People report greater willingness to risk infection with those they value

People tend to be more willing to take risks of infection when interacting with individuals they hold in high regard, according to a study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Researchers from institutions worldwide, including the Karolinska Institutet, surveyed 42,756 participants across 61 communities in various countries.

Participants were asked to imagine interacting with a close friend, an acquaintance, a stranger, or someone they disliked in situations that involved potential transmission of microorganisms, like sharing a water bottle or sitting close enough to touch. They were then asked how comfortable they would feel in these scenarios and whether they would allow physical contact, such as hugging or shaking hands.

The results revealed that the level of value people placed on a relationship significantly influenced their comfort with contact carrying a risk of infection. This pattern was consistent across all societies included in the study, regardless of geographic location or cultural context. The study's lead author, Mats J. Olsson, a professor at the Department of Clinical Neuroscience at Karolinska Institutet, emphasized that the importance of a person in someone's life plays a central role in how they perceive the risks associated with close contact.

Interestingly, the researchers found that while societal factors like historical prevalence of infectious diseases, individualism, and social norms could influence behavior, their impact was comparatively weaker than the value placed on the relationship. In societies with a higher historical prevalence of infectious diseases, participants were slightly less comfortable with risky contact, even with close friends.

However, the differences were more pronounced in relationships deemed highly valuable, such as those with close friends, compared to less important relationships with strangers.