Because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the public is unable to maintain a proper balance between work and leisure, and an increase in community-based infections is causing severe phobic anxiety. Therefore, the present study investigated the differences in phobic anxiety between work and leisure activities according to optimistic bias among 533 South Korean citizens. Frequency analysis, descriptive statistical analysis, t-tests, and a one-way analysis of variance were conducted to examine the data. The results showed that for leisure activities, women showed a higher perception of phobic anxiety. In addition, the group showing high optimistic bias had a higher perception of phobic anxiety in both work and leisure activity situations. Therefore, support measures to lower phobic anxiety among women are needed at the government level, while support and interest from family members are needed at home. Moreover, local governments must ensure active involvement to mitigate phobic anxiety among individuals, and measures are needed to more actively implement infectious disease prevention behaviors.
Keywords: COVID-19; South Korean; leisure activity; optimistic bias; phobic anxiety; work.