How to Manage Covid-19 and Other Pandemics : Without Undermining Our Economies and Our Freedoms

Altman, Morris/ Altman, Hannah/ Lamontagne, Louise

Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd（2026/02発売）

• 製本 Hardcover:ハードカバー版／ページ数 178 p.
• 言語 ENG
• 商品コード 9781802204421

Full Description

This compelling book critically examines the global response to the Covid-19 pandemic, in particular by challenging the efficiency of lockdown measures. Morris Altman, Hannah Altman and Louise Lamontagne highlight the negative economic, social and psychological impacts of these measures, while proposing alternative strategies for pandemic management.Drawing on comparative global data, the authors contend that nuanced, targeted strategies frequently yielded better results than strict lockdowns. They explore responses to previous pandemics, demonstrating how softer policies such as increased hygiene measures, selective restrictions and targeted mask mandates could have led to comparable or even improved health outcomes and reduced death rates. Chapters cover key themes including the high concentration of Covid-19 deaths among the elderly, the inadequate protection of care home residents and the disproportionate burden on small businesses and lower-income populations. The book also investigates how political, academic and media discourses influenced policy decisions, underscoring the vital role of democratic debate and historically informed decision-making.

How to Manage Covid-19 and Other Pandemics is a beneficial resource for scholars and students of behavioural and experimental economics, economic health, psychology and public policy. It is also a crucial read for policymakers and public health advisors looking to understand efficient pandemic management.

Contents

Contents
1 Introduction: Covid-19 and the importance of choice in
smart decision-making
2 Covid policy and the politics of fear and
misunderstanding
3 Covid-19 death rates: comparing soft- and hard-policy
countries and why soft, non-lockdown policy worked best
4 Why Covid deaths concentrated on the aged and in care
facilities and why extreme lockdowns made things worse
5 The effectiveness of mask mandates and other soft-
policy measures during the Covid-19 pandemic
6 History matters: How soft policies worked in the past
and should have informed Covid policy
7 The socioeconomic and mental health costs of Covid:
Why policy matters
8 Conclusion: The fact-based superiority of soft policy
and the unnecessary burden of lockdown policy