(Vienna, 16 July 2026) When a hantavirus outbreak on the cruise ship Hondius made headlines in May 2026, public concern remained low overall. However, an online survey of 836 people conducted by the LBI for Science Communication and Pandemic Preparedness at the Medical University of Vienna shows that the more risk-focused the public communication was perceived to be, the greater the sense of unease – and this correlation was around three times stronger among scientists than in journalistic reporting.
In May 2026, there was extensive international coverage of an outbreak of the Andes hantavirus on the cruise ship Hondius, with some reports even suggesting a potential for a pandemic. However, health authorities quickly classified the risk to the general public as low. A team of psychologists at the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Science Communication and Pandemic Prevention at the Medical University of Vienna (LBI SOAP) investigated, from late May to early June 2026, how public communication was perceived and to what extent people felt anxious about the virus. The topic was very much in the public eye: almost half of those surveyed (45 per cent) were confronted with it several times a week or daily, whilst 6 out of 10 actively sought out information.
The average level of concern was low. At the same time, it was closely linked to how the communication was perceived: those who perceived the reporting as emphasising risk were more concerned. It is noteworthy that this correlation was around three times as strong for communication by scientists as it was for journalistic reporting. Overall, respondents placed the greatest trust in the scientific community, followed by health organisations such as the WHO or the Robert Koch Institute. "Our findings show how sensitively the public reacts to the way in which health risks are discussed. Scientists, in particular, play a key role through their communication in shaping how people assess a risk – this is both a responsibility and an opportunity," said Julia Holzer, head of the research group.
Mental health issues are linked to anxiety and trust
Mental health also played a role. People who had experienced stronger negative emotions during the COVID-19 pandemic or who currently reported lower levels of well-being described feeling more anxious and tended to rate the trustworthiness of scientists and journalists more highly. The effects were small, but they suggest that individual stressors may be linked to both risk perception and the assessment of information sources. This non-representative study provides an overview of initial findings.
Further information: https://soap.lbg.ac.at/