Social Psychological Bulletin

How Early Onset of COVID-19 Changed Vaccine-Related Attitudes: A Longitudinal Study

Mateusz Polak — 2024-10-14

The paper investigates how the onset of the global COVID-19 pandemic has influenced the attitudes and beliefs of a previously anti-vaccine and vaccine-undecided population: how it changed their anti-vaccine beliefs and related arguments, perceptions of scientists’ credibility, as well as what their beliefs about COVID-19 are and what protective action they undertake against it. We used preexisting data from a 2018 study, where we identified groups of anti-vaccine and vaccine-undecided individuals (N = 365) whom we reached out to again in April/May 2020 (during the first months of the pandemic, when no COVID-19 vaccine was available). An online survey was used to measure changes in attitudes toward vaccination, reasons for vaccine rejection, attitudes toward scientists, and (at Measure 2) to measure attitudes toward COVID-19 and protective action against it. Results indicated a general pro-vaccine shift in attitudes, as well as reduced support for all anti-vaccine arguments. Surprisingly, we also found a negative shift in the sample’s perceptions of scientists’ agency and communion. Anti-vaccine individuals were also much less likely to employ any protective measures and had the lowest levels of fear associated with COVID-19. These results show that the initial stages of the COVID-19 outbreak caused a positive change in vaccine attitudes, especially in the vaccine-undecided group. At the same time, strongly anti-vaccine individuals were likely to reject protection against COVID.

Tweeting About a Revolution? A Cross-National Analysis of Tweets on Climate Change During the Rise of “Fridays for Future”

Valentina Rizzoli — 2024-09-20

In 2018, thanks to the use of social media, the Fridays for Future (FFF) movement brought global attention to climate change. However, in the post-Covid era, the rhetoric of a return to normality seems to have marginalized those issues from the media debate. Looking at the emergence of FFF, the paper applies topic detection to analyze 19,112 tweets on climate change. The emerging contents of social representations are examined in relation to sociocultural (power distance; individualism; uncertainty avoidance; long-term orientation) and structural (level of pollution) factors associated with the country of origin of the tweets. The primary topic among those identified focuses on calls to action, particularly related to the FFF movement. When this topic is absent, others address efforts to mitigate global warming or strategies for adapting to climate change impacts. The main results indicate that tweets from the most polluted countries and from countries high in short-term orientation are more centered on topics concerning a posteriori response to climate change, also denying it as a defense mechanism. This could prevent imagining alternative futures and the projection of concrete means of countering climate change. The study suggests the importance of transcending the on-line and off-line distinction, not only for mobilization but also to form an arena for debate toward social change.

Profit Motives, Environmental Motives, and Perceived Corporate Greenwashing Revisited: A Replication and Extension of de Vries et al. (2015)

Erik Løhre — 2024-09-20

As the climate change crisis has become more evident, a growing number of businesses and organizations have gotten involved in sustainability efforts. But not all corporate sustainability efforts are applauded: sometimes the public accuses companies of greenwashing, i.e., overstating the extent to which the company is environmentally friendly. There is little research on the factors that influence perceived greenwashing amongst the public. Here, we report a replication and extension of one of the few studies of this topic, Experiment 2 in de Vries et al. (2015, https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.1327). The original study found that people perceived more greenwashing when an oil company communicated an environmental motive for a sustainability investment (carbon capture and storage), as opposed to a profit motive, d = 0.98 [0.37, 1.59]. The present pre-registered replication (n = 516) did not find support for this effect, with very little difference in perceived greenwashing depending on communicated motive, d = -0.09 [-0.38, 0.21]. As extensions, we included a condition where a mixed motive (both environment and profits) was communicated, tested the effect using a different type of company than the original, included a measure of general attitudes to the company in addition to perceived greenwashing, and included measures of individual differences in attitudes towards corporate social responsibility and belief in climate change. The most noteworthy exploratory finding was that attitudes were more positive when an environmental or a mixed motive was communicated rather than a profit motive.

Tolerating Injustice When Feeling in Control: Personal Control Enhances the Link Between Collectivism and Coercion in the Face of Disease Threats

Nan Zhu — 2024-09-09

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, authorities worldwide imposed coercive regulations aimed at curbing the virus’s spread, often at the expense of individuals who were considered potential threats to public health. We argue that individual differences in their support for such actions can be understood from the perspective of an evolved “behavioral immune system”. We conducted two studies within the context of the “zero-COVID” policy in Mainland China. Study 1 recruited 819 Shanghai residents during a strict citywide lockdown and found that individuals’ collectivistic orientation and personal control over their lives predicted their tolerance of injustices involved in disease-control measures. Moreover, the effect of psychological collectivism was enhanced by personal control. Study 2 (N = 403) partly replicated these findings using hypothetical scenarios related to various fictitious viruses. Notably, the effects found in Study 1 only manifested in scenarios involving ambivalent pathogens, which are seldom fatal but highly contagious. Building on the functional flexibility principle of the behavioral immune system theory, we discussed the unique role of ambivalent pathogen signals in generating within-society variability and fine-tuning behavioral immune responses.

“Too Posh to Push?” Self-Stigmatization in Childbirth

Lisa Hoffmann — 2024-08-16

Self-stigmatization after intervention-rich births (e.g., via C-section) is an anecdotally well-documented phenomenon. The aim of the present paper was to address this issue empirically. In doing so, we assessed 1,743 mothers who had required medical interventions to give birth and developed a psychometrically sound questionnaire—the Labor and Birth Self-Stigmatization Scale (LBS)—to measure birth-related self-stigmatization. We tested and confirmed the hypothesis that birth-related self-stigmatization was associated with a more negative birth experience, explaining incremental validity over, e.g., neuroticism and self-esteem. Results further revealed that the strongest, but not the only, predictor of self-stigmatization was having a C-section. Participants’ birth-related mindset moderated the negative correlation between self-stigmatization and birth experience, with a more natural mindset strengthening the negative association. The results of the present study illustrate the close association of birth and psychological factors and highlight the importance of studying and understanding self-stigmatization after childbirth.

Correction of Paulina Banaszkiewicz (2022). Biological Sex and Psychological Gender Differences in the Experience and Expression of Romantic Jealousy

The Journal Editors — 2024-07-23

Correction to: Banaszkiewicz, P. (2022). Biological Sex and Psychological Gender Differences in the Experience and Expression of Romantic Jealousy. Social Psychological Bulletin, 17, Article e4161. https://doi.org/10.32872/spb.10461

Correction of Nathan Vidal et al. (2023). Assessing the Reliability of an Infrared Thermography Protocol to Assess Cold-Induced Brown Adipose Tissue Activation in French Psychology Students

The Journal Editors — 2024-07-09

Correction to: Nathan Vidal et al. (2023). Assessing the Reliability of an Infrared Thermography Protocol to Assess Cold-Induced Brown Adipose Tissue Activation in French Psychology Students

Willingness to Use Moral Reframing: Support Comes From Perceived Effectiveness, Opposition Comes From Integrity Concerns

Aaron Isiminger — 2024-07-05

Moral reframing is a communication technique that involves persuading an audience to support an issue they typically oppose on ideological grounds by appealing to concepts and values that align with their moral concerns. Overall, previous research has found that moral reframing can encourage attitude change more so than non-reframed messages. One pending question, though, is whether people would or would not use this technique in the first place (e.g., because it requires embracing values that one might not endorse). This online study (N = 249) tested the willingness of US-based liberals to use a message appealing to conservative values (morally reframed), vs. one appealing to liberal values (not morally reframed), to persuade a hypothetical conservative audience to be more pro-environmental. Reasons behind message choice and feelings about both messages were measured. Results showed that most participants chose to use the morally reframed message (73%). This choice was justified by the message’s perceived effectiveness, while rejecting it was justified by the need to feel true to one’s own beliefs and values. However, regardless of actual message choice, participants overall reported more positive and less negative integrity feelings for the message that was not morally reframed.

Correction of Karolina Dyduch-Hazar and Mario Gollwitzer (2024). Feeling Bad About Feeling Good? How Avengers and Observers Evaluate the Hedonic Pleasure of Taking Revenge

The Journal Editors — 2024-05-29

Correction to: Dyduch-Hazar, K., & Gollwitzer, M. (2024). Feeling Bad About Feeling Good? How Avengers and Observers Evaluate the Hedonic Pleasure of Taking Revenge. Social Psychological Bulletin, 19, Article e12477. https://doi.org/10.32872/spb.12477

Anticipated and Achieved Individual Mobility Amongst Portuguese Immigrants in Switzerland: Social Identity Adjustment and Inter-Minority Relations

Marion Chipeaux — 2024-03-20

Socially mobile minority members (i.e., those who acquire a higher status membership) adjust their social identities, and eventually show negative attitudes towards minorities, as compared to non-mobile members. We examined whether these changes could be understood as the result of individual mobility achievements, or if they already occur at an earlier stage of the mobility process, when individuals are motivated and thus psychologically anticipate achieving mobility. In two studies, we looked at Portuguese immigrants in Switzerland (Ns = 180 and 241) at three mobility stages, that is, (1) Swiss naturalized Portuguese immigrants (socially mobile), (2) non-naturalized Portuguese who strongly wished to be naturalized (high anticipators), and (3) those who wished it less (low anticipators). First, we hypothesized a progressive assimilation to (distancing from) the Swiss (Portuguese) identity and culture (from the low anticipators to the high anticipators to the mobile). As expected, increasing levels of individual mobility were associated with stronger identification with Swiss identity and adoption of the Swiss culture. Conversely, increasing levels of individual mobility were associated with gradual distancing from the Portuguese culture, but against expectations, not with disidentification from the Portuguese identity. Second, we investigated how individual mobility stages were associated with a progressive deterioration of inter-minority relations. Results showed that increasing levels of individual mobility were not associated with more negative attitudes toward immigration (Study 1) but with less collective action intentions (Study 2). We discuss the consequences of anticipated and achieved individual mobility on asymmetric intergroup relations and support for social change.