Evidence suggests that people vary in their desire to undertake protective actions during a health emergency, and that trust in authorities may influence decision making. We sought to examine how the trust in health experts and trust in White House leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic impacts individuals' decisions to adopt recommended protective actions such as mask-wearing. A mediation analysis was conducted using cross-sectional U.S. survey data collected between March 27 and 30, 2020, to elucidate how individuals' trust in health experts and White House leadership, their perceptions of susceptibility and severity to COVID-19, and perceived benefits of protecting against COVID-19, influenced their uptake of recommended protective actions. Trust in health experts was associated with greater perceived severity of COVID-19 and benefits of taking action, which led to greater uptake of recommended actions. Trust in White House leadership was associated with lower perceived susceptibility to COVID-19 and was not associated with taking recommended actions. Having trust in health experts is a greater predictor of individuals' uptake of protective actions than having trust in White House leadership. Public health messaging should emphasize the severity of COVID-19 and the benefits of protecting oneself while ensuring consistency and transparency to regain trust in health experts.

中文翻译：

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对专家的信任，而不是对国家领导层的信任，会导致在 COVID-19 大流行期间更多地采取建议的行动

证据表明，人们在突发卫生事件期间采取保护行动的愿望各不相同，对当局的信任可能会影响决策。我们试图研究在 COVID-19 大流行期间对卫生专家的信任和对白宫领导层的信任如何影响个人采取建议的保护措施（例如戴口罩）的决定。使用 2020 年 3 月 27 日至 30 日期间收集的美国横断面调查数据进行了调解分析，以阐明个人对卫生专家和白宫领导层的信任程度、他们对 COVID-19 的易感性和严重性的看法，以及感知到的好处预防 COVID-19，影响了他们对推荐的保护措施的采纳。对健康专家的信任与更大的 COVID-19 严重性和采取行动的好处相关，这导致更多地采用建议的行动。对白宫领导层的信任与较低的 COVID-19 易感性有关，与采取建议的行动无关。对健康专家的信任比对白宫领导层的信任更能预测个人采取保护措施。公共卫生信息应强调 COVID-19 的严重性和保护自己的好处，同时确保一致性和透明度，以重新获得对卫生专家的信任。对白宫领导层的信任与较低的 COVID-19 易感性有关，与采取建议的行动无关。对健康专家的信任比对白宫领导层的信任更能预测个人采取保护措施。公共卫生信息应强调 COVID-19 的严重性和保护自己的好处，同时确保一致性和透明度，以重新获得对卫生专家的信任。对白宫领导层的信任与较低的 COVID-19 易感性有关，与采取建议的行动无关。对健康专家的信任比对白宫领导层的信任更能预测个人采取保护措施。公共卫生信息应强调 COVID-19 的严重性和保护自己的好处，同时确保一致性和透明度，以重新获得对卫生专家的信任。