Accurate, honest and transparent: how leaders should communicate about coronavirus | Ullrich Ecker and Douglas MacFarlane

People will remain calm if they have clear and simple guidelines. The first step is to listen

We are not experts on epidemiology, virology or economics. Our personal view is that we need to proactively isolate non-essential workers and children. We base our opinion on the evidence and modelling that we find most compelling. This is our view, but we acknowledge that this is a wicked problem and there are no easy decisions.

What we do have expertise in is the psychology of misinformation, communication and behaviour change, so here we offer a few thoughts on how leaders should be engaging with the public.