In two large pre-registered experimental studies on quota-sampled UK public participants we investigate the effects of providing transparent communication—including uncertainty—about COVID-19 vaccination effectiveness on decision-making.
Views 535
The aim of this viewpoint paper is to introduce policy makers to the advantages of using narrative evidence to provide health information during a disease outbreak or pandemic such as COVID-19.
Source: Using Narrative Evidence to Convey Health Information on Social Media: The Case of COVID-19
Views 567
The American Psychological Association introduced and tested on 701 French participants a novel messaging strategy: A chatbot that answers people’s questions about COVID-19 vaccines. We find that interacting with this chatbot for a few minutes significantly increases people’s intentions to get vaccinated (ß = 0.12) and has a positive impact on their attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccination (ß = 0.23).
Views 794
A low uptake of COVID-19 vaccines will prolong the social and economic repercussions of the pandemic on families and communities, especially low-income and minority ethnic groups, into 2022, or even longer. The scale and challenges of the COVID-19 vaccination campaign are unprecedented. Therefore, through a series of recommendations, we present a coordinated, evidence-based education, communication, and behavioural intervention strategy that is likely to improve the success of COVID-19 vaccine programmes across the USA.
Views 805
This study explored the effects of COVID-19 vaccine promotion messages highlighting the benefit at individual, community, and country levels. Based on the cultural theory of risks, we investigated how individuals’ valuation of individualism vs. communitarianism and hierarchical vs. egalitarian social structure affect their responses to vaccine messages.
Views 516
Handwashing is essential for respiratory virus prevention, but uptake of handwashing in the context of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic remains under-explored. This study examines trends in and determinants of handwashing practices for COVID-19 prevention in 10 countries in West, East, and Southern Africa. Data are derived from an online global Facebook survey assessing COVID-19 knowledge, attitudes, and practices, fielded in July (Round 1) and November 2020 (Round 2).
Views 1026
False claims about COVID-19 vaccines can undermine public trust in ongoing vaccination campaigns, posing a threat to global public health. Misinformation originating from various sources has been spreading on the web since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Antivaccine activists have also begun to use platforms such as Twitter to promote their views. To properly understand the phenomenon of vaccine hesitancy through the lens of social media, it is of great importance to gather the relevant data.
Views 510
Changing behavior is challenging, so behavioral scientists and designers better have a large toolkit. Nudges—subtle changes to the choice environment that don’t remove options or offer a financial incentive—are perhaps the most widely used tool. But they’re not the only tool.
More recently, researchers have advocated a different type of behavioral intervention: boosting. In contrast to nudges, which aim to change behavior through changing the environment, boosts aim to empower individuals to better exert their own agency.
Source: Building the Behavior Change Toolkit: Designing and Testing a Nudge and a Boost
Views 928
People with high general trust perceive less risks associated with COVID-19 compared with people who have low general trust, and people with high social trust perceive more risks compared with people who have low social trust. The results further indicate that perceived risks are important drivers for the acceptance of the government’s implemented measures to control COVID-19 and for more precautionary behavior (i.e., contact with fewer people and more hygienic behavior).
Source: The Impact of Trust and Risk Perception on the Acceptance of Measures to Reduce COVID-19 Cases
Views 1005
This powerpoint presentation explains the potential benefits and harms of the Astra-Zeneca COVID-19 vaccine. It contains several graphs to display the potential benefits and harms of people by age and risk; they clearly show that despite the potential risks of the vaccine, complications from COVID-19 are far worse.
Source: Communicating the potential benefits and harms of the Astra-Zeneca COVID-19 vaccine
Views 971
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