What do we know about how curfews work?
What do we know about how curfews work?
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The intended purpose of curfew orders is to reduce nonessential interactions between individuals from different households by keeping people at home during a time when they are more likely to participate in nonessential activities that could result in less compliance with public health practices. The logic of this argument is that people are more likely to be working during the day and running essential errands such as grocery shopping, whereas in the evening and early hours people are less likely to be gathering for essential reasons, and are more likely to be gathering socially with a risk of leniency towards public health recommendations and mandates. Contact tracing efforts have shown that the most common sources of COVID-19 spread include gatherings at places such as bars and restaurants. In addition, the percent positivity of COVID-19 is highest among 18 to 24-year-olds across counties in the United States—the country with the most cases and deaths of COVID-19—indicating high public health need to target that age group, which curfews do. By maintaining most normal activities, curfews also have less of a negative financial and mental health impact on society than lockdowns. Curfews also signal the severity of the situation, and as a result, are potentially helpful for reducing interactions between people overall. One critique of curfews, particularly ones that start early in the evening, is that for a short period of time before a curfew begins they can result in more people being crammed together (on transit, in stores, etc.) who are rushing to get errands done and get home on time. In addition, jurisdictions close by (such as neighboring cities) can have different curfews, making it difficult to really ensure the curfew is effective as an individual with an early curfew could stay out in a neighboring city with a later curfew. It could also create difficulty for local businesses when curfews differ and one jurisdiction’s businesses are able to stay open later than others'. In addition, individuals can go around the curfew, for instance, by gathering in homes after the start of curfew. Overall, there isn’t strong evidence that curfews help or hurt efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19. There are pros and cons to curfews, with logical reasons pointing towards their use. However, targeted actions such as limiting indoor dining or cracking down on large indoor gatherings are more likely to be more effective.
The intended purpose of curfew orders is to reduce nonessential interactions between individuals from different households by keeping people at home during a time when they are more likely to participate in nonessential activities that could result in less compliance with public health practices. The logic of this argument is that people are more likely to be working during the day and running essential errands such as grocery shopping, whereas in the evening and early hours people are less likely to be gathering for essential reasons, and are more likely to be gathering socially with a risk of leniency towards public health recommendations and mandates. Contact tracing efforts have shown that the most common sources of COVID-19 spread include gatherings at places such as bars and restaurants. In addition, the percent positivity of COVID-19 is highest among 18 to 24-year-olds across counties in the United States—the country with the most cases and deaths of COVID-19—indicating high public health need to target that age group, which curfews do. By maintaining most normal activities, curfews also have less of a negative financial and mental health impact on society than lockdowns. Curfews also signal the severity of the situation, and as a result, are potentially helpful for reducing interactions between people overall. One critique of curfews, particularly ones that start early in the evening, is that for a short period of time before a curfew begins they can result in more people being crammed together (on transit, in stores, etc.) who are rushing to get errands done and get home on time. In addition, jurisdictions close by (such as neighboring cities) can have different curfews, making it difficult to really ensure the curfew is effective as an individual with an early curfew could stay out in a neighboring city with a later curfew. It could also create difficulty for local businesses when curfews differ and one jurisdiction’s businesses are able to stay open later than others'. In addition, individuals can go around the curfew, for instance, by gathering in homes after the start of curfew. Overall, there isn’t strong evidence that curfews help or hurt efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19. There are pros and cons to curfews, with logical reasons pointing towards their use. However, targeted actions such as limiting indoor dining or cracking down on large indoor gatherings are more likely to be more effective.
Publication
What our experts say
The intended purpose of curfew orders is to reduce nonessential interactions between individuals from different households by keeping people at home during a time when they are more likely to participate in nonessential activities that could result in less compliance with public health practices.
The logic of this argument is that people are more likely to be working during the day and running essential errands such as grocery shopping, whereas in the evening and early hours people are less likely to be gathering for essential reasons, and are more likely to be gathering socially with a risk of leniency towards public health recommendations and mandates.
Contact tracing efforts have shown that the most common sources of COVID-19 spread include gatherings at places such as bars and restaurants. In addition, the percent positivity of COVID-19 is highest among 18 to 24-year-olds across counties in the United States—the country with the most cases and deaths of COVID-19—indicating high public health need to target that age group, which curfews do.
By maintaining most normal activities, curfews also have less of a negative financial and mental health impact on society than lockdowns. Curfews also signal the severity of the situation, and as a result, are potentially helpful for reducing interactions between people overall.
One critique of curfews, particularly ones that start early in the evening, is that for a short period of time before a curfew begins they can result in more people being crammed together (on transit, in stores, etc.) who are rushing to get errands done and get home on time. In addition, jurisdictions close by (such as neighboring cities) can have different curfews, making it difficult to really ensure the curfew is effective as an individual with an early curfew could stay out in a neighboring city with a later curfew. It could also create difficulty for local businesses when curfews differ and one jurisdiction’s businesses are able to stay open later than others'. In addition, individuals can go around the curfew, for instance, by gathering in homes after the start of curfew.
Overall, there isn’t strong evidence that curfews help or hurt efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19. There are pros and cons to curfews, with logical reasons pointing towards their use. However, targeted actions such as limiting indoor dining or cracking down on large indoor gatherings are more likely to be more effective.
The intended purpose of curfew orders is to reduce nonessential interactions between individuals from different households by keeping people at home during a time when they are more likely to participate in nonessential activities that could result in less compliance with public health practices.
The logic of this argument is that people are more likely to be working during the day and running essential errands such as grocery shopping, whereas in the evening and early hours people are less likely to be gathering for essential reasons, and are more likely to be gathering socially with a risk of leniency towards public health recommendations and mandates.
Contact tracing efforts have shown that the most common sources of COVID-19 spread include gatherings at places such as bars and restaurants. In addition, the percent positivity of COVID-19 is highest among 18 to 24-year-olds across counties in the United States—the country with the most cases and deaths of COVID-19—indicating high public health need to target that age group, which curfews do.
By maintaining most normal activities, curfews also have less of a negative financial and mental health impact on society than lockdowns. Curfews also signal the severity of the situation, and as a result, are potentially helpful for reducing interactions between people overall.
One critique of curfews, particularly ones that start early in the evening, is that for a short period of time before a curfew begins they can result in more people being crammed together (on transit, in stores, etc.) who are rushing to get errands done and get home on time. In addition, jurisdictions close by (such as neighboring cities) can have different curfews, making it difficult to really ensure the curfew is effective as an individual with an early curfew could stay out in a neighboring city with a later curfew. It could also create difficulty for local businesses when curfews differ and one jurisdiction’s businesses are able to stay open later than others'. In addition, individuals can go around the curfew, for instance, by gathering in homes after the start of curfew.
Overall, there isn’t strong evidence that curfews help or hurt efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19. There are pros and cons to curfews, with logical reasons pointing towards their use. However, targeted actions such as limiting indoor dining or cracking down on large indoor gatherings are more likely to be more effective.
Context and background
One of the measures that jurisdictions have begun implementing to help curb the increasing spread of COVID-19 is to institute curfews. Curfews are a regulation requiring people to remain indoors between specified hours, typically at night. Enforcement abilities vary depending on where they’re implemented. For instance, in the U.S., they’re limited, whereas in France (which has the strictest curfew regulations in Europe) and other countries, you can collect mounting fines for violations.
One of the measures that jurisdictions have begun implementing to help curb the increasing spread of COVID-19 is to institute curfews. Curfews are a regulation requiring people to remain indoors between specified hours, typically at night. Enforcement abilities vary depending on where they’re implemented. For instance, in the U.S., they’re limited, whereas in France (which has the strictest curfew regulations in Europe) and other countries, you can collect mounting fines for violations.
Resources
- Some States Are Imposing COVID-19 Curfews—But Is There Any Science Behind Them? (Health)
- ‘At 6 p.m., life stops’: Europe uses curfews to fight virus (AP)
- Why Are States Imposing Virus Curfews? (The New York Times)
- Pubs and restaurants: do scientists think Covid closures and curfews work? (The Guardian)
- At a glance: Europe's coronavirus curfews and lockdowns (ABC)
- Coronavirus: Yaffe says there isn't very good evidence if curfews work or not (Global News)
- Some States Are Imposing COVID-19 Curfews—But Is There Any Science Behind Them? (Health)
- ‘At 6 p.m., life stops’: Europe uses curfews to fight virus (AP)
- Why Are States Imposing Virus Curfews? (The New York Times)
- Pubs and restaurants: do scientists think Covid closures and curfews work? (The Guardian)
- At a glance: Europe's coronavirus curfews and lockdowns (ABC)
- Coronavirus: Yaffe says there isn't very good evidence if curfews work or not (Global News)
