When apathy is deadlier than COVID-19

Out of sight, out of mind: When and how perceived vulnerability decreases foreseeability and responsibility for causing harm in the marketplace.

“…OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND syndrome in Study 2). However, the lived experiences of people with disabilities suggest that observers and firms are often dismissive of such harm (Conover et al, 2017;Stratton et al, 2021). Consistent with this, we found that vulnerability can also decrease perceptions of firm responsibility.…”

“…We indeed observed this when the customer’s identity was highly visible (i.e., in person) at the time of the harmful action (elderly person in Study 1, person with Down syndrome in Study 2). However, the lived experiences of people with disabilities suggest that observers and firms are often dismissive of such harm (Conover et al, 2017; Stratton et al, 2021). Consistent with this, we found that vulnerability can also decrease perceptions of firm responsibility.…”

COVID‐19 and views of imprisonment in a sample of prison tourists

“…It is possible that this feeling of “hopelessness” among citizens experiencing COVID‐19 restrictions led to apathy toward prison conditions and the use of imprisonment. Though research has yet to investigate the impacts of the pandemic on apathy toward incarcerated individuals specifically, apathy towards groups that are rendered vulnerable (e.g., those living in long‐term care homes) is suspected as being a potential driving factor in terms of the spread of COVID‐19 (Stratton et al., 2021 ), while overall apathy (e.g., lack of interest in learning new things, feeling less concerned about one's own problems) has been identified as a driver of “pandemic fatigue” (e.g., feeling mentally and physically tired, lacking energy) (Haktanir et al., 2021 ).…”

The Subtle and Silent Issue in Older Adult Care

“…A factor contributing to the increased exploitation of long term care facilities, involving overcrowding, and poor infection control stems from Canada's history in governance, wherein long term care homes and personal nursing were excluded from the Canada Health Act, which required all provinces to ensure healthcare coverage for medically necessary hospital and physician services.² Due to this, lack of proper funding and regulation for long term care facilities has inadvertently resulted in: (1) an employment model wherein personal support workers were overseeing multiple residents, such as up to 40 residents at a time, (2) lack of pandemic preparation, with multiple residents sharing bedrooms and lacking facilities for physical distancing and (3) low pay grades for personal support workers, who then travel between long term care homes to take on multiple jobs and increase the spread of COVID-19. 3,4,5,6 A second impact of COVID-19 on the elderly population is in the increased appearance of stigma towards such a population. The increased need for protection of vulnerable populations such as the elderly during the pandemic has been met with negative regard in their treatment.…”