Extending Behavioral Immune Trade-Offs: Interpersonal Value in Disease Avoidance and Social Interactions
Rooted in Behavioral Immune System (BIS) theory, this research line investigates how interpersonal value shapes social interactions—particularly infection-risky contact, disease concealment, and xenophobia—under high disease salience. Three projects were conducted. The first (three studies, N = 1,694) used U.S. samples to test whether interpersonal value affects comfort with infection-risky acts. The second (three studies, N = ~1,500) examined whether interpersonal value influences disease concealment. The third used a longitudinal design in the Netherlands (N = 1,011) to assess changes in anti-immigrant sentiments during COVID-19. Results revealed that higher interpersonal value enhanced comfort with contact and suppressed disease concealment across and within relationship types. On a societal level, participants did not show increased xenophobia toward perceived “less valued” immigrants due to disease salience; rather, individual differences in pathogen disgust sensitivity drove these attitudes. Findings highlight how interpersonal value can promote pathogen transmission within valued social networks, offering insight into clustering infections. This underscores the need to consider interpersonal and societal dynamics in BIS research.