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Thinking in an Age of Disgust: How COVID-19 Impacts Student’s Ability to Critically Evaluate
New Ideas

Paul Hoard

Prhoard@mnu.edu

MidAmerica Nazarene University

Department of Counseling

2030 East College Way, Olathe, KS, 66202, USA

Word Count: 1743

Keywords: disgust, critical thinking, higher education, COVID-19, boundaries

Running Head: Thinking and Disgust

Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant change to the education sector. One
area that has seen little focus is the impact that the emotional response to a global pandemic is having
on students’ and educators’ capacities for critical thinking. A primary response to the pandemic is the
emotion of disgust, which is often associated with, among other things, the behavioral immune system.
It is an emotional response that focuses on protecting the organism from an external threat. It focuses on
shoring and clarifying boundaries between the self and other. While this is an adaptive and helpful
response to protect individuals from pathogens, it runs contrary to the goals and emphasis of modern
education, as disgust does not observe the distinctions between threatening substances and threatening
ideas. This article notes ways that the current pandemic crisis has heightened disgust and diminished
critical thinking. Moreover, the article identifies a number of preliminary suggestions for consideration
to help both educators and students navigate the emotional and cognitive landscape of higher education
in a pandemic.

Thinking in an Age of Disgust: How COVID-19 Impact Student’s Ability to Critically Evaluate
New Ideas

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic has had an overwhelming impact on innumerable aspects
of daily life for most of the globe. However, with the increasing need for social distancing among
educators and students, the effect of the pandemic on the educational sector has been profound. Schools
and universities around the world made significant changes to their curriculum and delivery with many
closing down their physical campuses. As a result, educators have been forced to reconsider countless
aspects of their work and the delivery of their material. In addition to all of the physical changes that
have taken place around the frame of the educational context, the pandemic further implicates the need
for flexibility among educators with regards to the interpersonal and psychological impact of the crisis
(Stern, 2020).

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