Читать книгу Researching in the Age of COVID-19 Vol 2 - Группа авторов - Страница 13

Alongside issues already described, researchers in and outside universities have experienced a period of rapid change with a backdrop of conflicting guidance and uncertainty over regulations and rules (Yong, 2020); exacerbated by misinformation shared on social media (Brennen et al., 2020). Different national strategies for managing COVID-​19 have led to restrictions on researchers and research, most significantly with conferences postponed or cancelled (Cranford, 2020), field and lab work halted (Johnson and Coleman, 2020) and some researchers being furloughed or losing jobs (Ahlburg, 2020). For researchers who teach, shifting online primarily to live video lectures and a lack of managerial support or clear direction added to an already stressful and confusing situation. More difficulties followed where lockdown or isolation led to many researchers relocating or being trapped as campuses closed (Odriozola-​González et al., 2020). For those home-​schooling or caring, opportunities to teach and research have been drastically curtailed (Myers et al., 2020). Some researchers became sick with or died from COVID-​19. Unfairly, yet predictably, it is black, Indigenous and people of colour (BIPOC) (Dave et al., 2020), women (Myers et al., 2020; Wenham et al., 2020), Early Career Researchers (Byrom, 2020), from low-​ and middle-​income countries (Brussevich et al., 2020) and international students (Cheng, 2020) that were most adversely affected.

Not least, there has been grief. Grief over people dying (some from COVID-​19, others from other health conditions, accidents, injuries and suicide). Family members, friends, colleagues and research participants have all been lost. And grief has found us in other ways, our circumstances changing, horizons diminishing, opportunities lost, projects disbanded, graduations abandoned. The cost of COVID-​19 is yet to be counted.