Is Nationalism Rising in Times of the COVID-19 Pandemic? Individual-Level Evidence from the United States

Abstract

Following the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, analysts have noted a global rise of nationalism as countries have engaged in a number of nationalist moves in response to the pandemic. However, the implication of policy changes at the individual-level remains unclear: do citizens support those nationalist government responses? More importantly, do people tend to be more nationalistic following the outbreak? Building on terror management theory (TMT), this article examines whether and how ideological beliefs affect individuals' support for nationalist policies during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to TMT, to cope with death anxiety, people are predisposed to ideological defense, resulting in cohesion with individuals who validate their beliefs and hostility toward those who threaten them. Thus, we argue that when states' nationalist policies are aligned with their ideology, people tend to support them; yet, when states' nationalist policies contradict their ideology, people tend to withdraw their support. Specifically, this study found that as non-conservatives (compared to conservatives) are more concerned with the virus, they are more likely to show an inclination of ideological validation. Given that their ideology advocates more tolerance, nonconservatives are less likely to support nationalistic policies. To test the hypotheses, we applied structural equation modeling to a March 2020 CNN Poll (nationally representative US data about COVID-19). The statistical analysis demonstrated strong support for our arguments.

Racism and nationalism during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic

“…COVID-19 worsened existing social polarization and reinforced ideological entrenchment towards exclusionary nationalism (Su and Shen 2020). It fostered exclusionary nationalism and weakened global coordination and collaboration (Bieber 2020).…”

“…Clissold et al (2020, p. 421) argue that, under COVID-19, "rising levels of nationalism in many affected countries" have compounded "a sense of xenophobia pervading into the political and social responses". According to Su and Shen (2020), COVID-19 has led to a heightened ideological divide in the United States, with more nationalist sentiments particularly among conservative groups, while in many national contexts, the outbreak and its progression are driving the increasing prominence of far-right political parties. As a result, minority groups across European countries as well as the United States have experienced racism, discrimination and hate crimes under the heightened COVID-19 context (Croucher, Nguyen, and Rahmani 2020;Devakumar et al 2020).…”

Personality and Attitudes Confronting Death Awareness During the COVID-19 Outbreak in Italy and Spain

“…In other words, this theory tries to explain how, in times of were death awareness emerge, individuals tend to strengthen their self-esteem to reduce anxiety against death ( 27 ). This can also lead to a seek for cohesion between people who share similar world views and hostility toward those with alternative world views ( 28 ). Thus, even during process of grief, participants would be susceptible to this effect.…”

Growing Nationalism Exacerbated by COVID 19: Editorial Essay

“…Admittedly, the causal link between Covid 19 and nationalism meets the hypothetical constructs found in the crisis-nationalism literature. Su & Shen (2020) argue that the insecurity and uncertainty caused by crises, prejudice people to take a call.…”