Not all world leaders use Twitter in response to the COVID-19 pandemic: impact of the way of Angela Merkel on psychological distress, behaviour and risk perception | Zendy

Martin Teufel | Zendy; Adam Schweda | Zendy; Nora Dörrie | Zendy; Venja Musche | Zendy; Madeleine Fink | Zendy; Benjamin Weismüller | Zendy; Henrike Lenzen | Zendy; Mark Stettner | Zendy; Hannah Dinse | Zendy; Alexander Bäuerle | Zendy; EvaMaria Skoda | Zendy

Open Access

Not all world leaders use Twitter in response to the COVID-19 pandemic: impact of the way of Angela Merkel on psychological distress, behaviour and risk perception

Author(s) -

Martin Teufel,

Adam Schweda,

Nora Dörrie,

Venja Musche,

Madeleine Fink,

Benjamin Weismüller,

Henrike Lenzen,

Mark Stettner,

Hannah Dinse,

Alexander Bäuerle,

EvaMaria Skoda

Publication year - 2020

Publication title -

journal of public health

Language(s) - English

Resource type - Journals

SCImago Journal Rank - 0.916

H-Index - 82

eISSN - 1741-3850

pISSN - 1741-3842

DOI - 10.1093/pubmed/fdaa060

Subject(s) - anxiety , german , public opinion , pandemic , risk perception , psychology , distress , government (linguistics) , population , depression (economics) , social distance , social media , politics , perception , social psychology , public relations , political science , covid-19 , medicine , psychiatry , clinical psychology , environmental health , law , economics , philosophy , macroeconomics , history , linguistics , archaeology , pathology , disease , neuroscience , infectious disease (medical specialty)

At a time of growing governmental restrictions and 'physical distancing' in order to decelerate the spread of COVID-19, psychological challenges are increasing. Social media plays an important role in maintaining social contact as well as exerting political influence. World leaders use it not only to keep citizens informed but also to boost morale and manage people's fears. However, some leaders do not follow this approach; an example is the German Chancellor. In a large online survey, we aimed to determine levels of COVID-19 fear, generalized anxiety, depression, safety behaviour, trust in government and risk perception in Germany. A total of 12 244 respondents participated during the period of restraint and the public shutdown in March 2020. Concurrent with the German Chancellor's speech, a reduction of anxiety and depression was noticeable in the German population. It appears that, in addition to using social media platforms like Twitter, different-and sometimes more conservative-channels for providing information can also be effective.

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