Study: Rural residents are less trusting, less likely to wear masks or to be vaccinated against the coronavirus

Percent of respondents in each vaccine status/masking category by community type
(Covid States Project chart; click the image to enlarge it)

In August, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that Americans begin wearing masks in public again, regardless of vaccination status. Popular discussion tends to lump people into two categories: those who take steps to prevent the spread of the virus, and those who don't. But it's more complicated than that, and has a lot to do with what entities people trust. So says a new report from The Covid States Project. For instance, unvaccinated Americans are about 25 percentage points less likely to wear a mask than vaccinated Americans, but some unvaccinated people scrupulously wear masks, and some vaccinated Americans don't wear masks. "Understanding this complexity is significant in getting people vaccinated, and in getting people to wear masks — particularly those who are unvaccinated," says the report.

Here are some other findings from the report, which got its data through nationwide surveys of over 21,000 people conducted from late August through late September:

• 19% of respondents said they wore masks but were unvaccinated; 10% said they did not wear masks and were unvaccinated.
• 60% of respondents said they wore masks and were vaccinated, while 11% said they did not wear masks but were vaccinated.
• African-Americans are disproportionately likely to be masked but unvaccinated, comprising 20% of that group but only 13.4% of the overall population. Whites are underrepresented, comprising 55% of that group but 60.3% of the overall population.
• Masked but unvaccinated individuals also tend to be younger, less college-educated, lower-income, female, Southern, white, Republican or independent, and rural.
• About 18% of the masked but unvaccinated individuals were rural, compared to 14% of the sample.
• The unmasked but vaccinated respondents were much more likely to be Republican, rural, older, white, and live in the Northeast and Midwest.
• Unmasked but vaccinated respondents were disproportionately likely to be college-educated and have higher incomes.
• The masked and vaccinated crowd tend to be older, more educated, more liberal, more urban, and slightly more likely to live in the Northwest.

A final observation: the largest share of rural respondents were in the "not vaccinated, not wearing masks" category. The study's appendix shows what percentage of people in each of the four vaccinated/masked categories said they trusted various sources and institutions (including the news media in general). The unmasked/unvaccinated crowd was less trusting than other respondents across the board, with only one exception: they were more trusting of Donald Trump. Also, while the appendix included a few nationwide news media examples, such as CNN, Fox News, and The New York Times, respondents were not asked about trust in local news.

Percent of respondents who trust various groups "a lot" or "somewhat" regarding Covid-19.
(Covid States Project chart; click the image to enlarge it) 

The Covid States Project is a joint effort of Harvard, Northeastern, Northwestern, and Rutgers universities. It receives support from the National Science Foundation, the Knight Foundation, the Russell Sage Foundation, the Peter G. Peterson Foundation and Amazon.