Journal
FRONTIERS IN PSYCHOLOGY
Volume 12, Issue -, Pages -Publisher
FRONTIERS MEDIA SA
DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.560092
Keywords
COVID-19; fatalism; social distancing; mental health; media messaging
Categories
Funding
- Harrison McCain Emerging Scholar Grant
Ask authors/readers for more resources
This research examined fatalism towards COVID-19 and its impact on support for mitigation efforts and mental well-being. The results showed that fatalistic messaging increased fatalism, while optimistic messaging reduced it. Fatalism was found to negatively predict intentions to support mitigation efforts, positively associated with depression, and negatively associated with fear and insecurity.
This research assessed fatalism toward COVID-19 and its role in behavioral intentions to support mitigation efforts (e. g., social distancing) and mental well-being. A COVID-19 fatalism measure was developed, and a messaging manipulation (fatalistic vs. optimistic vs. no message) was created to examine causal links between fatalism scores. Support for mitigation efforts and negative affect (anxiety, fear, depression, and insecurity) were measured to examine the consequences of fatalism toward COVID-19. Results showed that the fatalistic messaging condition increased fatalism whereas the optimistic message reduced it. The effects of the messaging manipulation were also apparent in the downstream measures of support for mitigation and negative affect through the mediator of fatalism toward COVID-19. Specifically, fatalism negatively predicted intentions to support mitigation. Regarding mental health, fatalism was positively associated with depression but negatively associated with fear and insecurity. Implications for COVID-19 mitigation efforts and mental health in the face of the coronavirus pandemic are discussed.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available