Economic Stressors, COVID-19 Attitudes, Worry, and Behaviors among U.S. Working Adults: A Mixture Analysis

Abstract

Since the unfolding of the novel coronavirus global pandemic, public health research has increasingly suggested that certain groups of individuals may be more exposed to the virus. The aim of this contribution was to investigate whether workers grouped into several latent classes, based on two perceived economic stressors, would report different levels of enactment of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommended behaviors to prevent the spread of such virus. We also tested propositions regarding the potential differential predictors of compliance behavior, differentiating between cognitive (i.e., attitudes toward the CDC guidelines) and affective (i.e., COVID-specific worry) predictors. Using a longitudinal dataset of 419 U.S. workers, we did not find significant differences among the levels of CDC guidelines enactment across three latent classes, representing a range of economic vulnerability. We found that cognitive attitudes were a significantly stronger predictor of compliance with CDC guidelines for workers in the most economically secure class, whereas worry was a significantly stronger predictor of compliance for the most vulnerable counterpart. We discuss these findings in light of the Conservation of Resources theory and other health behavior theories, being mindful of the need to further understand the differential impact of this health and economic crisis on employees facing economic stressors.

The Role of Collectivism–Individualism in Attitudes Toward Compliance and Psychological Responses During the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Research in health psychology has long recognized that diseasespecific worry motivates preventative health behaviors (see in Sweeny and Dooley, 2017;McCaul et al, 2020). Worry can be meaningfully conceptualized as a flexible resource that may help people bring up issues and motivate proactive behaviors to solve such issues (Bazzoli et al, 2021). Worrying about a stressor (e.g., the novel coronavirus) keeps the stressor and its feared outcomes at the forefront of one's mind, provides frequent and continuous cues to action, and sustains motivation toward action.…”

COVID-19 moral disengagement and prevention behaviors: The impact of perceived workplace COVID-19 safety climate and employee job insecurity

“…The coronavirus pandemic has had widespread and significant effects on people’s lives. In addition to the clear health-related impacts of COVID-19, researchers have attempted to elucidate how the novel coronavirus has impacted people’s economic and working lives (see e.g., Bazzoli et al, 2021 ; Probst, Lee, et al, 2020, 2021; Sinclair et al, 2021 ): On the one hand, workplaces have been major hotspots for virus transmission (State of Michigan, 2021), which poses serious questions for occupational health scientists, practitioners, and employers, such as how to balance the need to provide services with the need to keep the workforce safe. On the other hand, the COVID-19 pandemic is also an economic crisis: unemployment rates soared, and career prospects declined in 2020 and 2021, making workers increasingly vulnerable to economic stress.…”

Work and Non-Work Sickness Presenteeism

“…An 8-item measure of attitudes toward the CDC COVID-19 prevention guidelines 25 was used to assess participant attitudes toward social distancing and hygiene recommendations and was shown to have excellent internal consistency (α = .91). A sample item includes “It is important to maintain a distance of at least 6 ft from others when out in public or at work.” Participants responded on a 7-point scale ranging from 1 ( strongly disagree ) to 7 ( strongly agree ).…”