Changes in dangerous and competitive worldviews during the coronavirus epidemic: Evidence from a large-scale U.S. panel study

In a large (N = 1,600) nationally representative and longitudinal survey of the American population, conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic we investigated whether dangerous or competitive worldviews shifted. Results show that across the span of one year (i.e., the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic), dangerous but not competitive worldviews, as measured via the dual-process of prejudice framework, significantly increased. This increase was significantly larger for conservatives, whites and older Americans. Further, those who endorsed both worldviews highly at T1 (April 2020) reported significantly smaller increases on average at T2 (August 2021), suggesting that the world was perceived as more dangerous and more competitive one year later particularly for those who saw it as safer and more cooperative at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings highlight that worldviews are malleable, and that specific demographic characteristics and individual differences influence changes in worldviews across time.