Reiseangst: travel anxiety and psychological resilience during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

Highlight The COVID-19 pandemic and its associated lockdown have had a negative impact on global mental health. Considerable fear and stigma surround the prospects of a return to non-essential international travel. The mental health aspects of travel have been historically neglected in the literature. The current pandemic has prompted a renewed focus on building psychological resilience in travellers by engaging innovative technological tools such as virtual reality.

Should I Stay or Should I Go? Tourists’ COVID-19 Risk Perception and Vacation Behavior Shift

“…The occurrence of the COVID-19 pandemic has led to general fear [35], mainly due to its easy and rapid spread across the globe. Travelers developed this fear due to the ease of person-to-person transmission and the long incubation period of the virus [36,37]. Nonetheless, viruses are not new to travelers worldwide; however, the magnitude and risks associated with COVID-19 are the greatest in human history [38].…”

Racial Discrimination as a Cumulative Risk Factor Affecting Parental Stress on the Psychological Distress of Korean Americans (Both US- and Foreign-Born) amid COVID-19: Structural Equation Modeling

“…During the pandemic, numerous studies have discovered that COVID-19 impacts the mental health of residents due to long-standing self-quarantine and limited social activities [1][2][3][4]. In addition, COVID-19 has increased racial discrimination against Asians who have been stigmatized due to the breakout from an East Asian country, the Republic of China.…”

Developing public transport messaging to provide crowding information during COVID-19: Application of the COM-B model and behaviour change wheel

“…The COVID-19 outbreak caused an increase in anxiety and risk in using public transport ( Flaherty and Nasir, 2020 , Department for Transport, 2021 ) primarily because crowding in enclosed spaces leads to greater infection rates ( Schraer, 2020 , Musselwhite et al, 2021 ). As the pandemic began to take hold in the UK, anxiety and restrictions led to a large reduction in UK public transport usage (rail travel reduced to 4% during the second quarter of 2020) ( Department for Transport, 2020 ).…”

“…Rail use has increased but has only reached approximately 50% of the numbers seen pre-pandemic, highlighting the continued reluctance to use rail services ( Department for Transport, 2020 , Department for Transport, 2021 , Office of Rail and Road, 2021 ). A number of trains are running without meeting physical distancing guidelines and media reports of crowded vehicles have contributed to increased travel anxiety ( Flaherty and Nasir, 2020 , Stern, 2020 ). Reluctance to travel because of crowding seems likely to remain for some time with 65% ( n = 5299) stating they would be very or fairly likely to avoid public transport if it was crowded after restrictions have eased ( Department for Transport, 2021 ).…”