A lexical-cognitive approach to the consequences of the coronavirus crisis for the emotions and perceptions of the Spanish population aged 65 and over

Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic has devastated health systems, economies, and societies. Considered a high-risk group, the elderly have been amongst the most affected. Using word association tests, we access the perceptions held by a group of individuals aged 65 and over, pre-stratified by gender and level of education, regarding certain aspects of the situation we now face. We interpret the vocabulary provided during the tests as a network of connections. Thus, we can create the metastructure of the mental lexicon and consider it the reflection of the collective perceptions associated with five cognitive categories: pandemic, old age, society, future, and politics. For this, we use a model that allows us to construct cognitive prototypes based on the theory of fuzzy sets. Previous results warn of the emotional consequences that have affected the entire population. However, we are now also able to prove that the older generation is experiencing unprecedented feelings of loneliness and neglect due to the circumstances. This could exacerbate the worry, fear, and uncertainty imposed on this group by the new normal. Finally, we suggest concrete actions for both health workers in contact with groups of elderly individuals and the research community that generally uses attitudinal surveys.