How Worldviews Shape Social Responsibility: Religious and Secular Narratives of the Body, the Virus, and the State in the Covid-19 Crisis

The project aims to answer the following central question: How do religious and secular worldviews affect compliance and noncompliance with institutionally defined standards of socially responsible behavior? Just a few days after the first laboratory-confirmed case of Covid-19 in Switzerland in February 2020, the Swiss Federal Council established rules aimed at curbing the spread of the virus (e.g., concerning vaccination, or the attendance of large gatherings). The aim of this project is to determine the role of religious and secular worldviews in supporting or hindering adherence to the rules installed. The respective worldviews address somatic aspects of the pandemic, including individual bodily freedom and the necessity of physical co-presence in religious gatherings and collective worship, relate to broader reflections on topics such as the meaning and status of health, sickness, medical science, in-group medical and spiritual care, individual risk, and social responsibility.