Predictions of the death of the handshake were premature – CBC

At the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak, shaking hands was a cause for concern of potential spread

Jul 20, 2022

Before Joe Biden departed for his trip to the Middle East last week, White House officials said the president would be limiting physical contact, including shaking hands, as part of COVID-19 precautions.

Yet the president seemed to interchange his greetings, fist-bumping some, while shaking hands with others.

It also highlighted that while its potential demise was predicted in the early days of the pandemic, the handshake has proven to be just too resilient to fade away.

“There’s the science. I think there’s the fact that it’s not only an ingrained habit for a lot of people, but there is also no good replacement,” said Andrew Molinsky, a professor of organizational behaviour at Brandeis University’s International Business School in Boston.

Molinsky said that among the “portfolio of greetings,” which includes the fist bump, the elbow, the smile and wave, “the market share has been dominated and still is dominated by the handshake.”

Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/handshake-covid-transmission-hands-1.6525225