Differences by social category in illness susceptibility: Comparison between COVID-19 and injury

This study asked Japanese children and adults whether the likelihood of catching COVID-19 or being injured differed according to social categories (age, gender, income, education, sociability, morality). The participants were 200 adults who were not medical professionals (Study 1), 36 children aged 5–6 years, 32 children aged 10–11 years, and 34 university students (Study 2). Both adults and children believed that older people were more vulnerable to COVID-19 and injuries than younger people. However, differences were observed in the reasons provided. Children often provided behavioral explanations (e.g., “young people do not wear masks”) and adults provided biological (e.g., “older adults have a weakened immune system”) and social structural explanations (e.g., “poor people cannot afford to see a doctor and can only take jobs with a high risk of infection.”) Comparison of these results with previous research in the US revealed that Americans estimated the difference in susceptibility to infection to be greater by age and income than the Japanese. Conversely, the Japanese estimated the difference to be greater by morality than Americans. However, this cultural difference was not observed in children. Accordingly, we discuss how understanding of an illness is based on social situations and cultural beliefs.