Covid-19 Impacts and Building New Resilience: A Comparative Analysis between Japan and Philippines

Abstract

In light of the world leaders’ response to the critical time of pandemic, this paper offers first-hand evidence of the perceived impacts of pandemic and perceived resiliency in the context of health-quarantined communities in two Asian countries. The study utilized Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to determine perceived impacts of Covid 19 and to analyze comparatively the social resilience of two countries with opposing global economic statuses, the Philippines and Japan. Due to the global condition caused by the pandemic, the online survey was administered in both countries. Resiliency survey questions were tailored for suitability within the context of the coronavirus pandemic and for face validity. The instruments used in this study consist of a Japanese translation for ease of understanding of the community respondents in Japan. Data analysis using PLS-SEM revealed impacts of Covid-19 pandemic significantly influence the social resilience of communities in both countries.  Impacts of Covid-19 outbreak similarly showed significant influence on building new normal resilience of communities in two countries. Resilience was anchored on reactive and proactive capacities of communities. Implications of this study contribute to the sustainable futures of the communities focusing on intervention models to mitigate the long-term impacts of the pandemic. Further research should be done on the development of policies and programs for government implementation to manage and mitigate social complexities brought about by the pandemic or other adversities. Linking through mediation analysis of resilience factors for sustainable development can be explored for future research.