Summary: People who deliberately ignore COVID-19 recommendations are more likely to be male, less cooperative, lower in openness to new experiences, and more extroverted than those who follow the rules. They tend to prioritize personal freedom and self-interest, show greater tolerance for social deviance, and rely less on official information sources, a new multinational study finds.
Source: University of Sydney
New research identifies psychological and behavioural traits common among people who intentionally breach COVID-19 regulations across Australia, the UK, the US and Canada.
As large protests and lockdown breaches have drawn public attention, researchers asked whether there are consistent characteristics among those who refuse to follow pandemic rules. A study led by the University of Sydney surveyed attitudes and behaviours during the first wave of COVID-19 and found a distinct non-compliant group representing roughly 10 percent of respondents.
Survey analysis showed that individuals in the non-compliant group were more often male and scored lower on agreeableness (less cooperative and considerate). They also scored lower on openness to experience (a personality marker related to intellectual curiosity) and higher on extraversion.
Published in the journal PLOS ONE, the study reports that non-compliers frequently prioritized personal freedom and self-interest over collective protective measures. They perceived their social environments as more tolerant of value and behavioural variation, exhibited greater tolerance for deviant behaviour, and—contrary to common stereotypes—were not predominantly young.
Compared with compliant respondents, non-compliers relied less on official sources such as government briefings and mainstream news. They were also more likely to use maladaptive coping strategies, including denial and substance use.
“Alarmingly, the non-compliant group were more likely than the compliant group to leave home to meet friends or family, to attend religious gatherings, out of boredom, or as an assertion of personal freedom,” said lead author Associate Professor Sabina Kleitman from the University of Sydney School of Psychology. “This pattern of behaviour poses a particular risk during periods of lockdown and highlights the public health challenge.”
The authors argue that public health approaches should be tailored to reach and influence this group. Suggested strategies include wider monitoring and correction of misinformation across media, clearer education to help people identify unreliable sources, and message framing that appeals to personal self-interest where appropriate rather than relying solely on appeals to social duty.
The study drew on an online survey completed by 1,575 participants in March and April 2020. Respondents from Australia, the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada provided information on behaviours, attitudes, personality, cognitive and decision-making ability, resilience, adaptability, coping strategies, political and cultural views, and patterns of information consumption during the pandemic’s initial wave.
Characteristics of the compliant majority
About 90 percent of participants fell into a compliant group. These individuals were more likely to be female, younger, tertiary-educated, or at greater health risk. Compliant respondents expressed higher levels of worry about the virus, believed that protective measures were effective, and tended to use adaptive coping strategies such as planning and constructive distraction.
Strategies to encourage compliance among non-compliers
Associate Professor Kleitman and colleagues identified practical approaches to influence non-compliant attitudes and behaviours:
- Increase resources for detecting and countering misinformation. Non-compliers were less likely to use or trust official information and less likely to verify claims they encountered.
- Frame some public health communications to address self-interest. For some audiences, messages emphasizing personal benefits and freedoms preserved by compliance may be more persuasive than appeals to collective responsibility.
Funding: The research received support from the University of Sydney School of Psychology and additional funding from the University of Saskatchewan.
About this psychology research news
Source: University of Sydney
Contact: Loren Smith – University of Sydney
Image: The image is in the public domain
Original Research: Open access. “To comply or not comply? A latent profile analysis of behaviours and attitudes during the COVID-19 pandemic” by Sabina Kleitman et al. PLOS ONE
Abstract
To comply or not comply? A latent profile analysis of behaviours and attitudes during the COVID-19 pandemic
Why do some people follow protective public health behaviours during COVID-19 while others do not? Prior research often takes a variable-centered approach focused on a narrow range of factors. This study uses a person-centered perspective to identify broader patterns of behaviour and the psychological profiles underlying them.
Using data from 1,575 participants across Australia, the US, the UK and Canada, the researchers combined measures of behaviour and attitudes with assessments of personality, cognitive and decision-making ability, resilience, adaptability, coping strategies, political and cultural orientations, and information use during the pandemic’s first wave. Latent Profile Analysis revealed two primary groups: a large compliant group (about 90%) and a smaller non-compliant group (about 10%).
The compliant group showed higher levels of concern about COVID-19 and greater faith in protective measures. The non-compliant group perceived those same measures as problematic, scored lower on agreeableness and on cultural tightness-looseness, but were more extraverted and reactant. They used more maladaptive coping strategies, paid less attention to news and official sources, and tended not to verify information. Female participants were more likely to be in the compliant group than males.
By offering a more nuanced understanding of compliance behaviour, these findings can guide targeted public health messaging and interventions in future pandemics and challenge common assumptions, including simple age-based stereotypes about rule-breaking behaviour.