Trust and social preferences in times of acute health crisis

Fortuna Casoria, Fabio Galeotti () and Marie Claire Villeval
Additional contact information
Fabio Galeotti: Univ Lyon, CNRS, GATE UMR 5824, 93 Chemin des Mouilles F-69130 Ecully, France

No 2304, Working Papers from Groupe d'Analyse et de Théorie Economique Lyon St-Étienne (GATE Lyon St-Étienne), Université de Lyon

Abstract: We combined a natural experiment (the occurrence of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020) with the tools of laboratory experiments to study whether and how an unprecedented shock on social interactions (the introduction and abrogation of a nationwide lockdown) affected the evolution of individuals’ social preferences, and willingness to trust others. In a longitudinal online incentivized experiment during the first lockdown in France, we elicited the same participants’ preferences for prosociality, trust and trustworthiness every week for three months. Despite the exposure to long-lasting social distancing, prosocial preferences and the willingness to reciprocate the trust of others remained stable during the whole period under study. In contrast, the lockdown had an immediate negative effect on trust, which remained at lower levels til after the lifting of such measures but recovered its initial level nine months later. The decline in trust was mainly driven by individuals who experienced financial hardship, a lack of outward exposure, and higher anxiety during the lockdown.

Keywords: Social preferences; Trust; Trustworthiness; Pandemic; COVID-19; Social distancing (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C92 D91 I18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-exp, nep-hea and nep-soc
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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https://www.gate.cnrs.fr/RePEc/2023/2304.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
Journal Article: Trust and Social Preferences in Times of Acute Health Crisis (2024)
Working Paper: Trust and social preferences in times of acute health crisis (2024)
Working Paper: Trust and Social Preferences in Times of Acute Health Crisis (2023)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gat:wpaper:2304

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