Reactance againts freedom threats during the COVID-19 pandemic – a systematic review
Dariusz Drążkowski
Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu, Wydział Psychologii i KognitywistykiAbstract
Aim: During the COVID-19 pandemic, many individuals experienced a threat to their freedom due to government-imposed restrictions on specific behaviors, which motivated them to take actions against these limitations. Reactance theory has proven useful in explaining the motivation of individuals to resist government policies in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Several studies have been published, demonstrating that experiencing reactance towards these policies leads to engaging in behaviors that contradict the prescribed measures. The aim of this article is to conduct and describe a systematic review of studies examining the relationship between regulations aimed at limiting the pandemic and reactance towards these measures.
Methods: A systematic review of studies measuring reactance (as either a state or a trait) was conducted based on predetermined criteria. The databases searched included EBSCO, Web of Science, and Scopus.
Results: The literature review identified 58 studies examining individuals' responses to pandemic-related regulations and their reactance towards these measures. An analysis of participant characteristics, research methodologies, and obtained results was conducted. The study highlights persuasive techniques that either intensify or diminish reactance and those that do not have an impact.
Conclusion: The presented literature review contributes to understanding the factors influencing individuals' experience of reactance towards freedom constraints imposed by government actions aimed at combating the COVID-19 pandemic.
Keywords:
reactance, freedom threat, COVID-19 pandemic, protective measures, vaccination, systematic reviewReferences
Albarracin, D., Jung, H., Song, W., Tan, A., Fishman, J. (2021). Rather than inducing psychological reactance, requiring vaccination strengthens intentions to vaccinate in US populations. Scientific Reports, 11(1), artykuł 20796. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-00256-z Google Scholar
Ball, H., Wozniak, T. R. (2022). Why do some Americans resist COVID-19 prevention behavior? An analysis of issue importance, message fatigue, and reactance regarding COVID-19 messaging. Health Communication, 37(14), 1812‒1819. https://doi.org/10.1080/10410236.2021.1920717 Google Scholar
Bigsby, E., Morrow, E. (2022). Health Messaging During a Pandemic: How Information Type and Individual Factors Influence Responses to COVID-19 Messages. American Behavioral Scientist, 00(0), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1177/00027642221132797 Google Scholar
Böhm, R. A., Orth, U. R. (2022). Understanding German Consumers’ Intention to Adopt COVID-19 Infection Prevention Measures: A Moral Decoupling Perspective. Business & Society, 00(0), 1–42. https://doi.org/10.1177/00076503221086849 Google Scholar
Bokhari, R., Shahzad, K. (2022). Explaining resistance to the COVID-19 preventive measures: A psychological reactance perspective. Sustainability, 14(8), artykuł 4476. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14084476 Google Scholar
Brehm. S. S., Brehm. J. W. (1981). Psychological reactance: A theory of freedom and control. Academic Press. Google Scholar
Chen, X., Duan, Y., Ittefaq, H., Duan, Y. (2022). Unveiling the effects of consumers' psychological distance on their reactance and related behavioral outcomes: Do lockdown restrictions matter? Frontiers in Psychology, 13, artykuł 952964. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.952964 Google Scholar
Chen, M., Yu, W., Cao, X. (2022). Experience Pandemic Fatigue? Social Media Use May Play a Role: Testing a Model of Pandemic Fatigue Development from a Social Media Perspective. Health Communication, 1‒11. https://doi.org/10.1080/10410236.2022.2149095 Google Scholar
Chung, S., Kim, E. (2023). How Ethical Ideology Influences Mask-Wearing Intention in a Pandemic: The Mediating Role of Moral Norms and Threat to Freedom. Journal of Health Communication, 28(5), 312‒320, https://doi.org/10.1080/10810730.2023.2203684 Google Scholar
Clarke, E. J., Klas, A., Dyos, E. (2021). The role of ideological attitudes in responses to COVID-19 threat and government restrictions in Australia. Personality and Individual Differences, 175, artykuł 110734. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2021.110734 Google Scholar
Courtice, E. L., Quinn-Nilas, C., Bickram, D. A., Witoski, S., Hoskin, R. A., Blair, K. L. (2023). Is the messenger the message? Canadian political affiliation and other predictors of mask wearing frequency & attitudes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science / Revue canadienne des sciences du comportement, 55(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1037/cbs0000297 Google Scholar
DeFranza, D., Lindow, M., Harrison, K., Mishra, A., Mishra, H. (2021). Religion and reactance to COVID-19 mitigation guidelines. American Psychologist, 76(5), 744–754. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000717 Google Scholar
Díaz, R., Cova, F. (2022). Reactance, morality, and disgust: the relationship between affective dispositions and compliance with official health recommendations during the COVID-19 pandemic. Cognition and Emotion, 36(1), 120‒136. https://doi.org/10.1080/02699931.2021.1941783 Google Scholar
Dillard, J. P., Shen, L. (2005). On the nature of reactance and its role in persuasive health communication. Communication Monographs, 72(2), 144‒168. https://doi.org/10.1080/03637750500111815 Google Scholar
Dillard, J. P., Tian, X., Cruz, S. M., Smith, R. A., Shen, L. (2021). Persuasive messages, social norms, and reactance: A study of masking behavior during a COVID-19 campus health campaign. Health Communication, 1338‒1348. https://doi.org/10.1080/10410236.2021.2007579 Google Scholar
Doğan, S. (2021). COVID-19 Pandemisini Önleyici Tedbirlere Uyma Davranışında Psikolojik Reaktans, Algılanan Risk, Korku ve Kızgınlığın Rolü ve Mesaj Diline İlişkin Bir Öneri. Eskişehir Osmangazi Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi, 22(2), 569‒585. https://doi.org/10.17494/ogusbd.1041326 Google Scholar
Drążkowski, D., Trepanowski, R. (2022). Reactance and perceived disease severity as determinants of COVID-19 vaccination intention: an application of the theory of planned behavior. Psychology, Health & Medicine, 27(10), 2171‒2178. https://doi.org/10.1080/13548506.2021.2014060 Google Scholar
Drążkowski, D., Trepanowski, R., Chwiłkowska, P., Majewska, M. (2020). Self-persuasion increases motivation for social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic through moral obligation. Social Psychological Bulletin, 15(4), 1‒20. https://doi.org/10.32872/spb.4415 Google Scholar
Drążkowski, D., Trepanowski, R., Fointiat, V. (2022). Vaccinating to protect others: The role of self-persuasion and empathy among young adults. Vaccines, 10(4), artykuł 553. https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines10040553 Google Scholar
Gerace, A., Rigney, G., Anderson, J. R. (2022). Predicting attitudes towards easing COVID-19 restrictions in the United States of America: The role of health concerns, demographic, political, and individual difference factors. PLOS One, 17(2), artykuł e0263128. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0263128 Google Scholar
Gillman, A. S., Iles, I. A., Klein, W. M., Ferrer, R. A. (2022). Increasing receptivity to COVID-19 public health messages with self-affirmation and self vs. other framing. Health Communication, 1942–1953. https://doi.org/10.1080/10410236.2022.2043024 Google Scholar
Guan, M., Li, Y., Scoles, J. D., Zhu, Y. (2023). COVID-19 message fatigue: How does it predict preventive behavioral intentions and what types of information are people tired of hearing about? Health Communication, 38(8), 1631‒1640. https://doi.org/10.1080/10410236.2021.2023385 Google Scholar
Hamerman, E. J., Aggarwal, A., Poupis, L. M. (2021). Generalized self-efficacy and compliance with health behaviours related to COVID-19 in the US. Psychology & Health, 1‒18. https://doi.org/10.1080/08870446.2021.1994969 Google Scholar
Henkel, L., Sprengholz, P., Korn, L., Betsch, C., Böhm, R. (2023). The association between vaccination status identification and societal polarization. Nature Human Behaviour, 7(2), 231‒239. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-022-01469-6 Google Scholar
Hong, S.-M., Faedda, S. (1996). Refinement of the Hong Psychological Reactance Scale. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 56(1), 173–182. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164496056001014 Google Scholar
Horner, D. E., Sielaff, A., Pyszczynski, T., Greenberg, J. (2021). The role of perceived level of threat, reactance proneness, political orientation, and coronavirus salience on health behavior intentions. Psychology & Health, 1‒20. https://doi.org/10.1080/08870446.2021.1982940 Google Scholar
Huang, Y., Liu, W. (2022). Promoting COVID-19 vaccination: the interplay of message framing, psychological uncertainty, and public agency as a message source. Science Communication, 44(1), 3‒29. https://doi.org/10.1177/10755470211048192 Google Scholar
Jonas, E., Graupmann, V., Kayser, D. N., Zanna, M., Traut-Mattausch, E., Frey, D. (2009). Culture, self, and the emergence of reactance: Is there a “universal” freedom? Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 45(5), 1068‒1080. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2009.06.005 Google Scholar
Kang, G. W., Piao, Z. Z., Ko, J. Y. (2021). Descriptive or injunctive: How do restaurant customers react to the guidelines of COVID-19 prevention measures? The role of psychological reactance. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 95, artykuł 102934. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2021.102934 Google Scholar
Kleitman, S., Fullerton, D. J., Law, M. K., Blanchard, M. D., Campbell, R., Tait, M. A., [...] King, M. T. (2023). The Psychology of COVID-19 Booster Hesitancy, Acceptance and Resistance in Australia. Vaccines, 11(5), artykuł 907. https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines11050907 Google Scholar
Knapp, M. E., Partington, L. C., Hodge, R. T., Ugarte, E., Hastings, P. D. (2021). We’re all in this together: Focus on community attenuates effects of pandemic-related financial hardship on reactance to COVID-19 public health regulations. PLOS One, 16(12), artykuł e0260782. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0260782 Google Scholar
Kriss, L. A., Quick, B. L., Rains, S. A., Barbati, J. L. (2022). Psychological Reactance Theory and COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates: The Roles of Threat Magnitude and Direction of Threat. Journal of Health Communication, 27(9), 654‒663. https://doi.org/10.1080/10810730.2022.2148023 Google Scholar
Krpan, D., Dolan, P. (2022). You must stay at home! The impact of commands on behaviors during COVID-19. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 13(1), 333‒346. https://doi.org/10.1177/19485506211005582 Google Scholar
Kulcar, V., Straganz, C., Kreh, A., Siller, H., File, N., Canazei, M., [...] Juen, B. (2022). University students’ adherence and vaccination attitudes during the COVID‐19 pandemic: Focusing on costs and benefits. Applied Psychology: Health and Well‐Being, 14(2), 572‒590. https://doi.org/10.1111/aphw.12320 Google Scholar
Lee, Y., Park, K., Shin, J., Oh, J., Jang, Y., You, M. (2023). Factors Affecting the Public Intention to Repeat the COVID-19 Vaccination: Implications for Vaccine Communication. Healthcare, 11, artykuł 1235. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11091235 Google Scholar
Lu, F., Sun, Y. (2022). COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy: The effects of combining direct and indirect online opinion cues on psychological reactance to health campaigns. Computers in Human Behavior, 127, artykuł 107057. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2021.107057 Google Scholar
Lu, F., Sun, Y., Oktavianus, J. (2022). Resistance to masks during the COVID-19 pandemic: How user comments drive psychological reactance to health campaigns. Health Communication, 1‒14. https://doi.org/10.1080/10410236.2022.2141045 Google Scholar
Luo, A., Ye, T., Xue, X., Mattila, A. S. (2021). Appreciation vs. apology: When and why does face covering requirement increase revisit intention? Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 63, artykuł 102705. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2021.102705 Google Scholar
Ma, H., Miller, C. (2022). “I Felt Completely Turned off by the Message”: The Effects of Controlling Language, Fear, and Disgust Appeals on Responses to COVID-19 Vaccination Messages. Journal of Health Communication, 27(6), 427‒438. https://doi.org/10.1080/10810730.2022.2119311 Google Scholar
Ma, H., Miller, C. H. (2021). The effects of agency assignment and reference point on responses to COVID-19 messages. Health Communication, 36(1), 59‒73. https://doi.org/10.1080/10410236.2020.1848066 Google Scholar
Mallinas, S. R., Maner, J. K., Plant, E. A. (2021). What factors underlie attitudes regarding protective mask use during the COVID-19 pandemic? Personality and Individual Differences, 181, artykuł 111038. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2021.111038 Google Scholar
Massey, Z. B., Duong, H. T., Churchill, V., Popova, L. (2022). Examining reactions to smoking and COVID-19 risk messages: An experimental study with people who smoke. International Journal of Drug Policy, 102, artykuł 103607. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugpo.2022.103607 Google Scholar
McGuire, N. H., Ball, H. (2022). Extending psychological reactance theory to include denial of threat and media sharing intentions as freedom restoration behavior. Communication Research Reports, 39(3), 136‒146. https://doi.org/10.1080/08824096.2022.2058480 Google Scholar
Pavey, L., Churchill, S., Sparks, P. (2023). Perceived legitimacy can moderate the effect of proscriptive versus prescriptive injunctions on intentions to comply with UK government COVID‐19 guidelines and reactance. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 53(5), 432‒442. https://doi.org/10.1111/jasp.12950 Google Scholar
Pradhan, D., Biswasroy, P., Naik, P. K., Ghosh, G., Rath, G. (2020). A review of current interventions for COVID-19 prevention. Archives of Medical Research, 51(5), 363‒374. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.arcmed.2020.04.020 Google Scholar
Reinhardt, A., Rossmann, C. (2021). Age-related framing effects: Why vaccination against COVID-19 should be promoted differently in younger and older adults. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied, 27(4), 669‒678. https://doi.org/10.1037/xap0000378 Google Scholar
Resnicow, K., Bacon, E., Yang, P., Hawley, S., Van Horn, M. L., An, L. (2021). Novel predictors of COVID-19 protective behaviors among US adults: cross-sectional survey. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 23(4), artykuł e23488. https://doi.org/10.2196/23488 Google Scholar
Reynolds-Tylus, T. (2019). Psychological reactance and persuasive health communication: A review of the literature. Frontiers in Communication, 4, artykuł 56. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcomm.2019.00056 Google Scholar
Rosenberg, B. D., Siegel, J. T. (2018). A 50-year review of psychological reactance theory: Do not read this article. Motivation Science, 4(4), 281‒ 300. https://doi.org/10.1037/mot0000091 Google Scholar
Salali, G. D., Uysal, M. S., Bozyel, G., Akpinar, E., Aksu, A. (2022). Does social influence affect COVID-19 vaccination intention among the unvaccinated? Evolutionary Human Sciences, 4, artykuł e32. https://doi.org/10.1017/ehs.2022.29 Google Scholar
Smith, R. A., Myrick, J. G., Lennon, R. P., Martin, M. A., Small, M. L., Van Scoy, L. J., Research Group, T. D. (2021). Exploring behavioral typologies to inform COVID-19 health campaigns: a person-centered approach. Journal of Health Communication, 26(6), 402‒412. https://doi.org/10.1080/10810730.2021.1946218 Google Scholar
Sprengholz, P., Betsch, C., Böhm, R. (2021). Reactance revisited: Consequences of mandatory and scarce vaccination in the case of COVID‐19. Applied Psychology: Health and Well‐Being, 13(4), 986‒995. https://doi.org/10.1111/aphw.12285 Google Scholar
Sprengholz, P., Felgendreff, L., Böhm, R., Betsch, C. (2022). Vaccination policy reactance: Predictors, consequences, and countermeasures. Journal of Health Psychology, 27(6), 1394‒1407. https://doi.org/10.1177/13591053211044535 Google Scholar
*Sprengholz, P., Henkel, L., Böhm, R., Betsch, C. (2023). Different interventions for COVID-19 primary and booster vaccination? Effects of psychological factors and health policies on vaccine uptake. Medical Decision Making, 43(2), 239‒251. https://doi.org/10.1177/0272989X221138111 Google Scholar
Sprengholz, P., Siegers, R., Goldhahn, L., Eitze, S., Betsch, C. (2021). Good night: Experimental evidence that nighttime curfews may fuel disease dynamics by increasing contact density. Social Science & Medicine, 286, artykuł 114324. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2021.114324 Google Scholar
Sun, Y., Lu, F. (2023). How misinformation and rebuttals in online comments affect people’s intention to receive COVID-19 vaccines: the roles of psychological reactance and misperceptions. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 100(1), 145‒171. https://doi.org/10.1177/10776990221084606 Google Scholar
Taylor, S., Asmundson, G. J. (2021). Negative attitudes about facemasks during the COVID-19 pandemic: The dual importance of perceived ineffectiveness and psychological reactance. PLOS One, 16(2), artykuł e0246317. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0246317 Google Scholar
Trepanowski, R., Drążkowski, D. (2022). Data on COVID-19 vaccination intention and its predictors in Poland. Data in Brief, 42, artykuł 108227. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dib.2022.108227 Google Scholar
Verpaalen, I. A., Ritter, S. M., van Hooff, M. L., van Stekelenburg, A., Fransen, M. L., Holland, R. W. (2023). Psychological reactance and vaccine uptake: a longitudinal study. Psychology & Health, 1‒21. https://doi.org/10.1080/08870446.2023.2190761 Google Scholar
Ye, X., Lee, H. H., Hui, K. H., Xin, M., Mo, P. K. (2023). Effects of Negative Attitudes towards Vaccination in General and Trust in Government on Uptake of a Booster Dose of COVID-19 Vaccine and the Moderating Role of Psychological Reactance: An Observational Prospective Cohort Study in Hong Kong. Vaccines, 11(2), artykuł 393. https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines11020393 Google Scholar
Young, D. G., Rasheed, H., Bleakley, A., Langbaum, J. B. (2022). The politics of mask-wearing: Political preferences, reactance, and conflict aversion during COVID. Social Science & Medicine, 298, artykuł 114836. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.114836 Google Scholar
Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu, Wydział Psychologii i Kognitywistyki
License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.