American Public Responses to COVID-19

Original study published by: George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communication and Yale Program on Climate Change Communication.

In response to the coronavirus epidemic in the U.S., we decided to retool our knowledge factory to conduct a large national study on American Public Responses to COVID-19 in an effort to inform the public health community and policymakers about Americans’ coronavirus knowledge, attitudes, vulnerabilities, protective behaviors, and communication needs. Today, we are pleased to share the first of several reports. Here are a few highlights from today’s report:

Americans Prioritize Protecting Public Health Over the Economy

• By a margin of more than 5-to-1, Americans say stopping the spread of the coronavirus (84%) is more important than stopping the decline in the economy (16%).
• Large majorities of Americans across all demographic groups prioritize public health over the economy, including those who have been laid off or are seeking work, and Republicans, Democrats, and Independents, including 2016 Trump voters.

Americans Want More Action to Limit the Epidemic

• Majorities of Americans think that citizens themselves, the U.S. Congress, and President Trump should be doing more to limit the spread of the coronavirus.
• More than one in three Americans think that President Trump (38%) and citizens themselves (36%) should be doing “muchmore” to limit its spread.

Americans Expect the Epidemic and the Economy to Get Worse

• As of April 7 2020, most Americans expect that both the spread of the coronavirus and its negative impacts on the economy will get worse over the next month.
• 64% think the epidemic will get “much worse” (25%) or “worse” (39%)
• 70% think the economy will get “much worse” (28%) or “worse” (42%)

 Americans Want More Information

• 94% of Americans say they have been following the news about the coronavirus either “very” (63%) or “fairly” (30%) closely.
• However, a majority of Americans say they need more information about the coronavirus. About eight in ten say they need either “a little” (22%), “some” (35%), or “a lot” more information (25%).
• African Americans, liberal/moderate Republicans, and people living in urban areas are more likely than other Americans to say they need “a lot more information.”

Americans Trust Particular Sources of Information

• About 9 in 10 Americans trust health professionals – doctors, infectious disease experts, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) – as sources of accurate information about the spread of the coronavirus.
• Large majorities of Americans also trust local news outlets (TV and newspapers) and national news networks (ABC, CBS, NBC) as sources of accurate information about the coronavirus.
• More than half of Americans trust their members of Congress and Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, while fewer Americans trust President Trump, as a source of accurate information about the coronavirus.

Read the full report here.