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People underestimate the probability of contracting the coronavirus from friends

Author

Listed:
  • Tobias Schlager

    (University of Lausanne)

  • Ashley V. Whillans

    (Harvard Business School)

Abstract

This article reveals a social perception that may contribute to the spread of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). Across five studies—including two large-scale samples of Americans and Canadians (N = 3395)—we show that people consistently underestimate the risk of contracting the coronavirus from close others (i.e., friends) compared to other groups (e.g., colleagues or strangers). We show that informing people of their (unconscious) preference to believe that friends are less of a threat than strangers can effectively attenuate this tendency. Together, these results provide evidence that people’s beliefs about the probability of contracting the coronavirus from their friends are lower than from strangers, which can affect their physical distancing intentions.

Suggested Citation

  • Tobias Schlager & Ashley V. Whillans, 2022. "People underestimate the probability of contracting the coronavirus from friends," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 9(1), pages 1-11, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:palcom:v:9:y:2022:i:1:d:10.1057_s41599-022-01052-4
    DOI: 10.1057/s41599-022-01052-4
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    5. Michael Greenstone & Vishan Nigam, 2020. "Does Social Distancing Matter?," Working Papers 2020-26, Becker Friedman Institute for Research In Economics.
    6. Roman Wölfel & Victor M. Corman & Wolfgang Guggemos & Michael Seilmaier & Sabine Zange & Marcel A. Müller & Daniela Niemeyer & Terry C. Jones & Patrick Vollmar & Camilla Rothe & Michael Hoelscher & To, 2020. "Virological assessment of hospitalized patients with COVID-2019," Nature, Nature, vol. 581(7809), pages 465-469, May.
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    Cited by:

    1. Benedikt Schnurr, 2022. "People in the United States judge the success of individuals from higher- versus lower-income families as less deserving," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 9(1), pages 1-8, December.

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