Use of Venn Diagrams to Evaluate Digital Contact Tracing: Results from a Panel Survey Analysis (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paola Daniore ◽  
Vasilis Nittas ◽  
André Moser ◽  
Marc Höglinger ◽  
Viktor von Wyl

BACKGROUND Mitigation of pandemic spread relies on targeted approaches aimed at preventing non-household interactions. Contact tracing in the form of digital proximity tracing (DPT) apps has been widely adopted in multiple countries due to its perceived added benefits of tracing speed and breadth in comparison to traditional manual contact tracing (MCT). Monitoring of user responses to exposure notifications (EN) can provide insights into the effect of DPT app use on managing the spread of SARS-CoV-2. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of DPT apps in users taking mitigative actions to reduce infection spread based on nationwide panel data on DPT app use in Switzerland. METHODS We assessed data from the COVID-19 Social Monitor, a nationwide panel study of Swiss residents that classified (a) non-users of the SwissCovid app, (b) users of the SwissCovid app and (c) users of the SwissCovid app who received exposure notifications (EN). A Venn diagram framework was applied to describe the (non-)overlap of these subpopulations with SARS-CoV-2 outcomes. RESULTS 12525 assessments of 2403 participants were included. DPT app users revealed higher adherence to preventive measures than app non-users. 75.9% (95% CI: 60.3-91.5%) of DPT app users revealed taking at least one mitigative action after receiving EN. 30.0% (95% CI: 11.9-54.3%) of the DPT app users also tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 following receipt of EN, which is over three times more than DPT app users who did not receive EN (8.0%, 95% CI: 5.0-11.9%). CONCLUSIONS Response from three out of four individuals to EN reveals a possible contribution of DPT apps to users taking mitigative actions to limit SARS-CoV-2 spread. The analytic approach proposed in this study provides a foundation to researchers and health authorities to comprehensively assess population-level DPT app effectiveness by providing an intuitive framework for monitoring indicator construction. CLINICALTRIAL N/A

Author(s):  
Paola Daniore ◽  
Vasileios Nittas ◽  
André Moser ◽  
Marc Höglinger ◽  
Viktor Von Wyl

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Viktor von Wyl ◽  
Marc Höglinger ◽  
Chloé Sieber ◽  
Marco Kaufmann ◽  
André Moser ◽  
...  

BACKGROUND Digital proximity tracing apps have been released to mitigate the transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the virus known to cause COVID-19. However, it remains unclear how the acceptance and uptake of these apps can be improved. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to investigate the coverage of the SwissCovid app and the reasons for its nonuse in Switzerland during a period of increasing incidence of COVID-19 cases. METHODS We collected data between September 28 and October 8, 2020, via a nationwide online panel survey (COVID-19 Social Monitor, N=1511). We examined sociodemographic and behavioral factors associated with app use by using multivariable logistic regression, whereas reasons for app nonuse were analyzed descriptively. RESULTS Overall, 46.5% (703/1511) of the survey participants reported they used the SwissCovid app, which was an increase from 43.9% (662/1508) reported in the previous study wave conducted in July 2020. A higher monthly household income (ie, income >CHF 10,000 or >US $11,000 vs income ≤CHF 6000 or <US $6600 [reference]: odds ratio [OR] 1.92, 95% CI 1.40-2.64), more frequent internet use (ie, daily [reference] vs less than weekly: OR 0.37, 95% CI 0.16-0.85), better adherence to recommendations for wearing masks (ie, always or most of the time [reference] vs rarely or never: OR 0.28, 95% CI 0.15-0.52), and nonsmoker status (OR 1.32, 95% CI 1.01-1.71) were associated with an increased likelihood for app uptake. Citizenship status (ie, non-Swiss citizenship vs. Swiss [reference]: OR 0.61, 95% CI 0.43-0.87), and language region (French vs Swiss German [reference]: OR 0.61, 95% CI 0.46-0.80) were associated with a lower likelihood for app uptake. Further analysis in a randomly selected subsample (n=712) with more detailed information showed that higher levels of trust in government and health authorities were also associated with a higher likelihood for app uptake (ie, high vs low [reference] trust: OR 3.13, 95% CI 1.58-6.22). The most frequent reasons for app nonuse were lack of perceived benefit of using the app (297/808, 36.8%), followed by the lack of a compatible phone (184/808, 22.8%), and privacy concerns (181/808, 22.4%). CONCLUSIONS Eliminating technical hurdles and communicating the benefits of digital proximity tracing apps are crucial to promote further uptake and adherence of such apps and, ultimately, enhance their effectiveness to aid pandemic mitigation strategies.


10.2196/25701 ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. e25701
Author(s):  
Viktor von Wyl ◽  
Marc Höglinger ◽  
Chloé Sieber ◽  
Marco Kaufmann ◽  
André Moser ◽  
...  

Background Digital proximity tracing apps have been released to mitigate the transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the virus known to cause COVID-19. However, it remains unclear how the acceptance and uptake of these apps can be improved. Objective This study aimed to investigate the coverage of the SwissCovid app and the reasons for its nonuse in Switzerland during a period of increasing incidence of COVID-19 cases. Methods We collected data between September 28 and October 8, 2020, via a nationwide online panel survey (COVID-19 Social Monitor, N=1511). We examined sociodemographic and behavioral factors associated with app use by using multivariable logistic regression, whereas reasons for app nonuse were analyzed descriptively. Results Overall, 46.5% (703/1511) of the survey participants reported they used the SwissCovid app, which was an increase from 43.9% (662/1508) reported in the previous study wave conducted in July 2020. A higher monthly household income (ie, income >CHF 10,000 or >US $11,000 vs income ≤CHF 6000 or <US $6600 [reference]: odds ratio [OR] 1.92, 95% CI 1.40-2.64), more frequent internet use (ie, daily [reference] vs less than weekly: OR 0.37, 95% CI 0.16-0.85), better adherence to recommendations for wearing masks (ie, always or most of the time [reference] vs rarely or never: OR 0.28, 95% CI 0.15-0.52), and nonsmoker status (OR 1.32, 95% CI 1.01-1.71) were associated with an increased likelihood for app uptake. Citizenship status (ie, non-Swiss citizenship vs. Swiss [reference]: OR 0.61, 95% CI 0.43-0.87), and language region (French vs Swiss German [reference]: OR 0.61, 95% CI 0.46-0.80) were associated with a lower likelihood for app uptake. Further analysis in a randomly selected subsample (n=712) with more detailed information showed that higher levels of trust in government and health authorities were also associated with a higher likelihood for app uptake (ie, high vs low [reference] trust: OR 3.13, 95% CI 1.58-6.22). The most frequent reasons for app nonuse were lack of perceived benefit of using the app (297/808, 36.8%), followed by the lack of a compatible phone (184/808, 22.8%), and privacy concerns (181/808, 22.4%). Conclusions Eliminating technical hurdles and communicating the benefits of digital proximity tracing apps are crucial to promote further uptake and adherence of such apps and, ultimately, enhance their effectiveness to aid pandemic mitigation strategies.


2021 ◽  
pp. 194016122110252
Author(s):  
Sebastián Valenzuela ◽  
Daniel Halpern ◽  
Felipe Araneda

Despite widespread concern, research on the consequences of misinformation on people's attitudes is surprisingly scant. To fill in this gap, the current study examines the long-term relationship between misinformation and trust in the news media. Based on the reinforcing spirals model, we analyzed data from a three-wave panel survey collected in Chile between 2017 and 2019. We found a weak, over-time relationship between misinformation and media skepticism. Specifically, initial beliefs on factually dubious information were negatively correlated with subsequent levels of trust in the news media. Lower trust in the media, in turn, was related over time to higher levels of misinformation. However, we found no evidence of a reverse, parallel process where media trust shielded users against misinformation, further reinforcing trust in the news media. The lack of evidence of a downward spiral suggests that the corrosive effects of misinformation on attitudes toward the news media are less serious than originally suggested. We close with a discussion of directions for future research.


Author(s):  
Thomas Plümper ◽  
Eric Neumayer

AbstractBackgroundThe Robert-Koch-Institute reports that during the summer holiday period a foreign country is stated as the most likely place of infection for an average of 27 and a maximum of 49% of new SARS-CoV-2 infections in Germany.MethodsCross-sectional study on observational data. In Germany, summer school holidays are coordinated between states and spread out over 13 weeks. Employing a dynamic model with district fixed effects, we analyze the association between these holidays and weekly incidence rates across 401 German districts.ResultsWe find effects of the holiday period of around 45% of the average district incidence rates in Germany during their respective final week of holidays and the 2 weeks after holidays end. Western states tend to experience stronger effects than Eastern states. We also find statistically significant interaction effects of school holidays with per capita taxable income and the share of foreign residents in a district’s population.ConclusionsOur results suggest that changed behavior during the holiday season accelerated the pandemic and made it considerably more difficult for public health authorities to contain the spread of the virus by means of contact tracing. Germany’s public health authorities did not prepare adequately for this acceleration.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 368
Author(s):  
Dillon T. Fitch ◽  
Hossain Mohiuddin ◽  
Susan L. Handy

One way cities are looking to promote bicycling is by providing publicly or privately operated bike-share services, which enable individuals to rent bicycles for one-way trips. Although many studies have examined the use of bike-share services, little is known about how these services influence individual-level travel behavior more generally. In this study, we examine the behavior of users and non-users of a dockless, electric-assisted bike-share service in the Sacramento region of California. This service, operated by Jump until suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic, was one of the largest of its kind in the U.S., and spanned three California cities: Sacramento, West Sacramento, and Davis. We combine data from a repeat cross-sectional before-and-after survey of residents and a longitudinal panel survey of bike-share users with the goal of examining how the service influenced individual-level bicycling and driving. Results from multilevel regression models suggest that the effect of bike-share on average bicycling and driving at the population level is likely small. However, our results indicate that people who have used-bike share are likely to have increased their bicycling because of bike-share.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmad Nabeel ◽  
Salman AlSabah ◽  
Eliana Al Haddad ◽  
Hutan Ashrafian

BACKGROUND The novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has triggered public anxiety around the world. So far, the evidence suggests that prevention on a public scale is the most effective health measure for thwarting the progress of COVID-19. Another critical aspect of preventing COVID-19 is contact tracing. OBJECTIVE We aimed to investigate the effectiveness of contact tracing applications currently available in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS We undertook a systematic review and narrative synthesis of all literature relating to contact tracing applications in the context of COVID-19. We searched 3 major scientific databases. Only articles that were published in English and were available as full-text articles were selected for review. Data were extracted and narrative syntheses conducted. RESULTS Five studies relating to COVID-19 were included in the review. Our results suggest that digitalized contact tracing methods can be beneficial for impeding the progress of COVID-19. Three key themes were generated from this systematic review. First, the critical mass of application adoption must be attained at the population level before the sensitivity and positive predictive value of the solution can be increased. Second, usability factors such as access, ease of use and the elimination of barriers are essential in driving this uptake. Third, privacy must be ensured where possible as it is the single most significant barrier against achieving critical mass. CONCLUSIONS The COVID-19 pandemic has claimed more than 2 million lives globally, with over 100 million confirmed cases. Contact tracing can rapidly identify potentially infected individuals before the emergence of severe or critical symptoms, and it can also prevent the subsequent transmission of disease from secondary cases when implemented efficiently. Contact tracing methods have proved to be beneficial for impeding the progress of COVID-19 as compared to older, more labor intensive manual methods.


Author(s):  
Donald Quicke ◽  
Buntika A. Butcher ◽  
Rachel Kruft Welton
Keyword(s):  

Abstract This chapter focuses on sets and Venn diagrams. Venn diagrams, also known as set diagrams, are commonly used to represent the overlap between sets. However, there is no in-built Venn diagram function in R so packages are used.


2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 342-361
Author(s):  
Kihong Park ◽  
Jesus Hernandez Arce

Abstract Most prior research on labor market mismatch was constrained by the unavailability of data on skill mismatch and also the absence of panel data which would provide controls for unmeasured heterogeneity. This paper makes use of the panel element of Korea Labor & Income Panel Survey (KLIPS) data and identifies the wage effects of educational mismatch and skill mismatch both separately and jointly. It clearly shows that only a small proportion of the wage effect of educational mismatch is accounted for by skill mismatch, suggesting a relatively weak relation between educational mismatch and skill mismatch. In the analysis appropriate panel methodology produces much weaker estimates of the relevant coefficients than the pooled OLS model. This result indicates that unobserved individual-specific characteristics play a substantial role in the way in which mismatch effects are determined.


Science ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. eabe2424 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaiyuan Sun ◽  
Wei Wang ◽  
Lidong Gao ◽  
Yan Wang ◽  
Kaiwei Luo ◽  
...  

A long-standing question in infectious disease dynamics concerns the role of transmission heterogeneities, driven by demography, behavior and interventions. Based on detailed patient and contact tracing data in Hunan, China we find 80% of secondary infections traced back to 15% of SARS-CoV-2 primary infections, indicating substantial transmission heterogeneities. Transmission risk scales positively with the duration of exposure and the closeness of social interactions and is modulated by demographic and clinical factors. The lockdown period increases transmission risk in the family and households, while isolation and quarantine reduce risks across all types of contacts. The reconstructed infectiousness profile of a typical SARS-CoV-2 patient peaks just before symptom presentation. Modeling indicates SARS-CoV-2 control requires the synergistic efforts of case isolation, contact quarantine, and population-level interventions, owing to the specific transmission kinetics of this virus.


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