The COVID-19 pandemic led to panic buying in many countries across the globe, preventing vulnerable groups from accessing important necessities. Some reports inaccurately referred to the panic buying as hoarding. Although hoarding is a separate issue characterised by extreme saving behaviour, the two problems may be influenced by similar factors. Participants from Australia and the United States (final N = 359) completed online self-report measures of panic buying, hoarding, shopping patterns, perceived scarcity, COVID-19 illness anxiety, selfishness, and intolerance of uncertainty. Our findings showed that panic buying was related to hoarding symptoms ( r ’s = .23 - .36), and yet, both were uniquely associated with different psychological factors. Whilst panic buying was most strongly related to greater perceived scarcity ( r ’s = .38 - .60), hoarding was most related to a general intolerance of uncertainty ( r ’s = .24 - .57). Based on our findings, future strategies to prevent panic buying should focus on reducing perceived scarcity cues in the community, as this seems to be the primary driver of panic buying. Another preventative strategy to reduce excessive acquiring and saving may be to implement educational programs to increase people's ability to tolerate distress and uncertainty.

Biophobia refers to a fear of living things, which leads to alienation from nature. The literature examining the underlying mechanisms and treatment of biophobia is sparse. This review aims to increase the readers' understanding of biophobia by examining the more extensive literature on specific phobias, namely animal phobia, as it most closely resembles biophobia. Fear, anxiety and disgust play an important role in specific phobias. Their triggers and functions are reviewed in the context of animal phobia. Theoretical models for specific phobias suggest that phobias develop because genetically linked behavioural patterns interact with normal development fears and environmental factors. Phobias are then maintained by cognitive and behavioural mechanisms. Exposure therapy, the gold standard treatment for specific phobia, functions to override the maladaptive stimulus–stimulus and stimulus‐response associations responsible for animal and other specific phobias. Its delivery and efficacy are reviewed. We recommend that readers interested in biophobia use the existing knowledge on animal phobia and specific phobia in general to treat biophobia and generate research hypotheses for future study. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

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Perfectionism is linked to a variety of mental health conditions in university students. Guided by the Perfectionism Social Disconnection Model, the purpose of the current mixed methods feasibility study was to evaluate the acceptability and potential effectiveness of a brief online intervention designed to reduce the negative consequences of perfectionism in university students. Seventy university students (83.9% female; Mage = 19) reporting moderate to extreme levels of perfectionism completed the two hour ‘Intentional Imperfection Program’ (IIP). The IIP includes techniques to increase mindfulness, compassion for self and others, distress tolerance, and social skills. Participants completed self-report measures at baseline and at a two-week follow-up. Quantitative data showed statistically significant small to moderate reductions in self-oriented perfectionism (d = −0.48, p < .001), socially-prescribed perfectionism (d = 0.40, p < .001), hostility (r = 0.53, p < .001), rejection sensitivity (d = 0.37, p < .001), depression (r = −0.47, p < .001), and anxiety (r = −0.33, p = .010) and a small increase in perceived social support (r = −0.29, p = .023). Thematic analyses of qualitative data indicated that participants found the IIP feasible, enjoyable, and useful. A brief online intervention may be a feasible way of reducing the negative consequences of perfectionism among university students. A randomised control trial is warranted to further evaluate the efficacy of the IIP. This research was registered with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (no. ACTRN12620000574943).