ABSTRACT

Background

The microbiology should be a part of curricula; especially after epidemic COVID-19.

Purpose

The study reports the level of knowledge and opinions of Slovenian citizens about microorganisms.

Sample

The target population of the online survey was Slovenian citizens older than 14 years.

Design and methods

We collected 405 complete surveys, which structured with 47 knowledge items and 18 opinion items about microorganisms.

Results

We found a lack of knowledge among citizens and corresponding misconceptions about microorganisms. There were no statistically significant differences in citizens’ knowledge by age and gender, but citizens with higher educational attainment had better knowledge scores. Participants equate the terms virus, bacteria and microorganisms, an error that can lead to misconceptions. We found that between 15.0 and 20.0% of citizens experience fear of microorganisms. Regarding gender, age and degree level, there were statistically significant differences in participants’ opinions about microorganisms. 45.5% of the participants agreed that the topic of microorganisms is underrepresented in school. This is probably the reason why 44.2% of the participants are not interested in microbiology, although 74.6% are aware that knowledge about microorganisms is important and useful.

Conclusion

It would be good to strengthen the content and ways of working in the education system, because in case of a pandemic like SARS-CoV-2 there would be more understanding of what we are dealing with and less fear of the ignorant.

中文翻译：

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关于微生物的公众意见和知识

摘要

背景

微生物学应该成为课程的一部分；特别是在流行 COVID-19 之后。

目的

该研究报告了斯洛文尼亚公民对微生物的知识水平和看法。

样本

在线调查的目标人群是 14 岁以上的斯洛文尼亚公民。

设计与方法

我们收集了 405 份完整的调查问卷，其中包含 47 个关于微生物的知识条目和 18 个意见条目。

结果

我们发现公民缺乏知识以及相应的对微生物的误解。不同年龄和性别的公民的知识在统计上没有显着差异，但受教育程度较高的公民的知识得分更高。参与者将病毒、细菌和微生物等同起来，这种错误可能会导致误解。我们发现，15.0% 到 20.0% 的市民对微生物有恐惧感。在性别、年龄和学位水平方面，参与者对微生物的看法存在统计学上的显着差异。45.5% 的参与者同意微生物主题在学校中的代表性不足。这可能是为什么 44.2% 的参与者对微生物学不感兴趣的原因，尽管 74。

结论

加强教育系统的内容和工作方式是件好事，因为在发生像 SARS-CoV-2 这样的大流行病时，人们会对我们正在处理的事情有更多的了解，对无知者的恐惧也会减少。