Public Opinion on the Coronavirus outbreak: a multi-country poll from Ipsos

We stand at a precipice between optimism and fear

Awareness of the virus is high across each country

Citizens do not yet see a personal threat, but are more concerned at a global level

• While few see a threat to themselves personally, more than two in five citizens in each country see the virus as a threat to the world. This rises to over half in some countries.

Healthcare services are the most trusted to deal with the outbreak

• Health officials are also most likely to be trusted as a source of information.

Citizens disagree that the virus has been contained

• Only about one in five in each country agree that it has been contained and will be over soon
• And only one in three say that the situation is being exaggerated by the media.

There is a willingness to take action, although long-term implications are not clear.

Citizens support strict actions

• Sizeable majorities support mandatory screening for people who have travelled to impacted areas and mandatory quarantines.
• Around two in three across each country support restricting air travel to impacted areas.

Restricting travel and washing hands are the most common change expected in personal behaviours

• Around two in three citizens in each country say they would make these changes to protect themselves; only one in ten say they are not considering any actions.

Citizens believe there will be a longer term impact on travel to China and on major sporting events

• Disruption in trade with China is mixed across countries with Germany, Japan and Russia less likely than those in other countries to expect a change.

Read the press release

These are the results of an Ipsos survey conducted February 7-9, 2020 on the Global Advisor online platform among 8,001 adults aged 18-74 in Canada and the United States and 16-74 in Australia, France, Germany, Japan, Russia and the United Kingdom.

The sample consists of approximately 1000+ individuals in each country. The samples in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the U.K. and the U.S. can be taken as representative of these countries’ general adult population under the age of 75. The sample in Russia is more urban, more educated and/or more affluent than the general population and should be viewed as reflecting the views of the more “connected” segment of the population. The data is weighted so that each market’s sample composition best reflects the demographic profile of the adult population according to the most recent census data.

Where results do not sum to 100 or the ‘difference’ appears to be +/-1 more/less than the actual, this may be due to rounding, multiple responses or the exclusion of don't knows or not stated responses.

The precision of Ipsos online polls are calculated using a credibility interval with a poll of 1,000 accurate to +/- 3.5 percentage points.

This study did not have any external sponsors or partners. It was initiated and run by Ipsos with the intention to share our understanding about the world we live in and how citizens around the globe think and feel about their world.