tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Br J Soc Psychol
. 2020 Jun 17.
doi: 10.1111/bjso.12392. Online ahead of print.
The Contagion of Mortality: A Terror Management Health Model for Pandemics
Emily P Courtney[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Jamie L Goldenberg[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Patrick Boyd[SUP] 2 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
The novel coronavirus, COVID-19, proliferates as a contagious psychological threat just like the physical disease itself. Due to the growing death toll and constant coverage this pandemic gets, it is likely to activate mortality awareness, to greater or lesser extents, depending on a variety of situational factors. Using terror management theory and the terror management health model, we outline reactions to the pandemic that consist of proximal defences aimed at reducing perceived vulnerability to (as well as denial of) the threat, and distal defences bound by ideological frameworks from which symbolic meaning can be derived. We provide predictions and recommendations for shifting reactions to this pandemic towards behaviours that decrease, rather than increase, the spread of the virus. We conclude by considering the benefits of shifting towards collective mindsets to more effectively combat COVID-19 and to better prepare for the next inevitable pandemic.
Keywords: Terror management; coronavirus; terror management health model.
. 2020 Jun 17.
doi: 10.1111/bjso.12392. Online ahead of print.
The Contagion of Mortality: A Terror Management Health Model for Pandemics
Emily P Courtney[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Jamie L Goldenberg[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Patrick Boyd[SUP] 2 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 32557684
- DOI: 10.1111/bjso.12392
Abstract
The novel coronavirus, COVID-19, proliferates as a contagious psychological threat just like the physical disease itself. Due to the growing death toll and constant coverage this pandemic gets, it is likely to activate mortality awareness, to greater or lesser extents, depending on a variety of situational factors. Using terror management theory and the terror management health model, we outline reactions to the pandemic that consist of proximal defences aimed at reducing perceived vulnerability to (as well as denial of) the threat, and distal defences bound by ideological frameworks from which symbolic meaning can be derived. We provide predictions and recommendations for shifting reactions to this pandemic towards behaviours that decrease, rather than increase, the spread of the virus. We conclude by considering the benefits of shifting towards collective mindsets to more effectively combat COVID-19 and to better prepare for the next inevitable pandemic.
Keywords: Terror management; coronavirus; terror management health model.