Dr. Sarah Geber - KR

What made you decide to apply for a grant at the Leading House Asia?
Contact-tracing applications have been introduced as part of the COVID-19 containment strategy worldwide during the pandemic. In most countries, however, their uptake was too low to realize their full potential, which was also the case in Switzerland and Singapore. The COVID-19 Grants of the Leading House Asia provided a unique chance to study drivers and barriers to technology adoption in a culture-comparative way. A culture-sensitive understanding is critical in a global pandemic, where public health professionals around the world must respond to the COVID-19 crisis and establish effective public health measures. Switzerland and Singapore are particularly well suited for a cross-cultural comparison. They are comparable regarding their technological infrastructures, but have significant differences in their media systems and cultural values, which provide different conditions for public perception formation and technology acceptance.

How did you secure a research partner?
My research partner, Shirley S. Ho, and I knew each other from the annual conferences of the International Communication Association. We once had a panel discussion together where Shirley shared insights about her work in the field of science and health communication. Given her expertise in public opinion dynamics and her experiences in cross-national research, she was the perfect collaboration partner for this project. I contacted her via email, and shortly thereafter we had an initial video call to discuss the proposal.

How would you describe your experience of the programme?
Shirley and I did not have the opportunity to meet in person during the grant period due to the COVID-19 developments, but in 2022 – at our first in-person conference after the height of the pandemic – we had the chance to have coffee and share some ideas about future collaboration possibilities. After such a long period of video calls, this face-to-face meeting at the conference in Paris was the most memorable experience. Unfortunately, we missed taking a photo during this occasion, so this story includes a picture of our routine exchange setting during the pandemic: the video call.

What role did the Leading House Asia play in the programme?
The funding scheme – the COVID-19 Grants – provided a unique chance to conduct our research on tracing-technology adoption during the pandemic in a timely manner. I would also like to highlight the transparent and non-bureaucratic application and funding process of the Leading House Asia.

What were the impacts you made through the project/partners/individual?
Our study provides insightful findings on cross-cultural differences in the adoption of contact-tracing technologies between Switzerland and Singapore. The study has been published open access and is freely available external page here.

I also had the chance to present the results and discuss their implications at various occasions, such as a workshop of the Swiss Science Council, international communication conferences, or a talk organized by the DIZH (Digitization Initiative of Zurich Universities).

Testimonial: what were your personal experiences/thoughts on the bilateral cooperation experience?
Thanks to Leading House Asia, Shirley and I were able to conduct our research on cross-cultural differences in tracing-technology adoption, which probably would not have been possible otherwise. The benefits of the grant of the Leading House Asia also extended beyond the specific project. In addition to the findings we gained from our study, the insights into procedures and structures at another university were very valuable. And the most important experience certainly is the personal enrichment to have gained a new exchange and collaboration partner through the program.