The Impact of Trust and Risk Perception on the Acceptance of Measures to Reduce COVID-19 Cases

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

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    An Exploration of How Fake News is Taking over Social Media and Putting Public Health at Risk

    This article reports on a small study which attempted to identify the types and sources of COVID‐19 misinformation.

    The authors identified and analysed 1225 pieces of COVID‐19 fake news stories taken from fact‐checkers, myth‐busters and COVID‐19 dashboards.

    The study concludes that the COVID‐19 infodemic is full of false claims, half backed conspiracy theories and pseudoscientific therapies, regarding the diagnosis, treatment, prevention, origin and spread of the virus. Fake news is pervasive in social media, putting public health at risk. The scale of the crisis and ubiquity of the misleading information require that scientists, health information professionals and journalists exercise their professional responsibility to help the general public identify fake news stories. They should ensure that accurate information is published and disseminated.

    Source: An Exploration of How Fake News is Taking over Social Media and Putting Public Health at Risk

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