Introduction
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected absolutely the whole world, and this is the first such case in modern history. Medical resources and technology around the world have come together to tackle a common disaster. However, the struggle in different countries took place in different ways. The reason for this is, among other things, the cultural differences between them. This paper will analyze two countries ̶ South Korea and France. The cultural aspects of these countries, each in their way, influenced the fight against the coronavirus COVID-19 at different levels of the social and state structure.
Long-term orientation, individualism, and distance from power, three of the six cultural dimensions of Hofstede, were selected as aspects of the comparative analysis in this work. These cultural aspects are quite contrasting for the selected two countries, so their manifestation and difference will be visible. In addition, the fight against the pandemic is also regulated by various social and economic factors and the country’s foreign policy since the communication of countries in the world community has forcedly increased.
Individualism and Distance from Power
Everyday life has been disrupted by the coronavirus worldwide, but the response to these changes has varied. Forced distancing, regulated by the state, economic problems have affected the population of the whole world. As a result, physical health deteriorated due to the spread of the virus and the psychological health of those who were not directly affected by the virus. France found itself under a nationwide travel restriction from mid-March to late May. Compared to other countries in Europe or, for example, the United States, France responded quickly at the state level in response to the COVID-19 crisis (Dean et al., 2021).
South Korea has taken less stringent measures at the state level, introducing a testing and isolation system with a targeted quarantine policy (Dighe et al., 2020). It is worth noting that, geographically, South Korea was much closer to the epidemic outbreak. Therefore, of the possible reasons for taking measures that did not correspond to this situation, at that time, there was a complete lack of experience in fighting the virus.
South Korea is considered a collectivist society, so reasonably large groups in society maintain loyal relations with each other. At the same time, France considers a society to be individual, where children are brought up independent of groups more extensive than the family (Hofstede Insights, n.d.). However, the emotional addiction of the French has influenced the response to the pandemic. It is supported by the high rates of loneliness and stress during the pandemic in France and South Korea (Dean et al., 2021).
As future statistics will show, the imposition of local restrictions in South Korea was not a mistake on the part of the state, while in France, a quick response did not save the country from many cases of illness. With a population of about 67 million in France, South Korea is home to an estimated 51 million, but peak incidence rates per day reached more than 85,000 in France, compared to 1,132 in South Korea (Worldometer, 2021). It is necessary to consider in more detail the aspect itself and other factors that led to such indicators to argue that these indicators confirm the failure of countries with predominant individualism in the fight against COVID-19.
France also has high levels of distance from power, which reveals some national character traits. The French are accustomed to submitting to an impersonal center of power that cannot go beyond the boundaries of everyone’s private life. At the same time, they are pretty emotionally dependent, possibly due to the more significant influence of parents on children compared to other European countries, but still, the French need robust control during crises (Hofstede Insights, n.d.). The state provided such regulation at the start of the pandemic. However, most likely, the role of mistrust in the highest authorities and the high self-esteem of their actions by the French population, which are a consequence of protecting their privacy and distancing, played a role.
In South Korea, the population has much fewer questions about the government and its structure. Subordination is respected in the same way as generally accepted human norms of behavior, including, for example, respect. Therefore, Korean society was culturally more prepared for the outbreak of the pandemic. It allowed them to jointly avoid high morbidity rates due to the coordinated actions of the authorities and the population. Even though the government has introduced pinpoint restrictions and a slight increase in infections since the winter of this year, the threshold of 750 people per day across the country has not been exceeded (Worldometer, 2021).
At the same time, there is a decrease in cases in France, which by May of this year reached about 8000 (Worldometer, 2021). If we cite the relative figures of these cases, it will be seen that, despite the downward trend, France has the most significant number of cases in recent years in Europe. Furthermore, other European countries with similar rates, such as Italy and Spain, have similar incidence statistics. It is explained by the fact that these indicators of cultural aspects, among other things, imply respect for elders. Possible self-activity and caring for the elderly entail new cases of the infection since it is the age group in the risk group for the disease.
Individualism is also manifested in the observance of state restrictions and the doctor’s prescriptions. If the culture of handwashing has already been adopted in many countries, then wearing masks and treating hands with an antiseptic turned out to be a novelty for many. Even though studies show a relatively high rate of adherence to safety measures in France, they still have high incidence rates (Raude et al., 2020). Outbreaks are also a consequence of the tense political situation in the country.
The situation is explained by the riots and protests in France against police violence and the global security law. French discontent even this spring has led to more than 300 demonstrations across the country, including skeptics of coronavirus restrictions (France-Presse, 2021). A large crowd of people and a violation of social distance leads to massive infection and impedes the positive dynamics of recovery.
Long Term Orientation
The sufficiently high concern and crisis caused by the pandemic did not violate the cultural foundations laid down in the inhabitants of South Korea. Koreans will always prefer the long-term growth prospective of the overall market over high monthly wages (Hofstede Insights, n.d.). In addition, health care is also proactive in Asian countries. Therefore, a study examining the health behavior of many countries during a pandemic has shown that a focus on longevity bears fruit and reduces the incidence of infection (Ruiz et al., 2020). South Korea as a whole has the highest long-term planning rates in the world (Hofstede Insights, n.d.). Adherence to tradition partly explains the population’s behavior, in which it is accepted that everyone takes their place and their activities are taken for granted.
At the same time, the French are also considered pragmatic, but in their understanding, context matters. It means that established traditions may be questioned. Consequently, the authorities’ actions, as indicated above, are not recognized as the only correct ones. The high percentage of French willfulness contrasts with the South Korean population. This fact is reflected in a study of self-accountability and trust in authorities in reporting cases of infection (Travaglino & Moon, 2021).
It is also worth noting that individualism by its nature may imply complaints of non-reporting of the disease to the right authorities, however, in France, mistrust of the authorities prevails. In South Korea, the complaint is not a condemnatory action, since in this case it is aimed at the general good of the country, which is the main value of collectivism. The listed qualities only confirm the national understanding of Koreans, sharpened for the long term and, consequently, an improvement in the situation with the disease in the country.
However, it should be noted the statistical fact that the incidence rates in South Korea are held longer than in many countries, along with Italy (Worldometer, 2021). At the same time, the ratio of cases to the population in the country is record low. Outbreaks in South Korea, that is, an increase in the number of cases more than ten times for a month, were observed three times over the entire period of the pandemic.
In the case of France, only one can be distinguished, but during this outbreak, the number of cases increased 43 times. Consequently, a long-term orientation allows maintaining control of the virus to secure hospital beds, resources, and medicines. Overcrowding in hospitals in Europe was widespread (Tapper, 2020). Therefore, even indicators of long-term orientation above the average do not significantly affect the response to a crisis in which the entire state and the world as a whole fell.
Conclusion
During the pandemic, the manifestation of the cultural aspects of different countries was more pronounced. Collectivism, combined with a high distance from power and leading indicators of long-term orientation, became the most useful. A small number of cases of infection were achieved in South Korea, while in France, where a significant difference in cultural aspects was revealed only in the predominance of individualism, the number of diseases is still high. Even though the state was one of the first to react in France with rather strict restrictions, in the fight against COVID-19, the population’s behavior, attitude towards the authorities, and the degree of pragmatism turned out to be a more influential factor.
In addition to cultural aspects, the political situation in the country plays an important role. In France, dissatisfaction with the government is expressed by the population in demonstrations, in which many people take part. These demonstrations lead to detentions, physical injury, and, consequently, to an increase in infections. In addition, anxiety is accompanied by the stress of quite emotional French people. The calmer situation in South Korea is confirmed by the lack of news of unrest and clashes. Even though depression and loneliness associated with the current crisis are also widespread among Koreans, these psychological problems result from adherence to measures prescribed by the state and are not dictated by outside factors.
References
France-Presse, A. (2021). Thousands mark May Day with rallies in France, Spain and Germany. The Guardian. Web.
Dean, D. J., Tso, I. F., Giersch, A., Lee, H. S., Baxter, T., Griffith, T. & Park, S. (2021). Cross-cultural comparisons of psychosocial distress in the USA, South Korea, France, and Hong Kong during the initial phase of COVID-19. Psychiatry Research, 295, 113593.
Dighe A., Cattarino L. & Cuomo-Dannenburg G. (2020) Response to COVID-19 in South Korea and implications for lifting stringent interventions. BMC Med, 18, 321. Web.
Hofstede Insights. (n.d.) Country comparison: France, South Korea. Web.
Raude, J., Lecrique, J. M., Lasbeur, L., Leon, C., Guignard, R., Roscoät, E. D., & Arwidson, P. (2020). Determinants of preventive behaviors in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in France: comparing the sociocultural, psychosocial and social cognitive explanations. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 3345.
Ruiz, M. C., Devonport, T. J., Chen-Wilson, C. H. J., Nicholls, W., Cagas, J. Y., Fernandez-Montalvo, J. & Robazza, C. (2020). A cross-cultural exploratory study of health behaviors and wellbeing during COVID-19. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 38-97.
Tapper, J. (2020). Overcrowded hospitals, exhausted staff and a new threat. The Guardian. Web.
Travaglino, G. A., & Moon, C. (2021). Compliance and self-reporting during the COVID-19 Pandemic: a cross-cultural study of trust and self-conscious emotions in the United States, Italy, and South Korea. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 684.
(2021) Coronavirus pandemic. Web.