Liz Kerner

Perceptions of the COVID‐19 virus varied drastically in the United States, with many people highly concerned by health‐related consequences (realistic threats) and many others concerned by sociocultural implications (symbolic threats). Across three studies, we tested whether differing realistic and symbolic COVID‐19 related threat perceptions varied along gender and political identity near the 2020 US Presidential Election. In all three studies, we found that realistic COVID‐19 related threat perceptions were positively associated with a liberal political identity; this pattern did not vary by gender. In Studies 1 and 3, symbolic COVID‐19 related threat perceptions were positively associated with a conservative political identity and also did not vary by gender. In Study 2, however, the association between symbolic threat and political identity did vary by gender. Symbolic COVID‐19 related threat perceptions were positively associated with a conservative identity for men but not women; for women, threat and political identity were unrelated.