New hope or old futures in disguise? Neoliberalism, the Covid-19 pandemic and the possibility for social change

Ellis, AJ; Briggs, D; Lloyd, A; Telford, L

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to consider the implications of both the Covid-19
pandemic and UK lockdown for the social, political and economic future of the UK. Drawing
on primary data obtained during the lockdown and the theoretical concepts of transcendental
materialism and the ‘event’, the paper discusses the strength of participants’ attachment to
the ‘old normal’ and their dreams of a ‘new normal’.
Design – This paper utilises a semi-structured online survey (n=305) with UK residents and
Facebook forum debates collected during the lockdown period in the UK.
Findings – The findings in this paper suggest that while the lockdown suspended daily routines
and provoked participants to reflect upon their consumption habits and the possibility of an
alternative future, many of our respondents remained strongly attached to elements of prelockdown normality. Furthermore, the individual impetus for change was not matched by the
structures and mechanisms holding up neoliberalism as governments and commercial
enterprises merely encouraged people to get back to the shops to spend.
Originality – The original contribution of this paper is the strength and depth of empirical data
into the Covid-19 pandemic, specifically the lockdown. Additionally, the synthesis of empirical
data with the novel theoretical framework of transcendental materialism presents an original
and unique perspective on Covid-19.

Citation

Ellis, A., Briggs, D., Lloyd, A., & Telford, L. (2020). New hope or old futures in disguise? Neoliberalism, the Covid-19 pandemic and the possibility for social change. International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, 40(9/10), 831-848. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSSP-07-2020-0268

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jul 30, 2020
• Online Publication Date: Oct 22, 2020
• Publication Date: Oct 22, 2020
• Deposit Date: Sep 4, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Nov 4, 2020
• Journal: International Journal of Sociology & Social Policy
• Print ISSN: 0144-333X
• Publisher: Emerald
• Volume: 40
• Issue: 9/10
• Pages: 831-848
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSSP-07-2020-0268
• Publisher URL: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSSP-07-2020-0268
• Related Public URLs: http://www.emeraldinsight.com/loi/ijssp