Investigating the Psychological Consequences of Powerlessness and COVID-19: A Threat and Defense Approach
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Author
Date
2022Type
- Doctoral Thesis
ETH Bibliography
yes
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Abstract
Powerlessness, defined as a lack of personal control due to the influence of others, is a pervasive state existent since the dawn of humankind. The state has been found to co-occur with consequential phenomena such as the heightened belief in conspiracies or increased ingroup bias. Nevertheless, a causal explanation as to why powerlessness might lead to these phenomena is lacking. The present dissertation sheds light on this gap in the literature. Based on research within the field of threats and defense, we assumed that the phenomena co-occuring with powerlessness represent defenses aimed at lowering the aversive consequences (e.g., anxiety) caused by the state of powerlessness. After successfully finding indications for this hypothesis, we used a similar theoretical reasoning to explain the co-occurrence of the belief in corona-related conspiracies, the resentments against and discrimination of people of Asian descent, as well as ingroup biases during the spread of COVID-19. We did so by pointing out the parallels of the state of COVID-19 to powerlessness regarding both the presence of psychological threats (such as lacking control, uncertainty, and mortality salience) as well as of consequential phenomena that lack an obvious connection to the threats these states entail. Parallel to our research on powerlessness, we assumed the phenomena associated with COVID-19 to represent defenses aimed at lowering the aversive consequences caused by the psychological threats entailed in the pandemic. The conducted research confirmed this hypothesis. The dissertation also reports further research on COVID-19 that was conducted as part of an international collaboration of social scientists. Here, indication for a hypothesized link between people’s level of national identity and the extent to which they adhered to COVID-related public health measures was found. The research presented in this dissertation shows a promising avenue of how to study multifaceted and understudied states such as powerlessness and COVID-19 in future research. Show more
Permanent link
https://doi.org/10.3929/ethz-b-000574498Publication status
publishedExternal links
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Publisher
ETH ZurichSubject
powerlessness; behavioral inhibition, psychological threats, threat defenses, conspiracy beliefsOrganisational unit
09562 - Schmid, Petra / Schmid, Petra
Funding
173046 - Power Facilitates Goal-Directed Action, But How? A Multi-Method Investigation of the Role of Motivation and Investment of Resources (SNF)
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ETH Bibliography
yes
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