Impact of U.S. Governor charisma on physical distancing
We show that governor charisma can affect individual behavior to help mitigate COVID-related outcomes. We provide evidence in the field using governor speeches over time to explain physical distancing (on the basis of anonymized data from smart phones); we also show in a laboratory study that individuals who are conservative are more reactive to charismatic appeals of a governor. These results are very important because they show that a learnable skill--or at least one that can be honed--can give leaders an additional weapon to complement policy interventions and hence save lives.
Authors: Ulrich Jensen with Dominic Rohner, Olivier Bornet, Daniel Carron, Phillip Garner, Dimitra Loupi, and John Antonakis