Applying alinguistic approach to examination of the psychological process of Taiwan's primary leaders in the fight against Covid-19

ABSTRACT

Objectives: We used the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) program to capture the psychological process of Taiwan's primary leaders in the fight against COVID-19. Methods: We analyzed the word usage of the head of the Central Epidemic Command Center in Taiwan, Chen Shih-Chung, and the mayor of Taipei City, Ko Wen-Je, in daily press conferences during the level 3 epidemic alert in 2021. Results: We found that Chen had greater certainty and confidence and focused more on epidemic projections and response. By contrast, Ko was less certain and focused more on the past. In addition, each leader demonstrated significant differences in thinking style and motivation. Chen exhibited higher-level analytical thinking and was driven by the need for affiliation, whereas Ko exhibited dynamic thinking and was driven by the need for power. Conclusion: Our study indicated that these two major leaders faced the pandemic with different focuses, thinking styles, and motivations. Future studies are encouraged to explore how word usage affects the feeling and behavior of listeners. © 2022 Chinese Public Health Association of Taiwan. All rights reserved.