Expert outlines possible new normality after Corona: “Children have a lot to catch up on”
Created: 04/11/2022 15:29
By: Anna Lorenz
The end of the mask requirement marks the beginning of the post-pandemic period.
But how does society deal with the new “normal”?
© Frank Hoermann/SVEN SIMON/dpa
In the interview, the renowned social psychologist Dieter Frey answers questions about the question: What does the new normal look like after the corona pandemic?
Munich – spring, sun, loosening – is Corona slowly over?
And what does it look like, the new, post-pandemic normal?
t-online.de
clarified these and other questions
in an interview with the social psychologist Dieter Frey, who is a professor emeritus at the LMU Munich.
Corona pandemic: easing splits “Team Freedom” and “Team Security”
"I expect that two groups will also form in the long term, I'll call them Team Freedom and Team Security," says social psychologist Dieter Frey with regard to the situation regarding the corona pandemic in Germany, which has been changed by the easing of restrictions.
Since the mask requirement in particular has fallen in large parts of public life, the question has finally arisen as to how far the division in society, which has already become apparent in terms of compulsory vaccination, will progress even further.
Unpleasant encounters in the sense of the above video are possible between the groups mentioned, which the expert considers to be of the same size.
But, according to Frey, "this friend-or-foe thinking doesn't get us any further." Mutual understanding and openness are important, especially since the responsibility for more vulnerable parts of society remains.
Tolerance must also be observed in the job: “Boss should clearly communicate that everyone is free to wear a mask or not.
And of course I hope that the bosses will also say that there should also be a great deal of consideration for those who are at risk in the workplace," says the social psychologist.
Corona: The new "normal" - What's next after the pandemic?
Although, as the figures in the current RKI weekly report show, the pandemic is not over yet, Frey is convinced that the path to a new normal can be achieved step by step.
"You feel your way back, maybe at some point you'll go to the restaurant or cinema again without a mask," says the expert.
Society just has to get used to being close again.
The native of Baden-Württemberg is more concerned about the children, who he believes have lost important developmental years in the course of the pandemic.
From Tuesday, February 15, 2022, a corona test will be mandatory for all children from the age of 3 years in day care centers in Lower Saxony.
(Archive image) © Peter Kneffel/dpa
"They need contact and closeness in particular in order to develop." Frey sees the adult caregivers as responsible.
They would have to create "good framework conditions for the children for their further development";
The expert considers access to sports clubs to be particularly important.
“But I think children will quickly return to post-corona normality.
I'm optimistic about that.
They have a lot of catching up to do.” As a rule, Frey does not expect any permanent disruptions.
Years of the pandemic: This is how Corona has permanently shaped us socially
What the social psychologist believes will remain, however, are distances and reduced physical contact with strangers.
"I don't think the handshake will return for years like it used to," says Frey, who is of the opinion, however, that "in the close group of friends" familiar forms of interaction will quickly establish themselves again.
Eye contact had also become very important when wearing a mask, since one was forced to "find out through one's eyes how the other person was feeling" - according to Frey, this new non-verbal form of communication can also be assessed as post-pandemic persistent.
Away from the customs in the course of the Corona period, the social psychologist can get something good out of the pandemic despite the "constant stress": "I think that many have also experienced this time as enriching.
You were forced to focus on yourself and your family, had time for things that you otherwise had trouble finding time for.
Under Corona there was also time and opportunity for self-realization.
This memory will also remain.” (askl)
