Abstract
Recent research has extensively investigated how the current COVID-19 pandemic can affect intergroup relations. Much less is known about the impact of COVID-19 on economic and trade decisions. Could the intergroup effects of this pandemic shape support for international economic policies? The aim of this study was to examine the support for restrictive economic policies towards countries with very high levels of COVID-19 contamination (China and Italy) during the first lockdown period (March - April 2020). The survey was conducted in Romania (N = 669) and included measures of COVID-19 vulnerability, prejudice, and support for economic restrictive policy (e.g., to reduce international trade; to set higher taxes). Results showed that higher support for restrictive policies toward China was associated with greater perceived vulnerability to COVID-19 and this link was partially mediated by prejudice toward China. In contrast, support for economic restrictive policies toward Italy was greater when perceived vulnerability to COVID-19 was high, but this relationship between variables was not explained by negative attitudes towards Italy. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed.
Highlights
Vulnerability to COVID-19 has had a significant impact on international relations at different levels
One sample t-test comparing the means to the median of the scale (4), showed that perceived vulnerability to COVID-19 was high, t(668) = 10.54, p < .001, 95%CI [.32, .48], d = 0.41
Paired-samples t-test showed that prejudice against Chinese was significantly higher that prejudice against Italians, t(668) = 12.43, p < .001, 95%CI [-.56, -.41], d = 0.48
Summary
Vulnerability to COVID-19 has had a significant impact on international relations at different levels. In Europe, this has led national governments to realize the impact of relocating production to Asian countries where labor costs are cheaper. During this time of pandemic crisis, perceptions of overreliance on China - a major producer of products needed to cope with COVID-19 - were high in European countries. The lockdown period was an opportunity for economists and politicians to discuss the potential economic restrictions that European countries could impose on Asian countries and especially China (La Tribune, 2020). While the pandemic context creates favorable conditions for economic restrictions on China, research in social psychology has shown that negative intergroup attitudes can develop as a result of diseases’ threats (Kim et al, 2016; Navarrete & Fessler, 2006)
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