COVID-19 and orientations towards solidarity: the cases of Spain, Hungary, and Romania

Data postării: Dec 25, 2020 12:3:46 AM

Bogdan Voicu, Edurne Bartolome Peral, Horatiu Rusu, Gergely Rosta, Mircea Comșa, Octavian-Marian Vasile, Lluis Coromina & Claudiu Tufis (2020) COVID-19 and orientations towards solidarity: the cases of Spain, Hungary, and Romania, European Societies, DOI: 10.1080/14616696.2020.1852439

The special issue of European Societies on Covid 19 effects on societies includes a paper co-authored by the several of our colleagues along with colleagues from the international community that studies social values.

The paper is based on the Values under Pressure (VUP.2020) survey, combined with data from the European Values Study 2017/2018 (EVS). The cases of Hungary, Romania, and Spain are referred with respect to orientations towards solidarity.

Solidarity is a hot topic in pandemic times being also key to social sciences since Durkheim, that is for more than a century. It can be seen as a glue that keeps society from breaking apart, which is actually of great interest when hazards such the Coronavirus threatens the mere existence of society as a intricate network of human connections. Orientations towards solidarity were conceived in the paper as a degree of preoccupation with other people faith.

Combined VUP.2020 and EVS data allow comparing pre-pandemic times with the orientations measured during Spring 2020 lockdown.

The paper shows how personal experiences with the virus and time spent in lockdown influence orientations towards solidarity and, consequently, how societies faced the crisis in its still initial phases.

Changes in solidarity levels depending on time since lockdowns were established

(predictive margins with 95% CIs)

*Details about VUP.2020 project, including the datasets can be retrieved from the project's website.