Analysis of the use of memes as an exponent of collective coping during COVID-19 in Puerto Rico

Abstract

During the emergence of the novel COVID-19, a proliferation of memes related to events discussed in Spanish-speaking social media was observed. This study analysed the four stages of collective coping to determine how memes became triggered social representations that gradually monopolized the mainstream media. The research was performed through an electronic survey of 351 participants from Puerto Rico, which was subsequently analysed through partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The study’s results reflected psychological implications in the use of memes in terms of how they were used to mitigate the stressful circumstances of a social event. This study is a pioneer in the application of Collective Coping Theory in the context of the effects that memes produce as a link to mitigate stressors. It also discusses how, when a culture faces a problem, memes become a decisive means to reinterpret the situation.