RAPID: The Psychology of Fear: Cultural Orientation and Response to Ebola Threat

University Of California-Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara CA

Investigators

Abstract

Ebola is one of the deadliest contagious diseases to emerge into the public consciousness in recent years. Accompanied by truly gruesome and deadly images, it has been a source of much fear, xenophobia, and social division across the world. While it makes obvious sense to increase some vigilance and engage in self-protective health behaviors, most health experts maintain that the actual risk of contracting Ebola is extremely low, at least outside of the directly affected regions in West Africa. Yet, the degree to which people respond to the potential risk is vastly disproportionate to the actual risk. Thus, in many parts of the world, the actual costs of Ebola are not the disease itself, but the negative psychological and behavioral effects - both individual and social - that are motivated by fear. Fear and social division are not only consequences of Ebola, but they have the potential to transform and perpetuate negative social consequences. Although the US is currently at low risk for Ebola contagion, the potential costs of individual distress as well as restrictive group protection behaviors are real. The present research proposes a theoretically-based intervention to attenuate these negative effects. Moreover, beyond the current Ebola concern, the knowledge gained from this research will be relevant to other, continually occurring, international threats of contagious diseases by potentially mitigating their psychological and social costs. This project was submitted in response to NSF 15-006 Dear Colleague Letter on the Ebola Virus. This research aims to understand the psychological mechanism of fear-driven individual and social consequences. Drawing from the knowledge-base of social, cultural, and health psychology, two studies using large nationally representative samples will focus on two distinct responses to disease-related fear: 1) anxiety and stress that are detrimental to individual well-being; and 2) manifestations of group-protection to minimize risk. The project will investigate whether cultural orientation (individualism vs. collectivism within the US) will influence which psychological response set is most likely. The prediction is that individualists will be more concerned with self-protection, and thus, are more likely to experience disproportionate anxiety and stress, whereas collectivists will be more concerned with group protection. Based on this model, the proposed research will also test the effectiveness of psychological interventions (self- and group-affirmation) to address the threat and reduce the psychological and social costs of the specter of Ebola.