Social cohesion can rise in the aftermath of natural disasters or mass tragedies, but this ‘coming together’ is often short-lived. The early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic witnessed marked increases in kindness and social connection, but as months passed social tensions re-emerged or grew anew. Thus local authorities faced persistent and evolving challenges. A cross-sectional survey (N = 2,924) examined perceptions of social cohesion while Britain was slowly emerging from its first national lockdown in June 2020 in six English local authorities that have prioritised investment in social cohesion over the last two years (including five ‘integration areas’) compared with three other areas that have not. We expected that social cohesion programmes would better equip people to tackle the various challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. We found a greater sense of social cohesion in the six local authorities (at the micro, meso and macro levels) than in other areas. This was manifested as higher levels of reported social activism, interpersonal trust and closer personal relationships, greater political trust and more positive attitudes towards immigrants. Findings are consistent with the proposition that investing in social cohesion underpins stronger and more connected and open communities, better able to cope with crisis situations.

中文翻译：

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社会凝聚力投资：投资融入计划的社区在 COVID-19 大流行期间表现出更大的社会凝聚力


自然灾害或大规模悲剧之后，社会凝聚力可能会增强，但这种“团结”往往是短暂的。在 COVID-19 大流行的早期阶段，善意和社会联系显着增加，但几个月过去了，社会紧张局势重新出现或重新加剧。因此，地方当局面临着持续且不断变化的挑战。一项横断面调查（ N = 2,924）考察了英国在​​ 2020 年 6 月缓慢摆脱首次全国封锁期间对社会凝聚力的看法，六个英国地方当局在过去两年中优先投资于社会凝聚力（包括五个“融合”）地区”）与其他三个没有的地区相比。我们期望社会凝聚力计划能够更好地帮助人们应对 COVID-19 大流行的各种挑战。我们发现，与其他地区相比，六个地方当局（微观、中观和宏观层面）的社会凝聚力更强。这表现为更高水平的社会活动、人际信任和更密切的个人关系、更大的政治信任和对移民更积极的态度。研究结果与这样的主张是一致的，即投资于社会凝聚力可以​​支撑更强大、联系更紧密和开放的社区，从而更好地应对危机情况。