Experimental evidence that changing beliefs about mask efficacy and social norms increase mask wearing for COVID-19 risk reduction: Results from the United States and Italy.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Bokemper SE
PROVIDER: S-EPMC8504748 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:Using a regional measure of gender norms from the General Social Surveys together with marital histories from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, this study explored how gender norms were associated with women's marriage dynamics between 1968 and 2012. Results suggested that a higher prevalence of egalitarian gender norms predicted a decline in marriage formation. This decline was, however, only true for women without a college degree. For college-educated women, the association between gender norms and marriage formation became positive when gender egalitarianism prevailed. The findings also revealed an inverted U-shaped relationship between gender norms and divorce: an initial increase in divorce was observed when gender norms were predominantly traditional. The association, however, reversed as gender norms became egalitarian. No differences by education were found for divorce. The findings partially support the gender revolution framework but also highlight greater barriers to marriage for low-educated women as societies embrace gender equality.
| S-EPMC5766036 | biostudies-literature
Project description:IntroductionCloth face coverings and surgical masks have become commonplace across the United States in response to the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic. While evidence suggests masks help curb the spread of respiratory pathogens, research is limited. Face masks have quickly become a topic of public debate as government mandates have started requiring their use. Here we investigate the association between self-reported mask wearing, social distancing and community SARS-CoV-2 transmission in the United States, as well as the effect of statewide mandates on mask uptake.MethodsSerial cross-sectional surveys were administered June 3 through July 27, 2020 via web platform. Surveys queried individuals' likelihood to wear a face mask to the grocery store or with family and friends. Responses (N=378,207) were aggregated by week and state and combined with measures of the instantaneous reproductive number (Rt), social distancing proxies, respondent demographics and other potential sources of confounding. We fit multivariate logistic regression models to estimate the association between mask wearing and community transmission control (Rt <1) for each state and week. Multiple sensitivity analyses were considered to corroborate findings across mask wearing definitions, Rt estimators and data sources. Additionally, mask wearing in 12 states was evaluated two weeks before and after statewide mandates.ResultsWe find an upward trend in mask usage across the U.S., although uptake varies by geography and demographic groups. A multivariate logistic model controlling for social distancing and other variables found a 10% increase in mask wearing was associated with a 3.53 (95% CI: 2.03, 6.43) odds of transmission control (Rt <1). We also find that communities with high mask wearing and social distancing have the highest predicted probability of a controlled epidemic. These positive associations were maintained across sensitivity analyses. Segmented regression analysis of mask wearing found no statistical change following mandates, however the positive trend of increased mask wearing over time was preserved.ConclusionWidespread utilization of face masks combined with social distancing increases the odds of SARS-CoV-2 transmission control. Mask wearing rose separately from government mask mandates, suggesting supplemental public health interventions are needed to maximize mask adoption and disrupt the spread of SARS-CoV-2, especially as social distancing measures are relaxed.
| S-EPMC7457618 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has caused an unprecedented public health crisis worldwide. Its intense politicization constantly made headlines, especially regarding the use of face masks as a safety precaution. However, the extent to which public opinion is polarized on wearing masks has remained anecdotal and the verbal representation of this polarization has not been explored. This study examined the types, themes, temporal trends, and exchange patterns of hashtags about mask wearing posted from March 1 to August 1, 2020 by Twitter users based in the United States. On the one hand, we found a stark rhetorical polarization in terms of semantic antagonism between pro- and anti-mask hashtags, exponential frequency increases of both types of hashtags during the period under study, in parallel to growing COVID-19 case counts, state mask mandates, and media coverage. On the other hand, the results showed an asymmetric participatory polarization in terms of a predominance of pro-mask hashtags along with an "echo chamber" effect in the dominant pro-mask group, which ignored the subversive rhetoric of the anti-mask minority. Notwithstanding the limitations of the research, this study provides a nuanced account of the digital polarization of public opinion on mask wearing. It draws attention to political polarization both as a rhetorical phenomenon and as a participatory process.
| S-EPMC8081244 | biostudies-literature
Project description:ObjectivesA hasty reopening has led to a resurgence of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the United States (US). We aimed to quantify the impact of several public health measures including non-medical mask-wearing, shelter-in-place, and detection of silent infections to help inform COVID-19 mitigation strategies.MethodsWe extended a previously established agent-based disease transmission model and parameterized it with estimates of COVID-19 characteristics and US population demographics. We implemented non-medical mask-wearing, shelter-in-place, and case isolation as control measures, and quantified their impact on reducing the attack rate and adverse clinical outcomes.ResultsWe found that non-medical mask-wearing by 75% of the population reduced infections, hospitalizations, and deaths by 37.7% (interquartile range (IQR): 36.1-39.4%), 44.2% (IQR: 42.9-45.8%), and 47.2% (IQR: 45.5-48.7%), respectively, in the absence of a shelter-in-place strategy. Sheltering individuals aged 50 to 64 years of age was the most efficient strategy, decreasing attack rate, hospitalizations, and deaths by over 82% when combined with mask-wearing. Outbreak control was achieved in the simulated scenarios and the attack rate was reduced to below 1% when at least 33% of silent pre-symptomatic and asymptomatic infections were identified and isolated.ConclusionsMask-wearing, even with the use of non-medical masks, has a substantial impact on outbreak control. A judicious implementation of shelter-in-place strategies remains an important public health intervention amid ongoing outbreaks.
| S-EPMC7544634 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundFace mask wearing has been identified as an effective strategy to prevent the transmission of SARS-CoV-2, yet mask mandates were never imposed nationally in the United States. This decision resulted in a patchwork of local policies and varying compliance, potentially generating heterogeneities in the local trajectories of COVID-19 in the United States. Although numerous studies have investigated the patterns and predictors of masking behavior nationally, most suffer from survey biases and none have been able to characterize mask wearing at fine spatial scales across the United States through different phases of the pandemic.ObjectiveUrgently needed is a debiased spatiotemporal characterization of mask-wearing behavior in the United States. This information is critical to further assess the effectiveness of masking, evaluate the drivers of transmission at different time points during the pandemic, and guide future public health decisions through, for example, forecasting disease surges.MethodsWe analyzed spatiotemporal masking patterns in over 8 million behavioral survey responses from across the United States, starting in September 2020 through May 2021. We adjusted for sample size and representation using binomial regression models and survey raking, respectively, to produce county-level monthly estimates of masking behavior. We additionally debiased self-reported masking estimates using bias measures derived by comparing vaccination data from the same survey to official records at the county level. Lastly, we evaluated whether individuals' perceptions of their social environment can serve as a less biased form of behavioral surveillance than self-reported data.ResultsWe found that county-level masking behavior was spatially heterogeneous along an urban-rural gradient, with mask wearing peaking in winter 2021 and declining sharply through May 2021. Our results identified regions where targeted public health efforts could have been most effective and suggest that individuals' frequency of mask wearing may be influenced by national guidance and disease prevalence. We validated our bias correction approach by comparing debiased self-reported mask-wearing estimates with community-reported estimates, after addressing issues of a small sample size and representation. Self-reported behavior estimates were especially prone to social desirability and nonresponse biases, and our findings demonstrated that these biases can be reduced if individuals are asked to report on community rather than self behaviors.ConclusionsOur work highlights the importance of characterizing public health behaviors at fine spatiotemporal scales to capture heterogeneities that may drive outbreak trajectories. Our findings also emphasize the need for a standardized approach to incorporating behavioral big data into public health response efforts. Even large surveys are prone to bias; thus, we advocate for a social sensing approach to behavioral surveillance to enable more accurate estimates of health behaviors. Finally, we invite the public health and behavioral research communities to use our publicly available estimates to consider how bias-corrected behavioral estimates may improve our understanding of protective behaviors during crises and their impact on disease dynamics.
| S-EPMC10028521 | biostudies-literature
Project description:In the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, barrier gestures such as regular hand-washing, social distancing, and wearing a face mask are highly recommended. Critically, interpersonal distance (IPD) depends on the affective dimension of social interaction, which might be affected by the current Covid-19 context. In the present internet-based experimental study, we analyzed the preferred IPD of 457 French participants when facing human-like characters that were either wearing a face mask or displaying a neutral, happy or angry facial expression. Results showed that IPD was significantly reduced when characters were wearing a face mask, as they were perceived as more trustworthy compared to the other conditions. Importantly, IPD was even more reduced in participants infected with Covid-19 or living in low-risk areas, while it was not affected by the predicted health of the characters. These findings shed further light on the psychological factors that motivate IPD adjustments, in particular when facing a collective threat. They are also of crucial importance for policy makers as they reveal that despite the indisputable value of wearing a face mask in the current pandemic context, their use should be accompanied by an emphasis on social distancing to prevent detrimental health consequences.
| S-EPMC7721169 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Human behavior can have effects on oneself and externalities on others. Mask wearing is such a behavior in the current pandemic. What motivates people to wear face masks in public when mask wearing is voluntary or not enforced? Which benefits should the policy makers rather emphasize in information campaigns-the reduced chances of getting the SARS-CoV-2 virus (benefits for oneself) or the reduced chances of transmitting the virus (benefits for others in the society)? In this paper, we link measured risk preferences and other-regarding preferences to mask wearing habits among 840 surveyed employees of two large Swiss hospitals. We find that the leading mask-wearing motivations change with age: While for older people, mask wearing habits are best explained by their self-regarding risk preferences, younger people are also motivated by other-regarding concerns. Our results are robust to different specifications including linear probability models, probit models and Lasso covariate selection models. Our findings thus allow drawing policy implications for effectively communicating public-health recommendations to frontline workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
| S-EPMC8289104 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Popular press outlets have proposed that older individuals are less likely to wear face masks despite health benefits of doing so during the COVID-19 pandemic. The current article investigates this notion in four separate studies, and we also assess the mediating effect of face mask perceptions between age and face mask wearing using the eight-dimension Face Masks Perceptions Scale (FMPS). The sample-size weighted average correlation between age and face mask wearing was -.07 (95%C.I.[-.14, .001], Z-value = -1.928, P = .054, n = 824), indicating that older individuals are slightly less likely to wear face masks compared to younger individuals. Age did not have significant relations with any face mask perceptions, and the mediating effect of face mask perceptions was not robust or consistent. This indicates that the relation between age and face mask wearing is not explained by face mask perceptions, and researchers must turn to other explanatory mechanisms to understand this relation. We propose possible avenues, such as dual-system theories, to further investigate this research question as well as others associated with face mask perceptions, face mask wearing and the COVID-19 pandemic.
| S-EPMC7928787 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The recent controversy about misinformation has moved a question into the focus of the public eye that has occupied philosophers for decades: Under what conditions is it appropriate to assert a certain claim? When asserting a claim that x, must one know that x? Must x be true? Might it be normatively acceptable to assert whatever one believes? In the largest cross-cultural study to date (total n = 1,091) on the topic, findings from the United States, Germany, and Japan suggest that, in order to claim that x, x need not be known, and it can be false. However, the data show, we do expect considerable epistemic responsibility on the speaker's behalf: In order to appropriately assert a claim, the speaker must have good reasons to believe it.
| S-EPMC8449385 | biostudies-literature
Project description:To curb the diffusion of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), governments worldwide have introduced different policies, including lockdowns, social distancing, and mandatory mask wearing. Face mask wearing, especially, has an impact on the formation of first impressions, given that when meeting someone for the first time, individuals rely on the only available piece of information, the newly met person's aesthetic appearance, in order to make initial estimations of other traits, such as competence, intelligence, or trustworthiness. However, face mask wearing affects the aesthetic appearance of an individual, creating uncertainty which, in turn, has been reported to reduce others' perceived trustworthiness. In this paper, the influence of face mask wearing on strangers' perceived trustworthiness and aesthetic appearance is assessed to verify the impact of this policy on impression formation. Participants (N = 71) have been instructed to assess the trustworthiness and the aesthetic appearance of a selection of 96 images depicting individuals of different ages (children, adults, and older adults), gender (men and women), and ethnicity (Asians or Caucasians). Participants were randomly divided into two groups: an experimental group and a control group. Participants in the experimental group (N = 38) rated faces of individuals wearing a face mask, while participants in the control group rated the same faces but in the absence of a face mask. Images were presented in random order. For each face, participants were asked to rate the aesthetic appearance and perceived trustworthiness of the stranger on two different 100-point Likert scales. Results demonstrate that (i) the correlation between perceived trustworthiness and aesthetic appearance is not affected by the presence of a face mask, and (ii) age, but not ethnicity and gender, influences the magnitude of differences in perceived trustworthiness levels during mask wearing.
| S-EPMC8628681 | biostudies-literature