Publications
Publications
- Science Advances
Policies to Influence Perceptions about COVID-19 Risk: The Case of Maps
By: Claudia Engel, Jonathan Rodden and Marco Tabellini
Abstract
Choropleth disease maps have become an important tool for informing the public about the risks posed by COVID-19. In a survey conducted in the U.S. state of Georgia in June 2020, we randomly assigned respondents to view either of two maps. The first one reported county-level COVID case counts; the second one displayed case rates per 100,000 people. Respondents who saw case rate maps were more likely to consider the virus a concern for Georgia and its economy, were more worried about contracting the virus, and were more supportive of policies aimed at mitigating its spread. These effects are driven by self-identified Republicans, who were more skeptical about public health measures to mitigate the spread of the virus in general. Our findings might have important implications for the current debate on how to convince vaccine and mask skeptics in the U.S. and beyond.
Keywords
Citation
Engel, Claudia, Jonathan Rodden, and Marco Tabellini. "Policies to Influence Perceptions about COVID-19 Risk: The Case of Maps." Science Advances 8, no. 11 (March 18, 2022).