People are still more concerned about the adverse financial impact of the pandemic than the risk of personally contracting the virus.
Attitudes relating to respondents' own health and the health of their loved ones remain consistent from the preliminary results collected in March.
At that time, we observed that by a narrow margin, financial outlook was the greatest concern among respondents with the second greatest concern relating to the health of loved ones.
There has since been a significant decrease related to respondents' concern regarding the financial repercussions of COVID-19, while the health of loved ones remains a top concern and is currently the greatest concern among all respondents.
While respondents' own personal health remains the least concerning category, with only a slight mean increase — from 3.01 to 3.15 — compared to preliminary results collected in March, the distribution of these responses has become more pessimistic. Specifically, in March, we observed that 30% of respondents were “very” or “extremely” concerned about contracting COVID-19 and now 42% are “very” or “extremely” concerned.
Additionally, it is worth noting that there is a significant level of concern about a second wave of COVID-19 in the US.
Democrats Most Concerned About Second Wave
Regardless of political party, most people are concerned about a second wave of COVID-19 in the United States. However, Democrats generally are “very concerned,” whereas Republicans and Independents tend to be “somewhat concerned.” Nearly 38 percent of Democrats report being “extremely concerned” as opposed to 24 percent of Republicans and 26 percent of Independents who said the same.
Last updated on August 31, 2020. Please check back for updates.
Preliminary results based on multiple survey samples. The March results were based on surveys of 321 respondents from March 18-23, 2020. The latest results were based on surveys of 231 respondents (122 Democrats, 59 Independents, 50 Republicans) from August 7-10, 2020.
For more information about our survey techniques, click here to visit our Methods page.