Chaos in opinion-driven disease dynamics

TL;DR

This paper investigates how opinion formation influences disease spread, revealing complex chaotic dynamics and fluctuations in infection numbers through a coupled opinion-epidemic model.

Contribution

It introduces a coupled opinion-epidemic model demonstrating chaotic and periodic behaviors affecting disease dynamics.

Findings

Chaotic dynamics lead to unpredictable infection fluctuations.

Opinion patterns significantly impact disease spread.

Model exhibits protective behavior patterns.

Abstract

During the COVID-19 pandemic, it became evident that the effectiveness of applying intervention measures is significantly influenced by societal acceptance, which, in turn, is affected by the processes of opinion formation. This article explores one among the many possibilities of a coupled opinion-epidemic system. The findings reveal either intricate periodic patterns or chaotic dynamics, leading to substantial fluctuations in opinion distribution and, consequently, significant variations in the total number of infections over time. Interestingly, the model is exhibiting the protective pattern.