A dual perspective on risk perception and its effect on safety behavior: A moderated mediation model of safety motivation, and supervisor’s and coworkers’ safety climate

Although COVID-19 information has been shown to play an important role in anxiety, little is known about the mediating and moderating mechanisms underlying this relationship. In the present study, we examined whether risk perception mediated the relationship between positive information of COVID-19 and anxiety and whether this mediating process was moderated by intolerance of uncertainty. A sample of 3,341 college students participated in this study and completed questionnaires regarding positive information of COVID-19, risk perception, intolerance of uncertainty, and anxiety. The results indicated that positive information of COVID-19 was significantly and negatively associated with anxiety and that risk perception partially mediated this relationship. Intolerance of uncertainty further moderated the relationship between positive information of COVID-19 and risk perception. Specifically, the relationship between positive information of COVID-19 and risk perception was significant for college students with low intolerance of uncertainty, while it became weaker for those with high intolerance of uncertainty.

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Intolerance of COVID-19-Related Uncertainty and Negative Emotions among Chinese Adolescents: A Moderated Mediation Model of Risk Perception, Social Exclusion and Perceived Efficacy

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18062864 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (6) ◽

pp. 2864

Author(s):

Qi Li ◽

Ronglei Luo ◽

Xiaoya Zhang ◽

Guangteng Meng ◽

Bibing Dai ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Risk Perception ◽

Social Exclusion ◽

Negative Emotions ◽

Moderated Mediation ◽

Mediating Effect ◽

Mediation Model ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Perceived Efficacy ◽

Moderated Mediation Model

The uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated negative emotions, especially among adolescents, who feel unable to tolerate the uncertainty of the epidemic. However, the mechanism by which the intolerance of COVID-19-related uncertainty (COVID-19 IU) affects negative emotions in adolescents remains unclear. This study explored the underlying mechanism from COVID-19 IU to negative emotions using a moderated mediation model in adolescents. In total, 3037 teenagers completed a cross-sectional survey including measures of COVID-19 IU, risk perception, social exclusion, perceived efficacy, and negative emotions. The results showed that COVID-19 IU positively predicted negative emotions and that risk perception and social exclusion mediated this relationship. In addition, both the direct effect of COVID-19 IU on negative emotions and the mediating effect of risk perception on this relationship were moderated by perceived efficacy; in particular, COVID-19 IU had a greater impact on negative emotions among adolescents with lower levels of perceived efficacy. These findings suggest that COVID-19 IU is closely associated with negative emotions among adolescents and that effective measures should be taken to enable adolescents to improve their perceived efficacy and develop a reasonable perception of risk, help them eliminate the stigma of the disease, and strengthen their connections with society.

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