Can Information about Pandemics Increase Negative Attitudes toward Foreign Groups? A Case of COVID-19 Outbreak

Piotr Sorokowski, Agata Groyecka, Marta Kowal, Agnieszka Sorokowska, Michał Białek, Izabela Lebuda, Małgorzata Dobrowolska, Przemysław Zdybek and Maciej Karwowski
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Piotr Sorokowski: Institute of Psychology, University of Wrocław, 50-527 Wrocław, Poland
Agata Groyecka: Institute of Psychology, University of Wrocław, 50-527 Wrocław, Poland
Marta Kowal: Institute of Psychology, University of Wrocław, 50-527 Wrocław, Poland
Agnieszka Sorokowska: Institute of Psychology, University of Wrocław, 50-527 Wrocław, Poland
Michał Białek: Institute of Psychology, University of Wrocław, 50-527 Wrocław, Poland
Izabela Lebuda: Institute of Psychology, University of Wrocław, 50-527 Wrocław, Poland
Małgorzata Dobrowolska: Institute of Education and Communications Studies, Silesian University of Technology, 44-100 Gliwice, Poland
Przemysław Zdybek: Institute of Psychology, University of Opole, 45-001 Opole, Poland
Maciej Karwowski: Institute of Psychology, University of Wrocław, 50-527 Wrocław, Poland

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 12, 1-10

Abstract: Pathogen threat can translate into a willingness to distance oneself from others on a psychological level. Building on this notion, we predicted that the ongoing coronavirus pandemic can affect attitudes toward foreign nationalities. We explored the intergroup consequences of the current epidemiological situation in two studies involving a total of 652 participants. In correlational Study 1, we showed a positive relationship between media exposure in the United Kingdom (UK) and in Poland, and prejudice to four foreign nationalities. Study 2 showed that negative affect toward Italians (i.e., a nation struggling with the most severe COVID-19 outbreak at the time of the study) was indirectly predicted by exposure to news about coronavirus through the increase in anxiety, but this effect was not observed when a generalized measure of prejudice was considered. Overall, our studies revealed that prejudice and anxiety are sensitive to the current epidemiological situation, and our findings suggest that the outbreak of COVID-19 may translate into severe social consequences and increased psychological distancing to nations most affected by the pandemic.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-COV-2; coronavirus; pandemic; prejudice; attitudes; social consequences of coronavirus (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (14)

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