Social attitudes and behavior in the COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence and prospects from research on group processes and intergroup relations (original) (raw)
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Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 2021
COVID-19 is a challenge faced by individuals (personal vulnerability and behavior), requiring coordinated policy from national government. However, another critical layer—intergroup relations—frames many decisions about how resources and support should be allocated. Based on theories of self and social identity uncertainty, subjective group dynamics, leadership, and social cohesion, we argue that this intergroup layer has important implications for people’s perceptions of their own and others’ situation, political management of the pandemic, how people are influenced, and how they resolve identity uncertainty. In the face of the pandemic, initial national or global unity is prone to intergroup fractures and competition through which leaders can exploit uncertainties to gain short-term credibility, power, or influence for their own groups, feeding polarization and extremism. Thus, the social and psychological challenge is how to sustain the superordinate objective of surviving and re...
The Impact of COVID-19 on the Majority Population, Ethno-Racial Minorities, and Immigrants
European Psychologist, 2021
The COVID-19 pandemic constitutes an unprecedented threat for individuals and societies, revealing stark inequalities in preparedness, exposure, and consequences. The present systematic literature review complements extant knowledge on disasters and pandemic diseases with programmatic research on the COVID-19 pandemic. Building upon an integrative definition of threat, we merge intra-personal threat regulation with group dynamics and inter-group relations. Via streamlined methods of knowledge synthesis, we first map out a broad taxonomy of threats, as appraised by the majority population and ethnoracial and immigrant minorities. Second, we delve into research linking threat appraisals with either conflict or prosociality within and across group boundaries. To conclude, we propose some guidelines for researchers to actively involve ethno-racial and immigrant minorities, and for societies to cope cohesively with the impact of COVID-19.
Public behaviour in response to the COVID-19 pandemic: understanding the role of group processes
BJPsych Open, 2020
BackgroundIn the absence of a vaccine, behaviour by the public is key to the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, as with other types of crises and emergencies, there have been doubts about the extent to which the public are able to engage effectively with the required behaviour. These doubts are based on outdated models of group psychology.Aims and argumentWe analyse the role of group processes in the COVID-19 pandemic in three domains: recognition of threat, adherence by the public to the required public health behaviours (and the factors that increase such adherence) and actions of the many community mutual aid groups that arose during lockdown. In each case, we draw upon the accumulated research on behaviour in emergencies and disasters, as well as the latest findings in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic, to show that explanations in terms of social identity processes make better sense of the patterns of evidence than alternative explanations.ConclusionsIf behaviour in the pa...
Culture and global societal threats: COVID-19 as a pathogen threat to humanity
Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 2021
The COVID-19 global pandemic has brought into sharp focus the urgency of tackling the question of how globalized humanity responds to a global societal threat, which can adversely affect a large portion of the human population. Changing geospatial distribution of COVID-19 morbidity paints a gloomy picture of cross-national differences in human vulnerabilities across the globe. We describe the dynamic nexus among societal – particularly pathogen – threat, social institutions, and culture, and discuss collectivism (ingroup favouritism and outgroup avoidance) and tightness (narrow prescription of behaviours and severe punishment of norm violations) as potential cultural adaptations to prevalent pathogen threats. We then sketch out a theoretical framework for cultural dynamics of collective adaptation to pathogen threats, outline a large number of theory- and policy-relevant research questions and what answers we have at present, and end with a call for renewed efforts to investigate co...
The Political Psychology of COVID‐19
Political Psychology, 2021
The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to unprecedented and extraordinary conditions. It represents a profound threat to health and political and economic stability globally. It is the pressing issue of the current historical moment and is likely to have far-reaching social and political implications over the next decade. Political psychology can inform our preparedness for the next phase of the pandemic as well as our planning for a post COVID-19 world. We hope that this special issue will play its part in helping us to think how we manage and live with COVID-19 over the coming decade. In this editorial, we review the key themes arising from the contributions to our special issue and, alongside existing knowledge highlight the relevance of political psychology to finding solutions during this time of crisis. The contributions to this special issue and the pandemic raise many classic topics of central interest to political psychology: leadership, solidarity and division, nationalism, equality, racism, and international and intergroup relations. In our editorial, we offer an analysis that highlights three key themes. First, the importance of sociopolitical factors in shaping behavior during this pandemic. Second, the relevance of political leadership and rhetoric to collective efforts to tackle SARS-COV-2. And third, how sociopolitical cohesion and division has become increasingly relevant during this time of threat and crisis.
BUDDHISTDOOR, 2020
Humans are a social species and social interaction is one of our strengths. Being anchored in a certain positive orientation toward others, as well as trust and an idea of reciprocity, has facilitated cooperation and care for the weakest members of society. This has made us stronger and has allowed humans to advance socially. Given the rapid global expansion of COVID-19, most of the affected countries have acted in a very similar way, trying, with different luck, to stop the spread by closing borders, confining their populations and applying strict measures of social distancing. In order to begin to analyze the social impact of these measures, we study the changes in social relations and daily life activities and values during confinement through the online survey «Social relations and daily life during the COVID-19 crisis »carried out between April 11 and May 20, 2020 *.
This study analyzes the range and content of Social Representations (SRs) about the COVID-19 pandemic in 21 geographical zones from 17 countries in the Americas, Europe and Asia (N = 4430). Based on Social Representations Theory, as well as the psychosocial consequences of pandemics and crises, we evaluate the perceptions of severity and risks, the agreement with different SRs, and participants’ Social Dominance Orientation (SDO) and Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA). Different sets of beliefs are discussed as SRs, together with their prevalence and association with contextual variables. Results show that severity and risk perceptions were associated with different SRs of the pandemic. Specifically, those focused on Emerging Externalizing zoonotic and ecological factors (the virus is due to Chinese unhygienic habits and the overexploitation of the planet), Polemic Conspiracies (the virus is a weapon), views of Elite and Mass Villains (the elites deceive us and profit with the pandemic), and Personal Responsibility (the neglectful deserves contagion) during the pandemic. Furthermore, most of the SRs are anchored in SDO and, more strongly, in RWA orientations. Additional meta-analyses and multi-level regressions show that the effects are replicated in most geographical areas and that risk perception was a consistent explanatory variable, even after controlling for demographics and ‘real risk’ (i.e., actual numbers of contagion and death). Results suggest that, while coping with and making sense of the pandemic, authoritarian subjects agree with SR that feed a sense of social control and legitimize outgroup derogation, and support punishment of ingroup low-status deviants.
Community and Social Control During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Journal of Community Positive Practices, 2021
Revealing an increase in interest for the community as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the paper starts with a succinct compilation of the main practical and theoretical contexts in which the concept has been revitalized during the past year: World Health Organization's guidelines, several SARS-Cov-2 disease control actions, studies of racial and ethnic diversity inequalities and studies of psycho-sociological impact of the pandemic. Next, some basic mechanisms notions are analyzed in regard to informal social control. The results from a research survey that took place between November 26 th 2020 and January 26 th 2021 on a lot of 1640 respondents revealed the existence of an optimism-generating base in regard to the community-level informal social control during special situations like the COVID-19 pandemic. Even if some socio-demographic variables like gender, age and type of community, or some personal experience with COVID-19 variables like personal infection, family loss and neighborhood loss do not significantly associate with the acceptance of collective restrictions, it is our appreciation that there are premises for launching informal social control stimulation community interventions by empowerment or by community development.
An Overview of Social Aspects of COVID-19 Pandemic
https://www.ijhsr.org/IJHSR\_Vol.11\_Issue.12\_Dec2021/IJHSR-Abstract.09.html, 2021
COVID-19 pandemic is more than a health crisis. It is a human, economic and social crisis. As a pandemic, it is attacking societies at their core. 1 Many changes and challenges are developing in the society during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of this paper is to describe and analyze the COVID-19 pandemic situation in the social context. This paper deals with association of COVID-19 genesis and globalization, phase of involuntary immobility due to lockdown, sick role of COVID-19 patient, social stigma associated with COVID-19 patient, new behavioral norms to reduce the transmission of corona virus and the importance of community participation to combat this pandemic and prepare for the future. A lesson can be learned from this pandemic situation that implementation of all precautionary social measures effectively and construction of social support system strong collectively are very important tools to reduce damage from COVID-19 like public health crisis. Community involvement can drive every citizen to be aware about transmission of corona virus and practice of all precautionary measures to prevent from COVID19 virus.
Psychologica Belgica, 2022
The purpose of this study was to investigate which social groups are perceived as a threat target and which are perceived as a threat source during the COVID-19 outbreak. In a German sample (N = 1454) we examined perceptions of social groups ranging from those that are psychologically close and smaller (family, friends, neighbors) to those that are more distal and larger (people living in Germany, humankind). We hypothesized that psychologically closer groups would be perceived as less affected by COVID-19 as well as less threatening than more psychologically distal groups. Based on social identity theorizing, we also hypothesized that stronger identification with humankind would change these patterns. Furthermore, we explored how these threat perceptions relate to adherence to COVID-19 health guidelines. In line with our hypotheses, latent random-slope modelling revealed that psychologically distal and larger groups were perceived as more affected by COVID-19 and as more threatening than psychologically closer and smaller groups. Including identification with humankind as a predictor into the threat target model resulted in a steeper increase in threat target perception patterns, whereas identification with humankind did not predict differences in threat source perceptions. Additionally, an increase in threat source perceptions across social groups was associated with more adherence to health guidelines, whereas an increase in threat target perceptions was not. We fully replicated these findings in a subgroup from the original sample (N = 989) four weeks later. We argue that societal recovery from this and other crises will be supported by an inclusive approach informed by a sense of our common identity as human beings.