This study investigates changes in social norms across 43 countries during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. Using survey data from 30,431 respondents before and after the pandemic's emergence, the researchers analyzed cultural tightness, specific social norms (e.g., stealing, handwashing), and norms about enforcement. They found that handwashing norms increased significantly, while tightness and punishment frequency slightly decreased. Other norms remained largely unchanged, suggesting that cultures are relatively stable in the face of pandemic threats, except for norms directly relevant to addressing the threat.

Giulia Andrighetto, Eron Székely, Andrea Guido, Michele Gelfand, Jerd Abernathy, Eugen Arikan, Elizaveta Berezina, Shweta Bankar, Davide Barrera, Dana Bashnigt-Brown, Anabel Belaus, S. J. Arash N. Grigoryan, Katarzyna Gwoździewicz, Hirofumi Hashimoto, Tim Hopthrow, Martina Hrebíčková, Soniha Kapoor, Yoshiki Kashima, Marinu Tkachuk, Sadek M. Ait Hmida, Pawan Maridil, Ekaterina McArdle, Michael Tibbetts, Maria Luisa Mendes Teixeira, Zdenka Mlejnková, Francesca L. Nitti, Esteban P. Oliva, Neoma G. Onyedir, Ike I. Onyedikachi, Evgeny Onisin, Seinha Oden, Penny Panagiotopoulou, Oleskandr Pereyra-Florio, Lorena R. Pérez-Florio, Mariana Piryatinskaya, Janna Rave, Eskiya Reyna, Ricardo B. Ramos Rodrigues, Sara Romani, Pedro P. Romero, Harek Sakiḱ, Angel Sánchez, Sara Hrelja, Brett Simpson, Lorenzo Spadon, Etychita Stankova, Giovanni A. Travaglio, Paul A. Van Lange, Fiona Rita Marvila, Rijaya Amelia Zen, Qing-Zheng Zhang, Martin Erikson