Abstract

The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has affected 55 million people and caused more than 1,333,742 deaths globally in eight months since its first outbreak. People are increasingly engaging with information using interpersonal communication, traditional and social media to understand the novel virus. The deluge of information can be detrimental in containing this illness that primarily depends on human behavior for transmission. In this environment, health communication theories can provide an insight into the decision-making process of adopting prevention behaviors recommended by public health authorities. We propose that information cues will influence protective behaviors indirectly mediated by perceived susceptibility and perceived severity of COVID-19 threat. In early April 2020, a cross-sectional survey was conducted among a convenience sample among 1,545 people across the United States. Results showed that informational cues influence the behavior of staying at home and maintaining social distancing mediated by perceived susceptibility and perceived severity. Use of social media was shown to have a negative influence on perceived susceptibility and social distancing, suggesting the confounding role of misinformation in influencing people’s perception of threat from COVID-19, and their compliance to heath recommendations. Theoretical and practical implications are further discussed.

摘要

自首次爆发以来的八个月内，2019年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）已影响5500万人，并在全球造成1,333,742例以上的死亡。人们越来越多地通过人际交流，传统媒体和社交媒体与信息互动，以了解这种新型病毒。大量的信息可能有害地遏制这种疾病，这种疾病主要取决于人类的传播行为。在这种环境下，健康传播理论可以提供对采用公共卫生当局建议的预防行为的决策过程的见解。我们建议信息提示将影响由感知的易感性和感知的COVID-19威胁的严重性间接介导的保护行为。2020年4月上旬，在美国1,545人中对便利性样本进行了横断面调查。结果表明，信息提示会影响在家里呆着的行为，并通过感知的易感性和感知的严重性来介导保持社会疏远的行为。事实证明，社交媒体的使用会对感知的敏感性和社交距离产生负面影响，这表明错误信息在影响人们对COVID-19威胁的感知以及他们对健康建议的遵从性方面的混杂作用。理论和实践意义将进一步讨论。事实证明，社交媒体的使用会对感知的敏感性和社交距离产生负面影响，这表明错误信息在影响人们对COVID-19威胁的感知以及他们对健康建议的遵从性方面的混杂作用。理论和实践意义将进一步讨论。事实证明，社交媒体的使用会对感知的敏感性和社交距离产生负面影响，这表明错误信息在影响人们对COVID-19威胁的感知以及他们对健康建议的遵从性方面的混杂作用。理论和实践意义将进一步讨论。