Variations in Early-Stage Responses to Pandemics: Survey Evidence from the COVID-19 Pandemic in Japan.

ABSTRACT: During the initial phase of pandemics, swift behavioral responses by individuals, such as social distancing, can temper the speed and magnitude of further infections. However, individual choices in this period are often made in the absence of reliable knowledge and coordinated policy interventions, producing variation in protective behaviors that cannot be easily deduced from that in later periods. Using unique monthly panel survey data, we examine variations in the association between changes in infections and risky behavior, particularly the frequencies of face-to-face conversations and dining out, between January to March 2020. We find that the increase in confirmed cases is negatively associated with the likelihood of these behaviors. However, high school graduates are less responsive

SUBMITTER: Shoji M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8629334 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature