“Rugged individualism” and collective (in)action during the COVID-19 pandemic

Bazzi, Samuel; Fiszbein, Martín; Gebresilasse, Mesay

doi:10.1016/j.jpubeco.2020.104357

Cited by 103 publications

(86 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…In the case of individualism, research has demonstrated that individualist countries implement less stringent measures to combat COVID-19 (Rapson, 2021); therefore, undoubtedly leading to less behavioral modifications aimed at curbing the epidemic. Furthermore, according to Bazzi et al (2021), individualism can undermine prosocial behavior as it is linked to lesser mask usage and social distancing practices. As for indulgence, the hedonistic nature of indulgent cultures might hinder authorities ability to have their citizens respect measures aimed at curbing the COVID-19 crisis (Messner, 2020).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the Effect of Collective Cultural Attributes on Covid-19-Related Public Health Outcomes

Medeiros

2021

Front. Psychol.

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Infections and deaths associated with COVID-19 show a high degree of heterogeneity across different populations. A thorough understanding of population-level predictors of such outcomes is crucial for devising better-targeted and more appropriate public health preparedness measures. While demographic, economic, and health-system capacity have featured prominently in recent work, cultural, and behavioral characteristics have largely been overlooked. However, cultural differences shape both the public policy response and individuals' behavioral responses to the crisis in ways that can impact infection dynamics and key health outcomes. To address this gap, we used meta-analytic methods to explore the global variability of three public health outcomes (i.e., crude test positivity, case/infection fatality, and mortality risk) during the first wave of the pandemic. This set of analyses identified several cultural/behavioral attributes (e.g., uncertainty avoidance and long-term vs. short-term normative orientation) as independent predictors of public health outcomes after adjusting for key demographic, political, economic, and health-system-related predictors; which were robust in sensitivity analyses. In conclusion, this study clearly demonstrates that cultural attributes do in fact account for some of the global disparities in COVID-19-attributed health outcomes. As a consequence, policymakers should more explicitly consider a society's cultural attributes alongside other important parameters such as demographic characteristics and health system constraints in order to develop better tailored and more effective policy responses.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the Effect of Collective Cultural Attributes on Covid-19-Related Public Health Outcomes

Medeiros

2021

Front. Psychol.

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“…Hence, the acceptance and respect for authority reflected in power distance (Carl et al, 2004) could prove quite fruitful when mass-level obedience to stringent measures is necessary to combat a raging pandemic. As researchers highlight, the opposite of such tendencies seems to have proven quite costly in the wake of Covid-19 (Bazzi et al, 2021;Gelfand et al, 2021). Compliance and conformity during the ongoing pandemic, as researchers (e.g., Cao et al, 2020;Mayer et al, 2020;Zhu et al, 2021) point out, could be helpful in checking its spread.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In a country-specific study, Huang (2020) find that collectivism and fear of Covid-19 together perhaps drive people's preventive intentions in China. Other studies too have highlighted the seemingly deleterious role of individualism within US (Bazzi et al, 2021) as well as across countries (Maaravi et al, 2021;Webster et al, 2021). Some other studies are more finegrained and yield specific cultural dimensions based on Hofstede's taxonomy.…”

Section: Literature Review and Hypothesesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of Societal Culture on Covid-19 Morbidity and Mortality across Countries

Kumar

2021

Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology

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Researchers have begun exploring the impact of societal culture on Covid-19 outcomes (morbidity and mortality). However, emerging findings need integration with prior literature on societal culture and infectious diseases. Moreover, accumulation of knowledge warrants an update while overcoming certain limitations of samples as well as construct validity concerns. Accordingly, hypotheses are derived based on extant evidence proposing the impact of certain cultural practices on Covid-19 outcomes across countries. These hypotheses are tested using the cultural practice scores from GLOBE studies after controlling for certain covariates identified in literature. Multiple regression results reveal that societal culture significantly explains Covid-19 outcomes beyond the explanation due to control variables. Specifically, power distance and institutional collectivism show negative association with both Covid-19 morbidity and mortality. Additionally, performance orientation shows negative association with Covid-19 morbidity. It appears that power distance may ensure conformity to prescribed behaviors and features of performance orientation may facilitate swift and effective containment of Covid-19 cases. The significance of institutional collectivism—but not in-group collectivism—emerging as the form of collectivism showing negative association with Covid-19 outcomes is also discussed.

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“…This same worldview was displayed by so-called “anti-maskers” in the United States, who protested mask use during the COVID-19 pandemic with slogans such as, “My Child, My Choice,” and “By Choice, Not Force.” ( Fisher, 2020 ). People who prioritize individual freedom tended to oppose collective actions and preventive measures to combat the disease ( Bazzi et al, 2021 ; Clarke et al, 2021 ). Similarly, vaccine hesitancy—a person’s refusal or delay of some vaccines for themselves or their children ( World Health Organisation, 2019 )—has links to cultural, religious, and political ideologies ( Larson et al, 2014 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Substance of Cold: Indonesians’ Use of Cold Weather Theory to Explain Everyday Illnesses

Anggoro

Jee

2021

Front. Psychol.

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Many people across the world use cold conditions, such as cold air and wet clothes, to explain everyday illness, such as colds and flu. In Indonesia, the concept masuk angin, or “trapped wind,” appears to reflect this line of folknatural thinking. Interestingly, Indonesians distinguish masuk angin from the common cold, which is a frequent target for “cold weather” explanations in other cultures. We interviewed Indonesian 8- and 10-year-old children, lay adults, and medical expert adults, about the cause, contagiousness, and treatment of everyday illnesses: the common cold, the flu, and masuk angin. Most Indonesian children, and especially adults, believed that cold and flu are caused by germs and are contagious. In contrast, most children and lay adults (but not experts) attributed masuk angin to cold conditions and viewed it as non-contagious. These findings reveal how folknatural and scientific theories of illness coexist in the minds of Indonesian children and lay adults.

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“Rugged individualism” and collective (in)action during the COVID-19 pandemic

Cited by 103 publications

References 32 publications

Exploring the Effect of Collective Cultural Attributes on Covid-19-Related Public Health Outcomes

Exploring the Effect of Collective Cultural Attributes on Covid-19-Related Public Health Outcomes

Impact of Societal Culture on Covid-19 Morbidity and Mortality across Countries

The Substance of Cold: Indonesians’ Use of Cold Weather Theory to Explain Everyday Illnesses

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