A new study published in Frontiers in Psychology examines why women are more concerned about Covid-19 than men, despite the fact that the latter are more likely to become seriously ill or die from the disease. For example, a recent meta-analysis found that men have a 40% higher risk of mortality than Covid-19 and are approximately three times more likely to be hospitalized in intensive care units.
"Despite the empirical fact that men are more likely to experience adverse health consequences from Covid-19, women report greater fear and more negative expectations about the health-related consequences of Covid-19 than men," the authors write. research led by Sheryl Ball and Alec Smith from Virginia Tech. "In our survey, we found that nearly 20% of women chose the highest value available for fear of a pandemic, compared to about 9% of men."
To reach this conclusion, researchers invited 1,500 people to take part in a survey that measured the emotions, behaviors and expectations of people associated with the Covid-19 pandemic. The survey was conducted in April 2020.
The main conclusions from the study were:
Women reported more Covid-19 health fears than men. Women were also more likely than men to be involved in preventative measures such as frequent hand washing, wearing a mask, and practicing social distance.
The gender gap in preventive health behaviors was removed when the authors factored in the effect of fear. This, according to researchers, suggests that "fear of the Covid-19 pandemic, and not gender itself, fosters differences in behavior."
Men expressed more fear about the economic implications of the Covid-19 pandemic than women. The survey also found that men were less likely to wash their hands and use hand sanitizers frequently, were less committed to avoiding public gatherings, less supportive of closing public schools, and more likely to believe that people were in unnecessary panic for Covid-19.
Researchers say that despite the emergence of more transmissible variants of Covid-19, the fear of the disease has decreased, compared to last year.
"The average person is probably less afraid of Covid-19 now than he was in April," Ball wrote.
Burimi: Psychology Today
