The Role of Communication, Institutional Trust and Reputation to Health Advice Adherence: Lessons from a Case Study of the Norwegian Institute of Public Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Globally, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused untold financial, health and social problems. Collaborations among governments, state institutions and the media to encourage people to adhere to COVID-19 health-oriented interventions such as social distancing and regular handwashing have mitigated these negative impacts. To better understand adherence behaviors within a convenient sample of Norwegian respondents, we used a case-study method involving data triangulation to examine the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (henceforth NIPH) communication, public perception of NIPH’s trustworthiness and the reputation of the NIPH. We obtained data on NIPH’s reputation from a secondary source, the Ipsos annual organization reputation survey. These sources enabled us to develop a comprehensive account of COVID-19 crisis management situating our discussion within situational crisis communication theory and the creeping crisis framework to create a narrative of crisis management during the COVID-19 pandemic. In doing so, we highlight our contribution to theory and to future crisis management practice.