Americans Favor Mitigating Lockdown Harms Over COVID-19 Mortality

During the COVID-19 pandemic, most Americans expressed a preference for prioritizing solutions that reduce the harmful societal effects of lockdown measures over efforts aimed solely at preventing COVID-19 deaths. A comprehensive study conducted by the University of Michigan and published in the journal Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy highlights public opinion on this matter.

In the wake of the pandemic, state governments implemented stringent measures such as stay-at-home orders, shelter-in-place mandates, and social distancing protocols from March 2020 through January 2021. While these restrictions were instrumental in preventing hospitals from being overwhelmed and potentially saved lives, they also had significant negative consequences. Lockdowns contributed to heightened mental health issues, physical health problems, strained relationships, and financial hardships. Particularly alarming was the surge in child abuse and domestic violence cases, often made harder to detect or report due to confinement and restricted access to external support systems, such as schools and community organizations. Additionally, economic downturns led to increased deaths linked to hardship, unemployment, and poverty.

The study examined three critical issues potentially exacerbated by lockdown policies: child maltreatment, intimate partner violence, and deaths related to economic decline. Researchers surveyed over 1,000 individuals aged 18 to 92, asking them to imagine making public health decisions that involved trade-offs between preventing COVID-19 fatalities and mitigating these societal harms.

The findings were revealing:

• 75% of respondents prioritized stopping child abuse over preventing COVID-19 deaths.
• 66% favored preventing domestic violence.
• 55% chose actions to reduce deaths caused by economic hardship.
• When asked to weigh stopping COVID deaths against all three issues combined, 90% of participants opposed COVID-related deaths in favor of addressing these societal risks.

These insights suggest that the American public values a balanced approach in managing future health crises—one that considers both disease prevention and the mitigation of broader societal harms. As Dr. Terri Conley, a psychology professor at the University of Michigan, explains, understanding these social priorities can help policymakers design more nuanced and effective responses to crises like COVID-19.

Conley emphasizes that recognizing what aspects of quality of life people prioritize enables leaders to craft policies that better balance safety measures with the overall well-being of communities, especially during complex emergencies that have wide-ranging impacts.