. As a direct indicator of behavioral variability within extreme conditions, the author refers to structural interviews with war-siege participants. The citizens can recognize the 1990s in some manifestations of the pandemic, including crisis staff formation that reflects ethnopolitics (ethnic-political boundaries) rather than instills public confidence. Life in the conditions of radical changes leaves a trace that does not have to be exclusively emotional but cognitive. The state of war-siege meant deconstructing the pre-war way of life and new ways of coping with war conditions. Maintaining routines is a link to pre-war life; continuity of norms and values allows for mental stability maintenance. During the siege, people had an acute perception of space and time. Space was something where the danger came from and the time spent in that space needed to be reduced. We have similar functions during the pandemic, reflecting on people's thoughts. Those who have adequately gone through the trauma that lasted during the siege have adapted well to "extreme" conditions and can develop protective mechanisms. Human thought focuses on the repetitive and familiar in today's world, while some extreme event interprets as the exception; such exceptional events are crucial in creating the future. Regardless of the political system's axis, confidence in the political elites must be sufficient. Prevention of fear and panic in the war's geographical area should be based on quality peacetime preparation through education and psychological commitment.