To Follow or Not to Follow: Social Norms and Civic Duty during a Pandemic
Laura French Bourgeois, Allison Harell, Laura B. Stephenson
Abstract
The outbreak of COVID-19 has put substantial pressure on individuals to adapt and change their behaviours. As the hope of a vaccine remains at least a year away, everyone is urged to take action to slow the spread of the virus. Thus, “flattening the curve” has become vital in preventing medical systems from being overrun, and it relies on massive collective action by citizens to follow specific public health measures such as physical distancing, hand washing, and physical isolation for vulnerable individuals. Despite the recommendations, the public has often been confronted with the reality that some individuals are not respecting them, including elected officials (Aguilar, 2020).
Topics & Concepts
PandemicAction (physics)Isolation (microbiology)DutySocial distanceCoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)Political scienceCollective actionPublic healthSocial isolationPublic relationsDistancingPsychologyMedicineLawNursingInfectious disease (medical specialty)BiologyDiseasePsychotherapistPoliticsPathologyQuantum mechanicsPhysicsMicrobiologyPsychology of Moral and Emotional JudgmentVaccine Coverage and HesitancyCOVID-19 Digital Contact Tracing