Using scare tactics to enforce pandemic control measures is counterproductive, “coercive,” and “manipulative,” said a Public Health Agency in a confidential memo..Blacklock’s Reporter said the memo warned legislators to avoid “flagrant appeals to fear” in enforcing pandemic control measures..“Maintaining public trust is vital so Canadians will continue to support and follow public health advice coming during the coming months,” said the April 28, 2020 memo. “The guiding principles for maintaining trust are empathy and caring, competence and expertise, honesty and openness and commitment and dedication.”.Governments should beware of scare tactics as “messaging that should be avoided by governments and organizations when addressing the public,” said the memo, Updated Guidance For Public Health Measures During The Covid-19 Pandemic..The memo continued: “Appeals to fear: People sharing their stories of experiences with others (peer to peer) can be effective in positioning the disease as a risk. However, when governments use flagrant appeals to fear, these often backfire and tend to be read as coercive and manipulative.”.Politicians and public health authorities were also urged to avoid overstatements..“Overstating or misleading statements, even if well-intentioned, undermine trust in the individual or institution making the statement.”.“Appeals to authority” must also be avoided, said the memo. “People want to know how we know a (public health measure) or treatment is safe and effective. Some people tend to have low trust in institutions and authority figures.”.Authorities should also avoid “fighting narrative with facts” – “It is ineffective,” wrote staff – and avoid repeating myths even to discount them..“Even when stating a myth to dispel it, stating the myth and a fact together reinforces the myth,” wrote staff..A follow-up memo dated May 20, 2020 cautioned Public Health Agency staff to be aware of the social impact of COVID-19 restrictions on Canadians..“It is important to consider the potential impact these measures may have on individuals’ physical, social, mental and emotional health and well-being,” said the memo, Guidance For A Strategic Approach To Lifting Of Restrictive Public Health Measures..Both Access To Information memos were written months before the Department of Health approved the first vaccine, Pfizer-BioNtech..The Agency at the time acknowledged a large number of Canadians would wait to be immunized even if vaccines were readily available..“Canadians who use social information sources—social media, friends and family—are less likely to agree they should be vaccinated, indicating social media and word of mouth strategies will be very important for designing an effective communications campaign,” said an Agency report, Applying Behavioural Science To The Government Of Canada’s Response To COVID-19..Only 41% of Canadians surveyed by the agency agreed with the statement, “I would get a Covid-19 vaccine as soon as it becomes available to me,” said Behavioural Science..Twelve per cent said they would refuse the vaccine under any circumstances.
