Thread by @aginnt

1/ COVID & mass hysteria

"Using the background of COVID, we study past mass hysteria. Negative information which is spread through mass media repetitively can affect public health negatively in the form of nocebo effects and mass hysteria."

2/ "We argue that mass and digital media in connection with the state may have had adverse consequences during the COVID crisis. The resulting collective hysteria may have contributed to policy errors by governments not in line with health recommendations."

3/ "Prior scientific research on disease mitigation measures during a possible influenza pandemic had warned against such invasive interventions and recommended a more normal social functioning. Moreover, in reaction to past pandemics, there were no lockdowns."

4/ "From this perspective, the lockdowns have been a policy error. We have shown that these policy errors may well have been produced by a collective hysteria."
mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/4…