COMMON SITUATIONAL AWARENESS IN THE PROCESS OF BUILDING SOCIAL RESILIENCE TO A HEALTH CRISIS – THE EXAMPLE OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Abstract

The research problem undertaken by the authors focuses on increasing resilience in the event ofa threat or crisis, taking into account two pillars of activity: civil planning and public education.The crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic has shown that the developed anti-epidemic plansand procedures were not compatible with the development and dynamics of the spread of theSARS-Cov-2 virus. Moreover, actions aimed at building resilience proposed in many Europeandocuments concern primarily institutional structures, leaving citizens themselves somewhat onthe sidelines. According to the authors, this is clearly an unfavourable approach, because citizensalso need to be prepared for crises through educating and increasing their social awareness in thecontext of potential threats. The article presents selected aspects of survey research conducted ina group of academic youth (n=138). The survey comprised students of subjects related to securityin its broadest sense. The designed research tool – A questionnaire for examining students’ opinionson health safety during the pandemic – is intended to identify students’ opinions on selected aspectsof institutional activities, as well as personal beliefs, opinions and activities undertaken in thecontext of the current Sars-Cov-2 virus pandemic. The research results presented in the articlerefer to detailed research questions and answer questions about students’ preferred sources ofknowledge about threats, especially health threats. The research revealed a clear lack of trust in thecontent provided at university and a preference for the Internet as a source of knowledge, whichshould be considered a disturbing phenomenon, especially among people responsible for ensuringpublic safety in the future. The authors hope to spark a discussion among experts.