Not one crisis, but many. The “crisis cube” and the politics of governing crises

Abstract This article examines the relationship between different types of crises and the political strategies employed to govern them. Drawing on crisis management literature, it introduces a novel heuristic typology—the “crisis cube”—grounded in three analytical dimensions: time, space, and intentionality. Although often treated as objective characteristics, these dimensions are politically constructed and strategically interpreted by crisis leaders. Through a structured analysis of empirical cases drawn from the literature, the article explores how varying framings of similar crisis scenarios can produce distinct modes of politically governing crises. It attempts to highlight that the interaction between the intrinsic features of a crisis and their political interpretation significantly shapes crisis governance trajectories. In doing so, the article contributes to bridging the gap between analytical classifications of crises and the politics of crisis response.