Individualism and Egalitarianism Can Kill: How Cultural Values Predict Coronavirus Deaths Across the Globe
While in some countries, many people have died due to the coronavirus (COVID-19), in other countries, only a few have died. Based on the cultural values theory, our first hypothesis was that in countries that are predominantly individualistic, the number of deaths will be high, whereas in countries...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2021-06-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.620490/full |
| _version_ | 1830359828240793600 |
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| author | C. Dominik Güss Ma. Teresa Tuason |
| author_facet | C. Dominik Güss Ma. Teresa Tuason |
| author_sort | C. Dominik Güss |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | While in some countries, many people have died due to the coronavirus (COVID-19), in other countries, only a few have died. Based on the cultural values theory, our first hypothesis was that in countries that are predominantly individualistic, the number of deaths will be high, whereas in countries with predominantly collectivist values, the number of deaths will be low. Our second hypothesis was that countries with high power distance and hierarchy will have fewer deaths compared to countries with low power distance and egalitarianism. The hypotheses were tested by referring to two different value studies (Hofstede's study of 76 countries and Schwartz's study of 75 countries) while also controlling for GDP per capita, Gini index, population density, median age per country, and BMI per country. Of the five control variables GDP and BMI significantly predicted coronavirus deaths. Taking into account GDP, Gini index, population density, median age, and BMI, hierarchical regression analyses confirmed the first hypothesis on individualism and the second hypothesis on egalitarianism. Therefore, in the case of this current pandemic, group-oriented and collectivist values and low egalitarianism values lead to specific health-related behaviors that ultimately keep more people alive. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-20T03:07:18Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ea679d3b7c42463392e71ba797eb4ca3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-20T03:07:18Z |
| publishDate | 2021-06-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-ea679d3b7c42463392e71ba797eb4ca32022-12-21T19:55:35ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782021-06-011210.3389/fpsyg.2021.620490620490Individualism and Egalitarianism Can Kill: How Cultural Values Predict Coronavirus Deaths Across the GlobeC. Dominik Güss0Ma. Teresa Tuason1Department of Psychology, University of North Florida, Jacksonville, FL, United StatesClinical Mental Health Counseling, Department of Public Health, University of North Florida, Jacksonville, FL, United StatesWhile in some countries, many people have died due to the coronavirus (COVID-19), in other countries, only a few have died. Based on the cultural values theory, our first hypothesis was that in countries that are predominantly individualistic, the number of deaths will be high, whereas in countries with predominantly collectivist values, the number of deaths will be low. Our second hypothesis was that countries with high power distance and hierarchy will have fewer deaths compared to countries with low power distance and egalitarianism. The hypotheses were tested by referring to two different value studies (Hofstede's study of 76 countries and Schwartz's study of 75 countries) while also controlling for GDP per capita, Gini index, population density, median age per country, and BMI per country. Of the five control variables GDP and BMI significantly predicted coronavirus deaths. Taking into account GDP, Gini index, population density, median age, and BMI, hierarchical regression analyses confirmed the first hypothesis on individualism and the second hypothesis on egalitarianism. Therefore, in the case of this current pandemic, group-oriented and collectivist values and low egalitarianism values lead to specific health-related behaviors that ultimately keep more people alive.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.620490/fullcultural valuescoronavirus deathsindividualismcollectivismpower distanceCOVID-19 |
| spellingShingle | C. Dominik Güss Ma. Teresa Tuason Individualism and Egalitarianism Can Kill: How Cultural Values Predict Coronavirus Deaths Across the Globe Frontiers in Psychology cultural values coronavirus deaths individualism collectivism power distance COVID-19 |
| title | Individualism and Egalitarianism Can Kill: How Cultural Values Predict Coronavirus Deaths Across the Globe |
| title_full | Individualism and Egalitarianism Can Kill: How Cultural Values Predict Coronavirus Deaths Across the Globe |
| title_fullStr | Individualism and Egalitarianism Can Kill: How Cultural Values Predict Coronavirus Deaths Across the Globe |
| title_full_unstemmed | Individualism and Egalitarianism Can Kill: How Cultural Values Predict Coronavirus Deaths Across the Globe |
| title_short | Individualism and Egalitarianism Can Kill: How Cultural Values Predict Coronavirus Deaths Across the Globe |
| title_sort | individualism and egalitarianism can kill how cultural values predict coronavirus deaths across the globe |
| topic | cultural values coronavirus deaths individualism collectivism power distance COVID-19 |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.620490/full |
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