COVID-19 study: Who are you – ‘the accepting’, ‘the suffering’ or ‘the resisting’?

Lots of things have changed in what seems an age over the COVID-19 lockdown. Eating habits have changed, shopping and what we consume through media online. Drinking alcohol and tea has changed and so have other things like exercise. It remains to be seen how much changes in the long-term.

A study by Kings College London classed fewer than one in 10 Britons as “resisters”, actively fighting against it. Another 44% were classed as sufferers, people distressed by lockdown even if they felt it was necessary. But the biggest category were the “accepters”, people who were adapting surprisingly well and not losing sleep over it.

There’s no wrong or right to this, we all react differently to environments that change, especially where we have little control over them. So, who are you in the circumstances of the current lockdown.

 

“The Accepting” (48% of the UK):

• Just 12% of this group say they’re losing sleep over coronavirus.
• Very few are arguing more with people they live with (6%) or feeling more anxious and depressed since lockdown began (8%).
• 28% say they’re certain, very or fairly likely to face financial difficulties – the lowest of all the groups.
• Least likely to check social media daily or more often for coronavirus updates, with 48% doing so.
• 91% and 83% support lockdown measures and additional police powers respectively.
• 87% say they’re following lockdown rules completely or nearly all the time.

“The Suffering” (44%):

• 93% of this group report feeling more anxious and depressed since lockdown began.
• 64% have slept less or worse than usual, the highest of the groups
• 34% say they think about coronavirus all the time.
• 64% check social media for updates on coronavirus daily or more frequently.
• 93% and 85% support lockdown measures and additional police powers respectively.
• 93% say they’re following lockdown rules completely or nearly all the time.

“The Resisting” (9%):

• Just 49% say they’re following lockdown rules completely or nearly all the time – much lower than the other groups.
• Just 53% and 49% support lockdown measures and additional police powers respectively.
• Much less likely to be following official guidance, such as staying two metres away from others outside: 73% are doing this, compared with 94% of the Accepting and 99% of the Suffering.
• And much more likely to be adopting measures that are not recommended, such as drinking ginger tea (55%) and using homeopathic remedies (50%).
• 58% think “too much fuss is being made about the risk of coronavirus”, compared with only 14% of the UK population as a whole.
• High proportions believe claims that are false or currently judged to be unlikely, such as that coronavirus was created in a lab (49%).
• This group is also the most likely to expect significant personal financial impact from the crisis (65%), which may help explain their resistance to the measures.

 

The analysis is based on the findings of a survey of 2,250 UK residents aged 16 to 75 from 1 to 3 April, conducted by Ipsos MORI. Note this was prior to the recent government indications that the social distancing measures will continue for many more months.

 

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