Dr. Dillon Browne says denial and avoidance may be contributing factors in the reluctance to follow guidelines. - University of Waterloo photo

Dr. Dillon Browne, a Canada Research Chair in child and family clinical psychology and assistant professor at University of Waterloo, said while there is not one singular cause for this reaction, many are likely acting this way because they are either consciously, or subconsciously using denial and avoidance as a way of coping with fears or anxieties.

“I think an important thread that cuts across all our responses to COVID-19 is the emotional reality of it all and that it’s quite a frightening situation. For our own individual welfare and for the welfare of our family and our loved ones," he said.

“Denial doesn’t exist in a vacuum,” he added. “It has a very important function to modulate emotion. We deny things all the time that cannot be fully integrated into our working contextualization of the world.”

Behavioural scientist Dr. Igor Grossmann, who also teaches at University of Waterloo, said provided that the individuals who were polled understand “physical contact” to mean the opposite of social distancing, the 20 per cent portion of the poll results “is indeed alarming.”

He added that misinformation can also play a role in the likeliness that people will trust and abide by the recommendations handed down to them. He said changing messages from health experts, such as those around mask wearing by the general public, can confuse people and can make them less confident in other recommendations that emerge.

Dr. Harvey Skinner said social distancing behaviours can be connected to stages of change or readiness. - Harvey Skinner photo

Dr. Harvey Skinner, professor of psychology at York University, said the behaviours cited in the poll are often connected to stages of change or readiness, which differ from person to person depending on their willingness to adapt to a situation.

He said some factors that contribute to people’s reluctancy to change include inconvenience, an optimism bias, the actions of others in their social network or financial pressure (in the cases of people who continue to go to work).

As well, he said, people can react differently when they feel external pressure — in this case from the different levels of government — to behave in a certain way.

“I think also as time goes on, it’s hard for people to sustain this new habit,” he said.

Skinner added that for people who are struggling with the recommendations, it can be helpful to engage in what he calls “decision balance,” which consists of acknowledging or writing down the pros and cons of adapting and not adapting to a particular situation.

Browne offers similar advice.

He said doing an emotional check-in and talking to someone trustworthy about fears or anxieties can help for people who are not engaging in these recommendations.

He added that on the other side of the spectrum, for people who are following the rules, it is important to take a position of understanding.

“In light of people not following social distancing … a natural response from those of us who are is: ‘What a bunch of jerks,’ ” he said. “That being said, I don’t know how utilitarian, or functional, or helpful that response is. Rather, if we look at the genesis of why that’s happening … I think we are positioned to have much more constructive conversations.”

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: After reading the results of a recent Ipsos poll on social distancing, reporter Veronica Appia talked to local psychology experts about why people are reluctant to follow government recommendations and how they can do better.