scholarly journals ‘To get or not to get vaccinated against COVID-19’: Saudi women, vaccine hesitancy, and framing effects

2021 ◽  
pp. 175048132110437
Author(s):  
Ahmed Abdel-Raheem ◽  
Reem Alkhammash
Keyword(s):  
Health Professionals ◽  
Framing Effects ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
News Stories ◽  
Saudi Students ◽  
Saudi Women ◽  
The Media ◽  
Novel Coronavirus

The use of language and images in the media may have a strong effect on people’s political cognition. In this regard, conspiracy theories and misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine can lead to reluctant uptake of the vaccine even among medical staff. In two experiments, this article tests the hypothesis that the public’s willingness to get vaccinated against the novel coronavirus depends on the framings they are presented with. Two hundred thirty-two female Saudi students are exposed to either pro- or anti-vaccination messages. In Experiment 1, they are asked to read semi-artificial news stories, and in Experiment 2 political cartoons. The results show that readers of the news articles, but not of the cartoons, are susceptible to framing effects. We consider the implications of how issues are framed for journalists and health professionals.

scholarly journals Early Days of the Novel Coronavirus: Public Response in Social Media during the First Month of the Outbreak

2021 ◽  
Vol 82 ◽  
pp. 159-182
Author(s):  
Maris Kuperjanov ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Fake News ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
Public Response ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Media ◽  
Media Environments ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Flow Of Information

The aim of the article is to give an overview of the first month of the novel coronavirus outbreak and of the public reactions to the news in media comments and social media environments in both local Estonian and global contexts. The pandemic was still ongoing at the time the article was published and, with some modifications and new emphases, vernacular reactions in the media (incl. social media) continued flourishing. During the first month (January 2020), the growing flow of information and rapid escalation of the situation made the topic more noticeable in both the media and social media, and thus provided a fertile basis for jokes and internet memes, legends, fake news, misinformation, conspiracy theories, etc., as was the case with the former bigger epidemics and pandemics. As it has also been observed previously, the consequences of some fake news, misinformation, and conspiracy theories may often be more harmful for society than the disease itself. Several motifs and storylines are universal and surge as similar situations arise both in Estonia and all over the world. The article also presents a selection of more prominent topics and examples of the outbreak from social media environments during the initial phase of international awareness of the novel coronavirus.

scholarly journals INFLUENCE OF NEWSPAPER FRAMING OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON READERS' PERCEPTION OF THE VIRUS

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chinedu Igboeli ◽  
Ezebuenyi Ephraim Ejimnkeonye
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
The Novel ◽  
High Exposure ◽  
News Stories ◽  
Content Analysis Method ◽  
The Media ◽  
Setting Theory ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
The Way

This study investigated the influence of newspaper framing of Covid-19 pandemic on readers’ perception of the virus. The thrust of the study was to ascertain whether the way newspapers select, package and present news stories on the novel Coronavirus affected the way readers of Daily Sun, Vanguard and National Light newspapers in Awka Metropolis view the virus. Specific objectives of the study are among others to: access the patterns of frames used in reporting stories on Covid-19; ascertain respondents’ frequency of exposure to newspaper reports on COVID-19; know whether the way newspapers report COVID-19 pandemic creates the desired awareness against the spread of the virus; ascertain respondents’ perception of newspaper reportage of COVID-19; find out whether the way newspapers select, package and present (frame) stories on COVID-19 influenced respondents’ views about the virus. The study was anchored on agenda setting theory. The mixed research design was adopted in carrying out the study. This entails using both the survey and content analysis methods. For the survey method, 386 respondents were selected from the projected population of Awka Metropolis. For the content analysis method, 264 editions were randomly selected from the three select newspapers Findings from the study revealed among others that: seven patterns of frames were used in reporting stories on Covid-19 by the three select newspapers within the period of the study; a more than two-thirds majority of the respondents had high exposure to newspaper reports of COVID-19; majority of the respondents accede that the way newspapers report stories on COVID-19 creates awareness against its spread; majority of the respondents had positive perception on newspaper reportage of COVID-19 and finally, majority of the respondents accede that the way newspapers report COVID-19 influenced the way they view the virus. The study concludes among others that way the media frame issues has the ability to influence audience perception of a particular event and that selection and packaging of the novel Coronavirus enjoys positive reactions in the media. The study recommends among others that: that the Nigerian press should endeavour to select appropriate news angles in reporting public health stories to stem the tendencies of creating rumours and misinformation. This also has the benefit of causing the polity to trust the media in their interpretations of health situations.

scholarly journals Social and Cognitive Psychology Theories in Understanding COVID-19 as the Pandemic of Blame

2022 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ayoub Bouguettaya ◽  
Clare E. C. Walsh ◽  
Victoria Team
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Psychology ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
International Relations ◽  
Health Communication ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Modern Society ◽  
Racial Groups ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Social Psychological ◽  
Novel Coronavirus

When faced with adverse circumstances, there may be a tendency for individuals, agencies, and governments to search for a target to assign blame. Our focus will be on the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, where racial groups, political parties, countries, and minorities have been blamed for spreading, producing or creating the virus. Blame—here defined as attributing causality, responsibility, intent, or foresight to someone/something for a fault or wrong—has already begun to damage modern society and medical practice in the context of the COVID-19 outbreak. Evidence from past and current pandemics suggest that this tendency to seek blame affects international relations, promotes unwarranted devaluation of health professionals, and prompts a spike of racism and discrimination. By drawing on social and cognitive psychology theories, we provide a framework that helps to understand (1) the effect of blame in pandemics, (2) when people blame, whom they blame, and (3) how blame detrimentally affects the COVID-19 response. Ultimately, we provide a path to inform health messaging to reduce blaming tendencies, based on social psychological principles for health communication.

Little bugs and wicked viruses: Communicating the COVID-19 pandemic through picturebooks for children

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth F. Caldwell ◽  
Sarah Falcus
Keyword(s):  
Health Professionals ◽  
Hand Washing ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Health Organizations ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
The Social ◽  
Public Health Organizations ◽  
National Public Health ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Staying At Home

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to the production of large numbers of books to educate children about the novel coronavirus and the measures to control its spread. The books have been produced by a wide variety of different individuals and organizations, from health professionals and educators to national public health organizations and the United Nations. This study provides a detailed analysis of 73 picturebooks about coronavirus/COVID-19 available in English and produced between March and June 2020. The analysis reveals that the books combine early scientific knowledge about the novel coronavirus with pre-existing connotations of germs to produce a specific, comprehensible cause for the social disruption produced by the pandemic. This portrayal is frequently used to mobilize children to be heroes and fight the virus through a number of behavioural measures, principally frequent hand washing and staying at home. The books also reveal adult anxieties about the nature of childhood and the uncertainty of the nature and timing of a post-pandemic future.

scholarly journals The role of race and scientific trust on support for COVID-19 social distancing measures in the United States

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (7) ◽  
pp. e0254127
Author(s):  
Sara Kazemian ◽  
Sam Fuller ◽  
Carlos Algara
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
The United States ◽  
Institutional Trust ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
The Media ◽  
Racial Lines ◽  
Novel Coronavirus

Pundits and academics across disciplines note that the human toll brought forth by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in the United States (U.S.) is fundamentally unequal for communities of color. Standing literature on public health posits that one of the chief predictors of racial disparity in health outcomes is a lack of institutional trust among minority communities. Furthermore, in our own county-level analysis from the U.S., we find that counties with higher percentages of Black and Hispanic residents have had vastly higher cumulative deaths from COVID-19. In light of this standing literature and our own analysis, it is critical to better understand how to mitigate or prevent these unequal outcomes for any future pandemic or public health emergency. Therefore, we assess the claim that raising institutional trust, primarily scientific trust, is key to mitigating these racial inequities. Leveraging a new, pre-pandemic measure of scientific trust, we find that trust in science, unlike trust in politicians or the media, significantly raises support for COVID-19 social distancing policies across racial lines. Our findings suggest that increasing scientific trust is essential to garnering support for public health policies that lessen the severity of the current, and potentially a future, pandemic.

scholarly journals Impact of Vaccination on the COVID-19 Pandemic: Evidence from U.S. States

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiao Chen ◽  
Hanwei Huang ◽  
Jiandong Ju ◽  
Ruoyan Sun ◽  
Jialiang Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Herd Immunity ◽  
Sir Model ◽  
Health Policies ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Vaccination Programs ◽  
Public Health Policies ◽  
Percentage Points ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
The U.S

Abstract Governments worldwide are implementing mass vaccination programs in an effort to end the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Here, we evaluated the effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccination program and predicted the path to herd immunity in the U.S. We estimated that vaccination reduced the total number of new cases by 4.4 million (from 33.0 to 28.6 million), prevented approximately 0.12 million hospitalizations (from 0.89 to 0.78 million), and decreased the population infection rate by 1.34 percentage points (from 10.10–8.76%). We built a Susceptible-Infected-Recovered (SIR) model with vaccination to predict herd immunity. Our model predicts that the U.S. can achieve herd immunity by the last week of July 2021, with a cumulative vaccination coverage of 60.2%. Herd immunity could be achieved earlier with a faster vaccination pace, lower vaccine hesitancy, and higher vaccine effectiveness. These findings improve our understanding of the COVID-19 vaccination and can inform future public health policies.

scholarly journals Investigation of the relationships between perceived causes of COVID-19, attitudes towards vaccine and level of trust in information sources from the perspective of Infodemic: the case of Turkey

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Şemsi Nur Karabela ◽  
Filiz Coşkun ◽  
Haydar Hoşgör
Keyword(s):  
Health Literacy ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Information Sources ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
University Graduates ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
Government Institutions ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Source Of Information

Abstract Background The main purpose in this study carried out from the perspective of infodemic was to investigate the relationships between individuals’ perceived causes of COVID-19, their attitudes towards vaccine and their levels of trust in information sources in terms of various descriptive characteristics. Methods In this cross-sectional and correlational study conducted with 1216 individuals from different provinces of Turkey, the Perception of Causes of COVID-19 (PCa-COVID-19) Scale was used. In addition, a questionnaire including the participants’ descriptive characteristics, their attitudes towards vaccine and their level of trust in information sources about Covid-19 was used. Results The mean age of the participants was 35.9 ± 12.3 years. Of them, 62.5% were women, 59.0% were married, and 62.1% were university graduates. As for their view of having the Covid-19 vaccine, 54.1% thought to have it, 16.2% did not think, and 29.7% were undecided. Although the correlation was not significant, of the participants, those who considered having vaccination mostly trusted YouTube as their source of information. Of the participants, those whose level of trust in government institutions and health professionals was high displayed significantly more favorable attitudes towards vaccine. The participants obtained the highest mean score from the Conspiracy Theories subscale of the PCa-COVID-19 scale. There was a positive and low-level relationship between attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccine, and the Conspiracy Theories (r: 0.214) and Faith Factors (r: 0.066) sub-dimensions of the PCa-COVID-19 Scale. Conclusions The level of vaccine hesitancy in Turkey is at an alarming level, and the virus is defined by moderate conspiracy theories. In this context, in the fight against infodemic, it is critical to implement mechanisms that can reveal misinformation and to plan initiatives that can increase the health literacy levels of societies.

scholarly journals The Impact of National Lockdown as a Response to Covid-19 on Migrated Children: Evidence from Durban, South Africa

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 1397-1405
Author(s):  
Aden Dejene Tolla ◽  
Shanta B. Singh ◽  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Qualitative Data ◽  
Unintended Consequences ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Television Broadcasting ◽  
School Programs ◽  
The Media ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Primary And Secondary School

The Novel Coronavirus-2019 (COVID-19) has affected many countries from the beginning of 2020 as it began to spread across the globe. The response of most affected nations was to declare national lockdowns in varying severities. South Africa declared one of, if not the most, severe lockdown of all countries which was termed in the media as “hard lockdown”. This paper discusses the COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa and the effects of the national lockdown on children, more specifically children from migrated parents that have settled in South Africa. The research adopted a qualitative approach, coupled with a review of published literature from March-September 14, 2020, to develop an understanding of the effects of the national lockdown on children, from migrated families in Durban. Furthermore, qualitative data was collected through telephonic interviews with10 participants (parents). This paper established that although lockdowns have shown some evidence that they have flattened the curve of the rate of infected persons, it has not gone without any unintended consequences. One of them being its impact on the children of migrated parents. It postulates that lockdown measures may unintentionally cause harm to children both socio-economically, psychologically and in some cases abuse. The researcher recommended that radio and television broadcasting options for primary and secondary school programs.

scholarly journals The influence of mass media on Italian web users during COVID-19: an infodemiological analysis.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Rovetta ◽  
Lucia Castaldo
Keyword(s):  
Mass Media ◽  
Decisive Role ◽  
Scientific Basis ◽  
Online Information ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Web Searches ◽  
Information Giving ◽  
The Media ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
The Impact

Alongside the COVID-19 pandemic, the world has had to face a growing infodemic, which has caused severe damage to economic and health systems and has often compromised the effectiveness of infection containment regulations. Although this has spread mainly through social media, there are numerous occasions in which the mass media have shared dangerous information, giving resonance to statements without a scientific basis. For these reasons, infoveillance and infodemiology methods are increasingly exploited to monitor online information traffic. However, these tools have also been used to make epidemiological predictions. In particular, the “Google Trends” tool by GoogleTM has often been adopted by the scientific community to carry out this type of analysis. In this regard, the purpose of this paper is to estimate the impact of Italian mass media on users' web searches in order to understand the role of the media in the infodemic and in the interest of Italian web users towards COVID-19. In particular, our results suggest that the Italian mass media have played a decisive role both in the spread of the infodemic and in addressing netizens' web interest, favoring the adoption of terms unsuitable for identifying the novel coronavirus (COVID- 19 disease). Therefore, we suggest greater caution and attention by the directors of news channels and newspapers and greater control of the latter by government dissemination agencies.

scholarly journals DISCURSIVE GOVERNMENTAL AND MEDIA RESPONSE TO COVID-19: THE CASE OF SERBIA

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 95-108
Author(s):  
SRĐAN MLADENOV JOVANOVIĆ
Keyword(s):  
Initial Response ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Analytical Perspective ◽  
The Media ◽  
The Government ◽  
Novel Coronavirus

Serbia’s government, led by Aleksandar Vučić, has in scholarship been classified as semi-authoritarian, using Marina Ottaway’s classification. Its media have also been described as being in heavy, biased support of the government. Scholarship has further revealed that the Vučić-led, post-2012 government, has thrown the country backwards in time, with corruption and affairs being the primary instance by which the regime can be described. Expectedly, the response of the government and the government-supporting media to the COVID-19 pandemic has been less than professional. The initial response included official government press conferences in which the novel coronavirus was deemed to be ’funny’ and that, in the middle of the pandemic explosion and increased deathrate in Italy, Serbia’s population was advised to go to Italy for ’shopping’. The media furthermore tried to pin the pandemic to Serbia’s opposition alleged attempts to topple the government via ’coronavirus propaganda’. This article proposes to tackle the government’s and their supporting media’s responses to COVID-19 in February/March 2019 from a Discourse Analytical perspective.

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