What is an ‘Omnicrisis’? New Schulich Research Offers Insights
A forthcoming study explores how major disruptions such as pandemics, financial crises and armed conflicts can destabilize institutions, challenge expertise and reshape society.
A new study from Schulich examines how major disruptions can evolve into large-scale societal upheavals that reshape institutions, redefine expertise and create what researchers describe as a “new normal.”
In a forthcoming paper in the Journal of Management, Schulich Professor of Sustainability and Organization Maxim Voronov and co-author Gerardo Patriotta of the University of Bath introduce the concept of an “omnicrisis” — a form of disruption that extends beyond organizations or industries to affect multiple aspects of social, economic and political life.
Unlike conventional crises, omnicrises generate cascading effects across institutional domains and require coordinated responses from experts and professional groups with different forms of knowledge and authority.
“Events such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the global financial crisis, or armed conflicts rarely remain confined to a single sphere,” said Voronov. “They quickly spill across social, economic and political domains, challenging our assumptions about who has the authority and expertise to respond. In many ways, these are crises of authority as much as they are crises of events.”
According to the researchers, omnicrises emerge when established relationships among expertise, authority and professional responsibilities become misaligned. As different groups compete to interpret and manage unfolding threats, public confidence in institutions can begin to erode.
“People tend to take for granted that institutions work and that experts know what to do,” said Voronov. “But when those assumptions break down, communities lose their sense of stability and continuity. The challenge is not simply solving the immediate problem, but restoring confidence that society itself can function effectively.”
The study identifies four defining features of an omnicrisis: disruptions that span multiple institutional domains, the erosion of social stability, competing claims to authority among occupational groups, and the need for coordinated repair efforts involving diverse forms of expertise.
The researchers argue that recovery from an omnicrisis does not involve returning to pre-crisis conditions. Instead, societies adapt and develop new arrangements that restore a sense of order and predictability.
“Major crises rarely end with a restoration of the status quo,” he said. “What emerges instead is a new normal. Through negotiation, adaptation and collective learning, societies establish new arrangements and new understandings that allow people to once again experience everyday life as stable and predictable.”
The findings offer insight into how societies respond to increasingly complex challenges, including climate change, geopolitical instability and cyber threats, and how trust and authority are rebuilt in the aftermath of major disruptions.
