scholarly journals Optimism Bias, Pessimism Bias, Magical Beliefs, and Conspiracy Theory Beliefs Related to COVID-19 among the Jordanian Population

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alaa M. Hammad ◽  
Rania Hamed ◽  
Walid Al-Qerem ◽  
Ameena Bandar ◽  
Frank Scott Hall
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Close Contact ◽  
Conspiracy Theory ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
Optimism Bias ◽  
Jordanian Population ◽  
Public Health Authorities ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
Magical Beliefs

The outbreak of the novel SARS-CoV-2 virus has an enormous impact on health. People’s views about the virus impact public health efforts to mitigate the pandemic. In this study, we measured misconceptions toward coronavirus in the Jordanian population; 2,544 participants from the Jordanian population completed an online survey. Questions in the survey addressed misconceptions divided into four categories: optimism bias, pessimism bias, magical beliefs, and conspiracy theory beliefs. Questions were evaluated on a Likert scale, and average/median scores for each category were evaluated (“one” high misconception to “five” low misconception). Overall, the most common misconceptions involved conspiracy theory beliefs (2.68 ± 0.83), whereas the least common involved magical beliefs (2.25 ± 0.75). Females had more misconceptions than males (2.52 versus 2.47, P = 0.04). Participants who had attended a lecture on coronavirus, had a higher level of education, worked in a medical field, lived in urban area, or resided in Amman or northern Jordan had fewer misconceptions about SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 (2.64, 2.34, 2.33, 2.50 and 2.50 versus 2.53, 2.73, 2.72, 2.64, and 2.66, respectively, P < 0.001). The use of social media appeared to be an important factor influencing the likelihood of false beliefs (2.61 versus 2.38, P < 0.001). Understanding of the factors influencing public perceptions surrounding the SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 pandemic will help public health authorities improve public understanding and compliance with public health recommendations directed at combatting the virus, including the use of surgical masks, thorough handwashing, and avoiding close contact. These messages will be better received by the public through correcting misconceptions surrounding COVID-19.

The Use of Twitter as an Interactive Learning Tool Within a Postgraduate Public Health Course: A Pilot Study

2020 ◽  
pp. 237337992097842
Author(s):  
Rimante Ronto ◽  
Alexandra Bhatti ◽  
Josephine Chau
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Teaching Staff ◽  
Learning Tool ◽  
Interactive Approach ◽  
Master Of Public Health ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
The Impact

Twitter has gained attention in recent years as a tool to use in higher education to enhance students’ learning, engagement, and reflective writing. This study explored public health students’ perceptions on the usefulness of Twitter as a learning tool, engagement with their peers, staff, and the broader public health community. Participants were Master of Public Health students from a public university based in Sydney, Australia. A mixed methods approach was used combining content analysis of tweets, an online survey and two focus groups. Students were asked to engage with Twitter by reflecting on each week’s teaching content and by liking and replying to their peers’ tweets. Participation and engagement in this task were high initially and declined toward the end of semester. Most student tweets aligned with topics taught during the semester. Survey and focus group data indicated most students had positive views on using Twitter and reported finding engagement with Twitter beneficial in obtaining current information on health promotion news and trends, increasing their professional networks and allowing them to connect with their peers and teaching staff. Results indicate Twitter is a promising interactive approach to enhance public health students’ engagement and overall learning experience, as well as being useful for professional networking. Larger scale empirical studies are needed to investigate the impact of the use of social media platforms such as Twitter to various learning outcomes longitudinally and beyond this course.

scholarly journals Germs on a Plane: The Transmission and Risks of Airplane-Borne Diseases

2018 ◽  
Vol 2672 (29) ◽  
pp. 93-102 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nereyda L. Sevilla
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Close Contact ◽  
Air Travel ◽  
Economic Consequences ◽  
Disease Spread ◽  
Pneumonic Plague ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Public Health Authorities ◽  
The Impact

This research explored the role of air travel in the spread of infectious diseases, specifically severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), H1N1, Ebola, and pneumonic plague. Air travel provides the means for such diseases to spread internationally at extraordinary rates because infected passengers jump from coast to coast and continent to continent within hours. Outbreaks of diseases that spread from person to person test the effectiveness of current public health responses. This research used a mixed methods approach, including use of the Spatiotemporal Epidemiological Modeler, to model the spread of diseases, evaluate the impact of air travel on disease spread, and analyze the effectiveness of different public health strategies and travel policies. Modeling showed that the spread of Ebola and pneumonic plague is minimal and should not be a major air travel concern if an individual becomes infected. H1N1 and SARS have higher infection rates and air travel will facilitate the spread of disease nationally and internationally. To contain the spread of infectious diseases, aviation and public health authorities should establish tailored preventive measures at airports, capture contact information for ticketed passengers, expand the definition of “close contact,” and conduct widespread educational programs. The measures will put in place a foundation for containing the spread of infectious diseases via air travel and minimize the panic and economic consequences that may occur during an outbreak.

scholarly journals COVID-19: Beliefs in misinformation in the Australian community

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristen Pickles ◽  
Erin Cvejic ◽  
Brooke Nickel ◽  
Tessa Copp ◽  
Carissa Bonner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
Herd Immunity ◽  
Male Gender ◽  
Communication Effectiveness ◽  
Younger Age ◽  
Public Health Authorities ◽  
Lower Education ◽  
At Home

Objectives: To investigate prevalence of beliefs in COVID-19 misinformation and examine whether demographic, psychosocial and cognitive factors are associated with these beliefs, and how they change over time. Study design: Prospective national longitudinal community online survey. Setting: Australian general public. Participants: Adults aged over 18 years (n=4362 baseline/Wave 1; n=1882 Wave 2; n=1369 Wave 3). Main outcome measure: COVID-19 misinformation beliefs. Results: Stronger agreement with misinformation beliefs was significantly associated with younger age, male gender, lower education, and primarily speaking a language other than English at home (all p<0.01). After controlling for these variables, misinformation beliefs were significantly associated (p<0.001) with lower digital health literacy, lower perceived threat of COVID-19, lower confidence in government, and lower trust in scientific institutions. The belief that the threat of COVID-19 is greatly exaggerated increased between Wave 1-2 (p=0.002), while belief that herd immunity benefits were being covered up decreased (p<0.001). Greatest support from a list of Australian Government identified myths was for those regarding hot temperatures killing the virus (22%) and Ibuprofen exacerbates COVID-19 (13%). Lower institutional trust and greater rejection of official government accounts were associated with greater support for COVID-19 myths after controlling for sociodemographic variables. Conclusion: These findings highlight important gaps in communication effectiveness. Stronger endorsement of misinformation was associated with male gender, younger age, lower education and language other than English spoken at home. Misinformation can undermine public health efforts. Public health authorities must urgently target groups identified in this study when countering misinformation and seek ways to enhance public trust of experts, governments, and institutions.

scholarly journals Reported COVID-19 Vaccination Coverage and Associated Factors among Members of Athens Medical Association: Results from a Cross-Sectional Study

Vaccines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 1134
Author(s):  
Georgios Marinos ◽  
Dimitris Lamprinos ◽  
Panagiotis Georgakopoulos ◽  
Georgios Patoulis ◽  
Georgia Vogiatzi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Medical Association ◽  
Vaccination Coverage ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
High Reliability ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Vaccination Uptake ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Public Health Authorities

There are limited data on the prevalence and determinants of COVID-19 vaccination coverage among physicians. A cross-sectional, questionnaire-based, online study was conducted among the members of the Athens Medical Association (I.S.A.) over the period 25 February to 13 March 2021. All members of I.S.A. were invited to participate in the anonymous online survey. A structured, anonymous questionnaire was used. Overall, 1993 physicians participated in the survey. The reported vaccination coverage was 85.3%. The main reasons of no vaccination were pending vaccination appointment followed by safety concerns. Participants being informed about the COVID-19 vaccines by social media resulted in lower COVID-19 vaccination coverage than health workers being informed by other sources. Logistic regression analysis demonstrated that no fear over COVID-19 vaccination-related side effects, history of influenza vaccination for flu season 2020–2021, and the perception that the information on COVID-19 vaccination from the national public health authorities is reliable, were independent factors of reported COVID-19 vaccination coverage. Our results demonstrate a considerable improvement of the COVID-19 vaccination uptake among Greek physicians. The finding that participants reported high reliability of the information related to COVID-19 vaccination provided by the Greek public health authorities is an opportunity which should be broadly exploited by policymakers in order to combat vaccination hesitancy, and further improve COVID-19 vaccination uptake and coverage among physicians/HCWs, and the general population.

scholarly journals Determinants of Social Distancing Among South Africans From 12 Days Into the COVID-19 Lockdown: A Cross Sectional Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronel Sewpaul ◽  
Musawenkosi Mabaso ◽  
Natisha Dukhi ◽  
Inbarani Naidoo ◽  
Noloyiso Vondo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Close Contact ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Physical Distance ◽  
Multinomial Regression ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Effective Measure ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
South Africans

Introduction: Social or physical distancing has been an effective measure for reducing the spread of COVID-19 infections. Investigating the determinants of adherence to social distancing can inform public health strategies to improve the behaviour. However, there is a lack of data in various populations. This study investigates the degree to which South Africans complied with social distancing during the country's COVID-19 lockdown and identifies the determinants associated with being in close contact with large numbers of people.Materials and Methods: Data was collected from a South African national online survey on a data free platform, supplemented with telephone interviews. The survey was conducted from 8 to 29 April 2020. The primary outcome was the number of people that participants came into close contact with (within a 2-metre distance) the last time they were outside their home during the COVID-19 lockdown. Multivariate multinomial regression investigated the socio-demographic, psychosocial and household environmental determinants associated with being in contact with 1–10, 11–50 and more than 50 people.Results: Of the 17,563 adult participants, 20.3% reported having not left home, 50.6% were in close physical distance with 1–10 people, 21.1% with 11–50 people, and 8.0% with &gt;50 people. Larger household size and incorrect knowledge about the importance of social distancing were associated with being in contact with &gt;50 people. Male gender, younger age and being in the White and Coloured population groups were significantly associated with being in contact with 1–10 people but not with larger numbers of people. Employment, at least secondary school education, lack of self-efficacy in being able to protect oneself from infection, and moderate or high risk perception of becoming infected, were all associated with increased odds of close contact with 1–10, 11–50, and &gt;50 people relative to remaining at home.Conclusion: The findings identify subgroups of individuals that are less likely to comply with social distancing regulations. Public health communication, interventions and policy can be tailored to address these determinants of social distancing.

scholarly journals SIM-D: An Agent-Based Simulator for Modeling Contagion in Population

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (21) ◽  
pp. 7745
Author(s):  
Muhammad Waleed ◽  
Tai-Won Um ◽  
Tariq Kamal ◽  
Aftab Khan ◽  
Zaka Ullah Zahid
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Close Contact ◽  
Disease Spread ◽  
Agent Based ◽  
Disease States ◽  
Simulation Engine ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Public Health Authorities

The spread of infectious diseases such as COVID-19, flu influenza, malaria, dengue, mumps, and rubella in a population is a big threat to public health. The infectious diseases spread from one person to another person through close contact. Without proper planning, an infectious disease can become an epidemic and can result in large human and financial losses. To better respond to the spread of infectious disease and take measures for its control, the public health authorities need models and simulations to study the spread of such diseases. In this paper, an agent-based simulation engine is presented that models the spread of infectious diseases in the population. The simulation takes as an input the human-to-human interactions, population dynamics, disease transmissibility and disease states and shows the spread of disease over time. The simulation engine supports non-pharmaceutical interventions and shows its impact on the disease spread across locations. A unique feature of this tool is that it is generic; therefore, it can simulate a wide variety of infectious disease models (SIR), susceptible-infectious-susceptible (SIS) and susceptible-infectious (SI). The proposed simulation engine will help the policy-makers and public health authorities study the behavior of disease spreading; thus, allowing for better planning.

scholarly journals How to better communicate exponential growth of infectious diseases

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Schonger ◽  
Daniela Sele
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Exponential Growth ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
Mitigation Measures ◽  
Retirement Savings ◽  
The Public ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Public Health Authorities ◽  
Doubling Times

AbstractSustained non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) can contain the spread of infectious disease when vaccines or treatments are not available1-3. The benefit of such behavioural adaptations can be modelled as the deceleration of the exponential growth of cases. Humans underestimate exponential growth, as has been documented in biological4, environmental5-6 and financial contexts7-13. Hence, they might also underestimate the benefit of reducing the exponential growth rate. Different ways of communicating the same scenario, i.e. frames, have been found to have a large impact on people’s evaluations and choices in the contexts of social behaviour14,15, risk taking16-19 and health care20-23. Here we show that framing matters for people’s assessment of the benefits of measures to mitigate the spread of infectious disease. In two commonly used frames, most subjects in our experiment drastically underestimate the number of cases mitigation measures avoid. Framing growth in terms of doubling times, rather than growth rates, improves understanding. In a non-standard framing, which focuses on time gained rather than cases avoided, the median subject assesses the benefit of mitigation measures correctly. These findings suggest changes that public health authorities can adopt to communicate the exponential spread of infectious disease more effectively. Beyond public health, the findings have applications to, for example, the regulation of the sale of financial products, retirement savings, education and the public understanding of exponential processes in the environment.

scholarly journals Late-Night Use of Social Media and Cognitive Engagement of Female Entrepreneurs: A Stressor–Strain–Outcome Perspective

SAGE Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 215824402110376
Author(s):  
Fakhar Shahzad ◽  
Adnan Abbas ◽  
Adnan Fateh ◽  
Raja Suzana Raja Kasim ◽  
Kashif Akram ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Cognitive Engagement ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Female Entrepreneurs ◽  
Late Night ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
Outcome Perspective

The excessive use of social media is an emerging phenomenon with several negative consequences in an entrepreneurial context. Based on the stressor–strain–outcome paradigm, this research aims to unveil the following: that social media late-night usage can affect two psychological strains (life invasion and technostress) among female entrepreneurs and thus influence their behavioral outcome (cognitive engagement). This study empirically tested the proposed mediation model using an online survey of 225 female entrepreneurs from the small- and medium-sized enterprise sector. A partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was implemented to obtain the results. The findings indicate that late-night social media usage significantly raises life invasion and technostress among female entrepreneurs. Moreover, internal strains (life invasion and technostress) reduce female entrepreneurs’ cognitive engagement and significantly mediate the association between late-night use of social media and entrepreneurial cognitive engagement. This study draws associated practical and theoretical contributions based on findings, which were not previously discussed.

scholarly journals Users’ Beliefs Toward Physical Distancing in Facebook Pages of Public Health Authorities During COVID-19 Pandemic in Early 2020

2021 ◽  
pp. 109019812110144
Author(s):  
Soon Guan Tan ◽  
Aravind Sesagiri Raamkumar ◽  
Hwee Lin Wee
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Belief Model ◽  
United States Public Health ◽  
Health Belief ◽  
The United States ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Public Health Authorities ◽  
Control And Prevention ◽  
Belief Model ◽  
The Health Belief Model

This study aims to describe Facebook users’ beliefs toward physical distancing measures implemented during the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic using the key constructs of the health belief model. A combination of rule-based filtering and manual classification methods was used to classify user comments on COVID-19 Facebook posts of three public health authorities: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the United States, Public Health England, and Ministry of Health, Singapore. A total of 104,304 comments were analyzed for posts published between 1 January, 2020, and 31 March, 2020, along with COVID-19 cases and deaths count data from the three countries. Findings indicate that the perceived benefits of physical distancing measures ( n = 3,463; 3.3%) was three times higher than perceived barriers ( n = 1,062; 1.0%). Perceived susceptibility to COVID-19 ( n = 2,934; 2.8%) was higher compared with perceived severity ( n = 2,081; 2.0%). Although susceptibility aspects of physical distancing were discussed more often at the start of the year, mentions on the benefits of intervention emerged stronger toward the end of the analysis period, highlighting the shift in beliefs. The health belief model is useful for understanding Facebook users’ beliefs at a basic level, and it provides a scope for further improvement.

scholarly journals Are public health measures and individualised care compatible in the face of a pandemic? A national observational study of bereaved relatives’ experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic

2021 ◽  
pp. 026921632110198
Author(s):  
Catriona R Mayland ◽  
Rosemary Hughes ◽  
Steven Lane ◽  
Tamsin McGlinchey ◽  
Warren Donnellan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Family Support ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Free Text ◽  
Professional Networks ◽  
Dying Patients ◽  
The Face ◽  
Individualised Care ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Informative Communication

Background: COVID-19 public health restrictions have affected end-of-life care experiences for dying patients and their families. Aim: To explore bereaved relatives’ experiences of quality of care and family support provided during the last days of life; to identify the impact of factors associated with perceived support. Design: A national, observational, open online survey was developed and disseminated via social media, public fora and professional networks (June–September 2020). Validated instruments and purposively designed questions assessed experiences. Analysis used descriptive statistics, logistic regression and thematic analysis of free-text responses. Participants: Individuals (⩾18 years) who had experienced the death of a relative/friend (all care settings) within the United Kingdome during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results: Respondents ( n = 278, mean 53.4 years) tended to be female ( n = 216, 78%); over half were ‘son/daughter’ (174, 62.6%) to the deceased. Deceased individuals (mean 81.6 years) most frequently died in their ‘usual place of care’ ( n = 192, 69.3%). Analysis established five conceptual themes affecting individualised care: (1) public health restrictions compounding the distress of ‘not knowing’; (2) disparate views about support from doctors and nurses; (3) challenges in communication and level of preparedness for the death; (4) delivery of compassionate care; (5) emotional needs and potential impact on grief. Male respondents (OR 2.9, p = 0.03) and those able to visit (OR 2.2, p = 0.04) were independently associated with good perceptions of family support. Conclusion: Despite public health restrictions, individualised care can be enabled by proactive, informative communication; recognising dying in a timely manner and facilitating the ability to be present before death.

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