Exploring the Social Dynamics of Public Stigmatization in China of Wuhanese During the Initial Outbreak of COVID-19: A Moral Panic Analysis

During the initial outbreak of COVID-19 in China in 2019 and 2020, the Wuhanese suffered tremendous public stigmatization. Why and how did the general public in China develop such strong feelings against the Wuhanese? To address these questions and understand the social forces underlying this phenomenon, a moral panic analysis was conducted. Using a mixed-method design, this research examined the scale and mechanisms of the public stigmatization of the Wuhanese as 'the folk devil' of a moral panic and identified the social factors (social media, the collective memory of SARS, and the influence of close relations) which produced and facilitated the initial panic and subsequent public stigmatization. Through its presentation and analysis of quantitative and qualitative data, this article explains how public stigmatization has served as an effective social control instrument in China during the COVID-19 outbreak, used to contain the disease, garner strong public support for the government authorities, legitimize extreme methods used to implement containment policies, and monitor and restrict the population.