Mitigating COVID-19 in a Nationally Representative UK Sample: Personal Abilities and Obligation to Obey the Law Shape Compliance with Mitigation Measures

The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly influenced daily life all over the world. The present study assesses what factors influenced inhabitants of the United Kingdom to comply with lockdown and social distancing measures. It analyses data from an online survey, conducted on April 6-8, 2020, amongst a nationally representative sample of 555 participants who currently reside in the UK. The results show that compliance depended mostly on people’s capacity to comply with the rules, and the normative obligation they feel to obey the law. As such, compliance was not associated with deterrence or obedience out of fear, but rather with people’s practical abilities and intrinsic motivation to comply. The paper discusses policy implications for effective mitigation of the virus.

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Exploring Attitudes About the Legality of Self-Managed Abortion in the US: Results from a Nationally Representative Survey

Sexuality Research and Social Policy ◽

10.1007/s13178-021-00572-z ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Sarah Raifman ◽

M. Antonia Biggs ◽

Lauren Ralph ◽

Katherine Ehrenreich ◽

Daniel Grossman

Keyword(s):

Multinomial Logistic Regression ◽

Public Attitudes ◽

The United States ◽

Public Affairs ◽

Policy Implications ◽

Reproductive Age ◽

Factors Associated ◽

The Us ◽

The Law ◽

Nationally Representative

Abstract Introduction Twenty-four states have at least one law in place that could be used to prosecute people for self-managed abortion (SMA), or the termination of a pregnancy outside of the formal healthcare system. We investigated factors associated with public attitudes about SMA legality and legal access to abortion more generally. Methods In August 2017, we surveyed a nationally representative sample of English- and Spanish-speaking women ages 18–49 years in the United States (US) using Ipsos Public Affairs’ KnowledgePanel. Unadjusted and adjusted multinomial logistic regression estimates identify characteristics associated with believing that SMA should not be against the law, compared to should be against the law, with weighting to account for sampling into the panel. Results Overall, 76% (95% CI: 74.3%-77.1%) and 59% (95% CI: 57.3%-60.4%) of participants (n = 7,022, completion rate 50%) reported that abortion and SMA, respectively, should not be against the law; 1% and 19% were unsure. Among those living in a state with at least one law that could be used to prosecute an individual for SMA, the majority (55%, 95% CI: 52.7%-57.9%) believed SMA should not be against the law. Factors associated with believing SMA should not be against the law, compared to should be against the law, included prior abortion experience and higher levels of education and income. Conclusion Most reproductive age women in the US believe that SMA should not be criminalized. There is more uncertainty about SMA legality than about the legality of abortion more generally. Policy Implications US laws that criminalize SMA are not supported by the majority of the people living in their jurisdictions.

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Heterogeneous Mental Health Development During the COVID-19 Pandemic in the United Kingdom

10.1101/2021.02.24.21251565 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Lea Ellwardt ◽

Patrick Praeg

Keyword(s):

United Kingdom ◽

Psychological Distress ◽

Latent Class ◽

Mitigation Measures ◽

Social Lives ◽

The United Kingdom ◽

Policy Measures ◽

Nationally Representative ◽

The Uk

Aim. The COVID-19 pandemic and the mitigation measures by governments have upended the economic and social lives of many, leading to widespread psychological distress. However, how distress developed during the pandemic and who was most affected is poorly understood. We explore heterogeneity in trajectories of psychological distress during the first six months of the pandemic in the United Kingdom and relate this heterogeneity to socio-demographic and health factors. Subjects and Methods. We analyze six waves of longitudinal, nationally representative survey data from the UK Household Longitudinal Study (N = 15,218), covering the first lockdown in 2020. First, latent class mixture modelling (LCCM) is used to identify trajectories of psychological distress. Second, associations of the trajectories with covariates are tested with multinomial logistic regressions. Results. We find four different trajectories of distress: continuously low, continuously moderate, temporarily elevated, and continuously elevated distress. One-fifth of the population experienced severely elevated risks of distress. Long-term exposure was highest among younger people, women, those who lost income, and those with previous health conditions or COVID-19 symptoms. Conclusion. Given the threat of persistent stress on health, policy measures should be sensitized to the unintended yet far-reaching consequences of non-pharmaceutical interventions.

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Compliance in the 1.5 Meter Society: Longitudinal Analysis of Citizens’ Adherence to COVID-19 Mitigation Measures in a Representative Sample in the Netherlands

10.31234/osf.io/dr9q3 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Christopher Reinders Folmer ◽

Malouke Kuiper ◽

Elke Olthuis ◽

Emmeke Barbara Kooistra ◽

Anne Leonre de Bruijn ◽

...

Keyword(s):

The Netherlands ◽

Distance Measures ◽

Mitigation Measures ◽

Social Distancing ◽

General Duty ◽

Future Success ◽

Nationally Representative ◽

The One ◽

Representative Samples ◽

Do So

In the month of May, the Netherlands moved out of the “intelligent lockdown”, and into the “1.5 meter society”, which aims to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic by means of safe-distance measures. This paper assesses how Dutch citizens have complied with these social distancing measures. It analyses data from two surveys conducted in May (between 8-14 and between 22-26) among nationally representative samples (N = 984 and N = 1021). We find that a combination of factors explain social distancing compliance. On the one hand we see that people are more likely to comply if they have an intrinsic motivation to do so, when they have the capacity to comply, when they have good impulse control, when they think compliance is normal, and when they see a general duty to obey rules generally. The paper also assesses how compliance has changed over time, assessing changes in May as well as how these are different from compliance with lockdown measures in April. During this period, there has been a gradual decline in compliance that coincides with a decline in intrinsic motivations and capacity for compliance, and there has been an increase in opportunities to violate the measures. The paper assesses what these changes may mean for current and future success of Covid-19 mitigation measures.

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Guests with Guns: Public Support for “No Carry” Defaults on Private Land

The Journal of Law Medicine & Ethics ◽

10.1177/1073110520979421 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 48 (S4) ◽

pp. 183-190

Author(s):

Ian Ayres ◽

Spurthi Jonnalagadda

Keyword(s):

Public Support ◽

Third Party ◽

Private Land ◽

Representative Survey ◽

Parking Lot ◽

The Law ◽

Concealed Carry ◽

Nationally Representative

A nationally representative survey of 2000 American adults shows broad support for prohibiting gun-possession on private land without the landowner's explicit permission. Many states have laws which permit concealed weapon carry unless explicitly prohibited by the landowner, but our survey suggests statistically-significant majorities would prefer “no carry” defaults with regard to homeowners, employers, and retailers. While respondents who are Republican, male, or gun owners are more likely to support “carry” defaults, we find that the majoritarian rejection of “carry” defaults does not tend to vary by region or state. However, our survey does find majority support for a default right to possess guns in rented property and on an employer's parking lot. Respondents across all contexts also report substantial ignorance or misinformation about the law. Landowners who don't know or mistakenly believe that concealed carry is, by default, prohibited on their land may be less able to protect themselves by explicitly prohibiting such third-party possession.

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Social Distancing in America: Understanding Long-term Adherence to Covid-19 Mitigation Recommendations

10.31234/osf.io/457em ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Christopher Reinders Folmer ◽

Megan Brownlee ◽

Adam Fine ◽

Malouke Esra Kuiper ◽

Elke Olthuis ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Disease Outbreaks ◽

The United States ◽

Mitigation Measures ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Situational Influences ◽

Social Distancing ◽

Short Period ◽

Practical Capacity ◽

Nationally Representative ◽

Motivational Influences

A crucial question in the governance of infectious disease outbreaks is how to ensure that people continue to adhere to mitigation measures for the longer duration of the pandemic. The present paper examines this question by means of a nationally representative cross-sectional set of studies conducted in the United States in May, June, and July 2020. It seeks to understand to what extent Americans continued to adhere to social distancing measures in the period after the first lockdown ended during the first wave of COVID-19. Moreover, it seeks to uncover which situational and motivational variables sustained (or undermined) adherence. Our findings reveal a mix of situational and motivational variables that contributed to adherence in the period after the first lockdown: individuals’ knowledge of social distancing measures, their practical capacity to adhere to them, their opportunities for not doing so, and their impulsivity (situational influences), as well as their moral alignment with mitigation measures against the virus, perceptions of its health threat, and perceived norms for adherence in their community (motivational influences). The results also reveal, however, that adherence among Americans declined during this period, as did important situational and motivational processes that sustained this. The findings show that adherence does not just originate in motivations and that situational variables play a central role. Moreover, they show that adherence is dynamic, as the core variables that sustain can change over a short period of time. These insights help to advance understanding of pandemic governance, as well as illuminating the interaction between rules and human conduct and compliance more generally. Moreover, they identify important avenues for policy to promote and sustain adherence to mitigation measures during the COVID-19 pandemic and in future outbreaks.

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Why did Israelis comply with COVID-19 Mitigation Measures during the initial first wave lockdown?

10.31234/osf.io/vm8x9 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Anne Leonre de Bruijn ◽

Yuval Feldman ◽

Malouke Esra Kuiper ◽

Megan Brownlee ◽

Christopher Reinders Folmer ◽

...

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

The Netherlands ◽

Survey Research ◽

Social Distance ◽

The United States ◽

Mitigation Measures ◽

The United Kingdom ◽

Adult Participants ◽

The Law ◽

Do So

This paper investigates why Israeli citizens complied with measures taken to mitigate the spread of the COVID-19 virus in early April. At the time, Israel had relatively stringent mitigation measures that encouraged people to stay at home and keep a safe social distance. The data of 411 adult participants, gathered using survey research, showed that overall, compliance levels at that time were high. It finds that compliance depended on a combination of moral factors, such as people’s moral duty to obey the law and people’s tendency to obey the law generally. In addition, people who had friends over 75 years old were more likely to comply. Furthermore, people were more likely to comply if they were able to do so, and less likely to violate if they did not have the opportunity to do so. The study did not find that fear of punishment (deterrence) was significantly associated with compliance. Overall, these findings are in line with studies conducted the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands.

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Pametna i socijalno odgovorna energetska tranzicija u regionima sa intenzivnom eksploatacijom uglja

Energija, Ekonomija, Ekologija ◽

10.46793/eee21-3.73l ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 23 (3) ◽

pp. 73-79

Author(s):

Jasmina Mandić Lukić ◽

◽

Đorđina Milovanović ◽

Maja Stipić ◽

Sanja Petrović Bećirović ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Climate Change Mitigation ◽

Action Plan ◽

Energy Transition ◽

Transition Process ◽

Energy System ◽

Mitigation Measures ◽

Low Carbon ◽

The Law ◽

Change Mitigation

Faced with forthcoming international obligations related to climate change mitigation measures, primarily planned to be reflected through the Law and Action Plan on Low Carbon Development Strategy, as well as the Law on Climate Change, all of which are currently being defined and adopted, Serbia is increasingly facing a need to switch its coal-fired facilities to alternative, environmentally more acceptable options. The related measures will have to be implemented much sooner than initially planned. Knowing that 80% of national GHG emissions originate from the energy sector, as well as that the dominant portion of those emissions results from the use of locally available coal, it is clear that the most efficient climate change mitigation measure would be a switch to alternative fuel options. However, having in mind that such an energy transition process is coupled with significant technological, environmental, economic, social, and other difficulties, the EU has initiated several projects, and one of them is TRACER, launched under the Horizon 2020 program, that strives to shed light on the best research and innovation strategies facilitating easier transition to the sustainable, low carbon energy system. The project addresses actions across nine coal-intensive European regions, including Kolubara Region in Serbia. The paper presents technological, environmental, and social challenges in the transition process, with an emphasis on the Kolubara region, and a proposal for the energy transition in Serbia respecting R&I strategies and Smart Specialization.

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Heterogeneous mental health development during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-95490-w ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Lea Ellwardt ◽

Patrick Präg

Keyword(s):

United Kingdom ◽

Psychological Distress ◽

Latent Class ◽

Mitigation Measures ◽

Social Lives ◽

The United Kingdom ◽

Policy Measures ◽

Nationally Representative ◽

The Uk

AbstractThe COVID-19 pandemic and the mitigation measures by governments have upended the economic and social lives of many, leading to widespread psychological distress. We explore heterogeneity in trajectories of psychological distress during the pandemic in the United Kingdom and relate this heterogeneity to socio-demographic and health factors. We analyze nine waves of longitudinal, nationally representative survey data from the UK Household Longitudinal Study ($$N=15{,}914$$ N = 15 , 914 ), covering the period from early 2020 to mid-2021. First, latent class mixture modelling is used to identify trajectories of psychological distress. Second, associations of the trajectories with covariates are tested with multinomial logistic regressions. We find four different trajectories of distress: continuously low, temporarily elevated, repeatedly elevated, and continuously elevated distress. Nearly two fifths of the population experienced severely elevated risks of distress during the pandemic. Long-term distress was highest among younger people, women, people living without a partner, those who had no work or lost income, and those with previous health conditions or COVID-19 symptoms. Given the threat of persistent stress on health, policy measures should be sensitized to the unintended yet far-reaching consequences of non-pharmaceutical interventions.

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Sustaining Compliance with Covid-19 Mitigation Measures? Understanding Distancing Behavior in the Netherlands during June 2020

10.31234/osf.io/xafwp ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Christopher Reinders Folmer ◽

Malouke Kuiper ◽

Elke Olthuis ◽

Emmeke Barbara Kooistra ◽

Anne Leonre de Bruijn ◽

...

Keyword(s):

The Netherlands ◽

Social Norms ◽

Intrinsic Motivation ◽

Impulse Control ◽

Mitigation Measures ◽

Nationally Representative ◽

Singular Trajectory ◽

Representative Samples ◽

Do So

In the month of June, the Netherlands had continued its singular trajectory in combating the COVID-19 pandemic. After the transition from the “intelligent lockdown” into the “1.5 meter society,” the month of June heralded further relaxations of the prior mitigation measures. Building on our previous surveys during the month of May, this paper reports the findings of two additional survey waves collected in June (between 8-11 and between 22-26) among nationally representative samples (N = 1041 and N = 1033). The results show that the processes that sustained compliance during the month of May continued to be influential, especially citizens’ intrinsic motivation to comply, their capacity to do so, their impulse control, and social norms that sustained compliance. Furthermore, there were some indications that extrinsic reasons, such as the likelihood of punishment and the fairness of enforcement, may have become more influential in shaping compliance. A comparison to the findings from May revealed, however, that compliance was gradually declining in the Netherlands, as were the resources that sustain it.

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