Risk perceptions and politics: Evidence from the COVID-19 pandemic

Politics may color interpretations of facts, and thus perceptions of risk. We find that a higher share of Trump voters in a county is associated with lower perceptions of risk during the COVID-19 pandemic. Controlling for COVID-19 case counts and deaths, as Trump's vote share rises in the local area, individuals search less for information on the virus and its potential economic impacts, and engage in fewer visits to non-essential businesses. Our results suggest that politics and the media may play an important role in determining the formation of risk perceptions, and may therefore affect both economic and health-related reactions to unanticipated health crises. (c) 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

The study found that counties with a higher share of Trump voters had lower perceptions of risk during the COVID-19 pandemic. Controlling for other factors, it was also discovered that as Trump's vote share increased in the local area, individuals searched less for virus information and visited non-essential businesses less.