Too bored to bother? Boredom as a potential threat to the efficacy of pandemic containment measures

Martarelli, Corinna S.; Wolff, Wanja

doi:10.1057/s41599-020-0512-6

Cited by 55 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…Therefore, cross-cultural research is needed to better understand the role of boredom and self-control as a function of these variables. In addition, it is highly plausible that self-control demands and boredom change over time, which could intensify the detrimental role of boredom and self-control [11,39]. These limits to generalizability notwithstanding, we think that the present research is an important first step for improving the efficacy of the non-pharmacological efforts to contain the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 88%

High Boredom Proneness and Low Trait Self-Control Impair Adherence to Social Distancing Guidelines during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Wolff

Martarelli

Schüler

et al. 2020

IJERPH

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108

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Social distancing during the coronavirus-disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is crucial to reduce the spread of the virus. However, its effectiveness hinges on adherence by individuals who face substantial burdens from the required behavioral restrictions. Here, we investigate sources of individual variation in adhering to social distancing guidelines. In a high-powered study (N = 895), we tested direct and indirect effects of boredom and self-control on adherence. The results showed that both traits were important predictors of adherence but the underlying mechanisms differed. Specifically, individuals high in boredom perceived social distancing as more difficult, which in turn reduced their adherence (i.e., a mediated effect). In contrast, individuals high in self-control adhered more to the guidelines without perceiving them as more or less difficult; however, self-control moderated the effect of difficulty on adherence. Our results are immediately relevant to improve the efficacy of social distancing guidelines in the COVID-19 response.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 88%

High Boredom Proneness and Low Trait Self-Control Impair Adherence to Social Distancing Guidelines during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Wolff

Martarelli

Schüler

et al. 2020

IJERPH

Self Cite

108

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“…Third, our results indicate that those who were inactive during a lockdown, had worse SWB compared to others. This is important as dampened mood states are associated with less self-control which in itself is shown to be an important determinant of complying with restrictive rules such as social distancing (Martarelli and Wolff, 2020;Wolff et al, 2020). Therefore, policy makers can use these results and promote exercise and physical activity in their countries to be able to benefit from its positive effects on mood under similar lockdown restrictions in the future.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

When Pandemic Hits: Exercise Frequency and Subjective Well-Being During COVID-19 Pandemic

2020

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The governmental lockdowns related to the COVID-19 pandemic have forced people to change their behavior in many ways including changes in exercise. We used the brief window of global lockdown in the months of March/April/May 2020 as an opportunity to investigate the effects of externally imposed restrictions on exercise-related routines and related changes in subjective well-being. Statistical analyses are based on data from 13,696 respondents in 18 countries using a cross-sectional online survey. A mixed effects modeling approach was used to analyze data. We tested whether exercise frequency before and during the pandemic would influence mood during the pandemic. Additionally, we used the COVID-19 pandemic data to build a prediction model, while controlling for national differences, to estimate changes in exercise frequency during similar future lockdown conditions depending on prelockdown exercise frequency. According to the prediction model, those who rarely exercise before a lockdown tend to increase their exercise frequency during it, and those who are frequent exercisers before a lockdown tend to maintain it. With regards to subjective well-being, the data show that those who exercised almost every day during this pandemic had the best mood, regardless of whether or not they exercised prepandemic. Those who were inactive prepandemic and slightly increased their exercise frequency during the pandemic, reported no change in mood compared to those who remained inactive during the pandemic. Those who reduced their exercise frequency during the pandemic reported worse mood compared to those who maintained or increased their prepandemic exercise frequency. This study suggests that under similar lockdown conditions, about two thirds of those who never or rarely exercise before a lockdown might adopt an exercise behavior or increase their exercise frequency. However, such changes do not always immediately result in improvement in subjective well-being. These results may inform national policies, as well as health behavior and exercise psychology research on the importance of exercise promotion, and prediction of changes in exercise behavior during future pandemics.

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“…Subhash and Sujoy's narratives are good examples that show how abstinence from active sex life could make the LGBT adults more anxious during the lockdown. While Sujoy's example reflects the high demand of self-control during the Covid-19 lockdown [48], research suggests that the application of self-control is effortful and aversive [49]. Therefore, individuals with low self-control could be at a higher risk of succumbing to their behavioral impulses during the pandemic.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A cross-sectional study of psychological wellbeing of Indian adults during the Covid-19 lockdown: Different strokes for different folks

Sharma

Subramanyam

2020

PLoS ONE

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The psychological impacts of the lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic are widely documented. In India, a family-centric society with a high population density and extreme social stratification, the impact of the lockdown might vary across diverse social groups. However, the patterning in the psychological impact of the lockdown among LGBT adults and persons known to be at higher risk of the complications of Covid-19 (such as persons with comorbidities or a history of mental illness) is not known in the Indian context. We used mixed methods (online survey, n = 282 and in-depth interviews, n = 14) to investigate whether the psychological influence of the lockdown was different across these groups of Indian adults. We fitted linear and logistic regression models adjusted for sociodemographic covariates. Thematic analysis helped us identify emergent themes in our qualitative narratives. Anxiety was found to be higher among LGBT adults (β = 2.44, CI: 0.58, 4.31), the high-risk group (persons with comorbidities) (β = 2.20, CI:0.36, 4.05), and those with a history of depression/loneliness (β = 3.89, CI:2.34, 5.44). Persons belonging to the LGBT group reported a greater usage of pornography than the heterosexuals (β = 2.72, CI: 0.09, 5.36) during the lockdown. Qualitative findings suggested that LGBT adults likely used pornography and masturbation to cope with the lockdown, given the limited physical access to sexual partners in a society that stigmatizes homosexuality. Moreover, both qualitative and quantitative study findings suggested that greater frequency of calling family members during lockdown could strengthen social relationships and increase social empathy. The study thereby urgently calls for the attention of policymakers to take sensitive and inclusive health-related decisions for the marginalized and the vulnerable, both during and after the crisis.

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Too bored to bother? Boredom as a potential threat to the efficacy of pandemic containment measures

Cited by 55 publications

References 35 publications

High Boredom Proneness and Low Trait Self-Control Impair Adherence to Social Distancing Guidelines during the COVID-19 Pandemic

High Boredom Proneness and Low Trait Self-Control Impair Adherence to Social Distancing Guidelines during the COVID-19 Pandemic

When Pandemic Hits: Exercise Frequency and Subjective Well-Being During COVID-19 Pandemic

A cross-sectional study of psychological wellbeing of Indian adults during the Covid-19 lockdown: Different strokes for different folks

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