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COVID-19 Threat Perceptions and Voting in the 2020 Presidential Election

Musumeci, Maria D
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=dayton1628025640916147

Abstract Details

2021, Master of Arts (M.A.), University of Dayton, Psychology, General.
The thesis examined associations regarding COVID-19 realistic threats (i.e., concerns about physical health and material well-being) and symbolic threat (i.e., sociocultural concerns) with the likelihood of voting for Joe Biden or Donald Trump in the 2020 Presidential Election. Political ideology and attitudes about racism, sexism, and right-wing authoritarianism (RWA) were considered as well. It was hypothesized that realistic threat concerns would be positively associated with the likelihood of voting for Biden, but this association would be modified by political ideology, with more liberal ideologies strengthening the association between realistic threat and the likelihood of voting for Biden. It was also hypothesized that symbolic threat would be positively associated with the likelihood of voting for Trump, but that this association would be qualified by a significant interaction between political ideology and symbolic threat, showing that more conservative ideologies strengthen the predicted association. Both hypotheses controlled for racism, hostile and benevolent sexism, and RWA. The study was a cross-sectional, correlational design and the hypotheses were tested in two separate regressions, one examining the likelihood of voting for Biden and the other examining the likelihood of voting for Trump. Broadly, the hypotheses were not supported; it was found that political ideology and symbolic racism accounted for most of the variance within the sample. Exploratory regression analyses examined the unique contributions of threat, sex differences, and tested interactions between threat perceptions and sex. In these models, the likelihood of voting for Biden was positively associated with realistic threat and the likelihood of voting for Trump was positively associated with symbolic threat. Results showed that sex did not moderate realistic threat but did moderated the association between symbolic threat and the likelihood of voting for each candidate. Specifically, in men, symbolic threat was positively associated with the likelihood of voting for Trump and negatively associated with the likelihood of voting for Biden. However, for women, symbolic threats had no effects on voting for either candidate. This work showed that University of Dayton students with realistic threat perceptions related to COVID-19 were likely to vote for Biden, regardless of sex. However, symbolic threat effects were only associated with how men said they would vote in the election, thus, sex and gender differences should be considered in future research regarding threat perceptions.
Erin O'Mara Kunz (Committee Chair)
Joy Losee (Committee Member)
Jack Bauer (Committee Member)
38 p.
Experimental Psychology; Psychology; Social Psychology
COVID-19; Voting; 2020 Presidential Election; Realistic Threat; Symbolic Threat; Integrated Threat Theory; COVID-19 Threat Scale; Sex and Voting; Sex and Threat

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Musumeci, M. D. (2021). COVID-19 Threat Perceptions and Voting in the 2020 Presidential Election [Master's thesis, University of Dayton]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=dayton1628025640916147

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Musumeci, Maria. COVID-19 Threat Perceptions and Voting in the 2020 Presidential Election . 2021. University of Dayton, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=dayton1628025640916147.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Musumeci, Maria. "COVID-19 Threat Perceptions and Voting in the 2020 Presidential Election ." Master's thesis, University of Dayton, 2021. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=dayton1628025640916147

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

dayton1628025640916147
433
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This open access ETD is published by University of Dayton and OhioLINK.