Fear of COVID‐19 contagion and consumption: Evidence from a survey of Italian households

Giovanni Immordino, Tullio Jappelli (), Tommaso Oliviero () and Alberto Zazzaro ()

Health Economics, 2022, vol. 31, issue 3, 496-507

Abstract: Using a new survey of Italian households, we study the effect of fear of COVID‐19 contagion and income risk on consumption. The survey elicits individual‐level indicators of fear of contagion, distinguishing between worries while working, shopping, traveling, eating out and meeting relatives or friends. We find that the probabilities of consumption drops and increased saving after the pandemics are positively associated to fear of contagion, particularly while shopping. Income uncertainty also contributes to savings increase and consumption drop. Our findings suggest that fear of contagion and income risk limits the effectiveness of policies aimed at stimulating consumption during the pandemic.

Date: 2022
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

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https://doi.org/10.1002/hec.4464

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Working Paper: Fear of COVID-19 Contagion and Consumption: Evidence from a Survey of Italian Households (2021)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:wly:hlthec:v:31:y:2022:i:3:p:496-507

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