Jan Brůha, Hana Brůhová Foltýnová
The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent introduction of anti-pandemic measures led to a substantial drop in mobility, including travelling to work and shopping, and an increase in virtual activities, mainly working from home and online shopping. The question addressed in this paper is whether this change is permanent and, if so, to what extent. We use panel data collected in five waves from the Czech adult urban population during and shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic. The data document a substantial switch to online activities during the pandemic. This switch seems to be semi-permanent, i.e., expected to last even after the lifting of the anti-pandemic measures. The main determinants of working from home are job type, industry and education. The main determinants of online shopping are age and education. We conclude that the pandemic and the related measures accelerated the diffusion of online activities among the Czech population, mainly among younger and more educated individuals.
JEL codes: O33, Q54, R41
Keywords: Coronavirus pandemic, online shopping, travel behavior, working from home
Issued: October 2023
Download: CNB WP No. 09/2023 (pdf, 2.2 MB)