In a recent survey, people who said social distancing and COVID-safety guidelines violated their personal freedoms responded more positively to these ideas when they felt a loved one might be at risk of severe illness.

As the coronavirus pandemic continues to ravage the world, messaging focused on shaming or pressuring people to wear a mask or avoid crowds are backfiring.

An and colleagues surveyed 1,074 people across the US about their attitudes toward the coronavirus.

They discovered two distinct sets of attitudes toward social distancing: Positive beliefs that largely mirror public health messaging and negative beliefs, including the idea that social distancing violates individual rights and freedoms.

Concern about a loved one's risk of severe COVID-19 infection was tied to both higher positive attitudes and lower negative attitudes toward social distancing.

"When people think about what protective behaviors to follow, negative beliefs -- the perception of external control -- override positive beliefs. This means that simply repeating that people should follow public health guidelines is unlikely to be effective," explained study author Kenneth Resnicow in a paper published in the journal Patient Education and Counseling.

The data showed that when people consider being a protector for others, they approach risk differently.

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Fear of Losing Loved Ones Can Motivate People to Get COVID Vaccine - The Quint