display
Mannheim (dpa / lsw) - The term has what it takes to become the bad word of the year: «Expectation management».
Politicians are currently using the word monster in the debate about insufficient corona vaccines.
"The example shows that it is very unfortunate when technical terms are translated into other contexts of everyday language," said the head of the Leibniz Institute for German Language, Henning Lobin, of the German Press Agency in Mannheim.
«Expectation management» is a common term in business administration.
He describes a company's strategy to adapt the service to be delivered to the expectations of the customers and vice versa.
Lobin suspects that the term was certainly used by the participating pharmaceutical companies at the vaccination summit.
When used in public space, the expression suggests that politicians control the expectations of citizens, which in the current case could dampen in the face of vaccine shortages.
"That unsettles people because expectations are linked to fears and hopes that nobody wants to expose to manipulation by politicians."
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210203-99-282714 / 2
display
Leibniz Institute for the German Language