This will take time, Christakis told CNN.
“Plagues are not new to our species; they're just new to us,” he said.
By the beginning of 2022, we will reach herd immunity and a majority of the population will be vaccinated, he predicts, but “it's still going to take some time to recover from the social and psychological and economic shock,” he said.
So by the end of 2023, Christakis said the world will enter the post-pandemic period, and “all of these…experiences that are now being constrained by the germ will reverse.”
“If history is a guide, what's going to happen is all of us that have been cooped up — have been saving our money, have become more religious…more risk-averse — all of those trends will unwind and people will relentlessly seek out social opportunities in nightclubs and bars and political rallies and sporting events and musical concerts and so on. There might be…some sexual licentiousness, people with a lot of pent-up desire…[and] more liberal spending, for example,” he added.
Watch:
Sociologist and physician Nicholas Christakis predicts a post-pandemic “Roaring ‘20s.” People will seek out extensive social interaction and spend money more liberally, he tells @smerconish.
— CNN (@CNN) January 2, 2021
“All of these…experiences that are now being constrained by the germ will reverse." pic.twitter.com/ZGJWyMrTP7