A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal

The effect of compulsory face mask policies on community mobility in Germany




AuthorsKovacs Roxanne, Dunaiski Maurice, Tukiainen Janne

PublisherWiley (Commercial Publisher)

Publication year2023

JournalScandinavian Journal of Economics

eISSN1467-9442

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1111/sjoe.12537

Web address https://doi.org/10.1111/sjoe.12537

Self-archived copy’s web addresshttps://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/177772491


Abstract

There is an ongoing debate about making face masks compulsory in public spaces to contain COVID-19. A key concern is that such policies could undermine efforts to maintain social distancing and reduce mobility. We provide first evidence on the impact of compulsory face mask policies on community mobility. We exploit the staggered implementation of policies by German states during the first wave of the pandemic and measure mobility using geo-located smartphone data. We find that compulsory masking policies led to a short-term reduction in community mobility, with no significant medium-term effects. We can rule out even small increases in mobility.


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Last updated on 2025-27-03 at 21:55