Description
Governments worldwide still (Oct. 2021), to some extent, rely on behavioral recommendations to reduce the spread of COVID-19. We examine the role of ambivalence towards both the specific recommendations (micro-ambivalence) and the pandemic as a whole (macro-ambivalence) with regard to compliance. We predict that micro ambivalence relates negatively, whereas macro ambivalence relates positively, to self-reported adherence to recommendations. We present two studies (N = 691) supporting our hypotheses: the more ambivalent people are towards the behavioral recommendations (micro level), the less they report following them. Conversely, the more ambivalent people are about the pandemic as a whole (macro level), the more they report following recommendations. Our findings replicated in a U.S. sample and a representative German sample.
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC-BY 4.0)
