Coronavirus Perceptions and Economic Anxiety

We provide one of the first systematic assessments of the development and determinants of economic anxiety at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. Using a global data set on internet searches and two representative surveys from the United States, we document a substantial increase in economic anxiety during and after the arrival of the coronavirus. We also document a large dispersion in beliefs about the pandemic risk factors of the coronavirus and demonstrate that these beliefs causally affect individuals' economic anxieties. Finally, we show that individuals' mental models of infectious disease spread understate nonlinear growth and shape the extent of economic anxiety.

Automated summary

The study provides a systematic assessment of economic anxiety during the initial stages of the coronavirus pandemic, showing a significant increase in economic anxiety during and after the arrival of the coronavirus. Beliefs about the pandemic risk factors differed among individuals, influencing their economic anxieties. Individuals' mental models of infectious disease spread underestimated nonlinear growth and played a role in shaping the extent of economic anxiety.