Citation

Schuldt JP, Pearson AR, Lewis NA, Jardina A, Enns PK. Ann. Am. Acad. Polit. Soc. Sci. 2022; 700(1): 195-207.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2022, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/00027162221086883

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Racial and ethnic minority and lower-income groups are disproportionately affected by environmental hazards and suffer worse health outcomes than other groups in the United States. Relative to whites and higher-income groups, racial-ethnic minority and lower-income Americans also frequently express greater concern about high-profile global environmental threats like climate change, but they are widely misperceived as being less concerned about these issues than white and higher-income Americans. We use new survey research to explore public perceptions of COVID-19--another global threat marked by substantial racial, ethnic, and class disparities--finding a distinct pattern of misperceptions regarding groups' concerns. We then discuss how these misperceptions represent a unique form of social misinformation that may pose a threat to science and undermine the cooperation and trust needed to address collective problems.

Language: en

Keywords

COVID-19; environment; health; inequality; misperceptions; risk perception