Predictors of confidence and trust in government and institutions during the COVID-19 response in Australia.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Nickel B
PROVIDER: S-EPMC9151076 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:The COVID-19 pandemic has brought forward myriad challenges to public policy, central of which is understanding the different contextual factors that can influence the effectiveness of policy responses across different systems. In this article, we explore how trust in government can influence the ability of COVID-19 policy responses to curb excess mortality during the pandemic. Our findings indicate that stringent policy responses play a central role in curbing excess mortality. They also indicate that such relationship is not only influenced by systematic and structural factors, but also by citizens' trust in government. We leverage our findings to propose a set of recommendations for policymakers on how to enhance crisis policymaking and strengthen the designs of the widely used underlying policy learning processes.
| S-EPMC8977432 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The online poll collected a data set on the confidence sentiments of Malaysians on the following three major areas with their respective events related to the Covid-19 pandemic. Foremost, the survey gathered the data of the respondents on their vaccination registration, and confidence on the efficacy of the available vaccines, respectively. In addition, the respondents were asked of their confidence of an economic recovery with the availability of the vaccines, the government in managing the Covid-19 pandemic, and an economic recovery for the country, respectively. Furthermore, the respondents were asked of their likelihood to exercise their voter's rights before and after herd immunity. The convenience sampling was applied between March and April 2021 and participated by 1,136 respondents. The confidence levels were measured on a Likert-scale of 1 (lowest) to 10 (highest). The mean values were considerably high indicating healthy confidence levels of Malaysians on all the events described. The socio-demographic characteristics of the respondents were also collected. Near 60 percent of Malaysians had registered for the vaccination programme. All the events showed weak significant correlations between them. The correlations between the events and socio-demographic characteristics were analysed and the results showed no correlations between the events and ethnicity, and gender respectively. Although the data of the poll is limited, they can be used as a reference point for researchers, and data review for the future generations to understand the events during the Covid-19 pandemic in Malaysia.
| S-EPMC8996447 | biostudies-literature
Project description: Not available
| S-EPMC9444179 | biostudies-literature
Project description:We investigate the antecedents of subjective financial well-being and general well-being during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. In an online survey conducted in the midst of COVID-19 pandemic with over 1000 Swedish participants we found that distrust in the government to cope with financial (but not healthcare) challenges of the pandemic was negatively related to the feeling of financial security. In a structural equation model, we also show that trust in government to deal with financial challenges of COVID-19 pandemic has a significant impact on general well-being through the mediating channel of financial well-being. In addition, trust in government to deal with healthcare challenges of COVID-19 pandemic has a significant direct impact on individuals' general well-being. Our findings have important implications for public policy as they highlight the importance of citizens' trust in well-functioning governmental institutions to help cope with not only healthcare, but also financial challenges of an ongoing pandemic.
| S-EPMC8444950 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The central focus of this research is the fast and crucial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on a crucial psychological, relational, and political construct: trust. We investigate how the consequences of the pandemic, in terms of healthcare, state intervention and impositions, and daily life and habits, have affected trust in public institutions in Italy, at the time when the contagion was rapidly spreading in the country (early March 2020). In this survey, addressed to 4260 Italian citizens, we analyzed and measured such impact, focusing on various aspects of trust. This attention to multiple dimensions of trust constitutes the key conceptual advantage of this research, since trust is a complex and layered construct, with its own internal dynamics. In particular, the analysis focuses on how citizens attribute trust to Public Authorities, in relation to the management of the health crisis: with regard to the measures and guidelines adopted, the purposes pursued, the motivations that determine them, their capacity for involvement, and their effectiveness for the containment of the virus itself. A pandemic creates a bilateral need for trust, both in Public Authorities (they have to rely on citizens' compliance and must try to promote and maintain their trust in order to be effective) and in citizens, since they need to feel that somebody can do something, can (has the power to) protect them, to act at the needed collective level. We are interested to explore how this need for trust affects the attributional process, regarding both attitudes and the corresponding decisions and actions. The most striking result of this survey is the very high level of institutional trust expressed by respondents: 75% of them trust Italian public authorities to be able to deal with the COVID-19 emergency. This is in sharp contrast with the relatively low levels of institutional trust characteristic of Italy, both historically and in recent surveys. Moreover, the survey allowed the discrimination of several potential predictors for trust, thus emphasizing factors that, during this crisis, are exhibiting an anomalous impact on trust.
| S-EPMC7562978 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Objectives: To investigate country-specific drivers and barriers of positive COVID-19 vaccine intentions in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH), one of the two entities comprising Bosnia and Herzegovina. Methods: A cross-sectional study design was used, using an online behavioural insights survey tool adapted to the context of FBiH. Three survey waves, each including approximately 1,000 adults, were conducted in July, September and December 2020. Fixed-effects regression analysis was used to explore the drivers, barriers and attitudes towards accepting a future COVID-19 vaccine. Results: COVID-19 risk perception, trust in health institutions and negative affect were positive predictors of positive COVID-19 vaccine intentions, as were living in urban areas and having a college education (versus having primary or secondary education). Conversely, being female, feeling that the pandemic was overhyped by the media and the country of vaccine production were negative predictors. Conclusion: This study provided snapshots on the state of attitudes regarding a future COVID-19 vaccine acceptance and hesitancy in 2020. These findings provided useful insights into the efforts to introduce and roll out the COVID-19 vaccines in FBiH. Further efforts should focus on better understanding the demographic, cultural and behavioural contexts of COVID-related vaccination perceptions in FBiH.
| S-EPMC9036943 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundSelf-stigmatization in the context of infectious diseases can be a psychosocial burden and reduce the cooperation with infection control measures. This study investigates for the first time the level of self-stigmatization among individuals with different social and medical vulnerabilities in Germany.MethodsData are derived from an online survey (CAWI: Computer Assisted Web Interview) conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic in winter 2020/21. The quota sample (N = 2536) is representative for the key variables gender, age, education, and place of residence for the German adult population. For operationalizing COVID-19 related self-stigmatization, we developed a new scale. We also collected information on medical and social vulnerabilities as well as trust in institutions. Data analysis was based on descriptive statistics and multiple ordinary least squares (OLS) regression.ResultsOverall, we find a level of self-stigmatization slightly over the scale mean. While socially vulnerable groups do not have higher levels of self-stigmatization - with the exception of women - individuals with medical vulnerabilities (higher infection risks, poor health status, risk group) show higher levels of self-stigma. Higher trust in institutions is associated with higher levels of self-stigmatization.DiscussionStigmatization should be regularly monitored during pandemics and considered in communication measures. Thus, it is important to pay attention to less stigmatizing formulations and to point out risks without defining risk groups.
| S-EPMC10372126 | biostudies-literature
Project description:What influences the adoption of SARS-CoV-2 mitigation behaviors-both personal, such as mask wearing and frequent handwashing, and social, such as avoiding large gatherings and physical contact-across countries? Understanding why some individuals are more willing to change their behavior to mitigate the spread of a pandemic will not only help us to address the current SARS-CoV-2 pandemic but also to respond to future ones. Researchers have pointed to a variety of factors that may influence individual adoption of personal and social mitigation behaviors, including social inequality, risk perception, personality traits, and government policies. While not denying the importance of these factors, we argue that the role of trust and confidence has received insufficient attention to date. Our study explores whether there is a difference in the way trust and confidence in particular leaders and organizations affect individual compliance and whether this effect is consistent across different types of mitigation behaviors. Specifically, we utilize an original cross-national survey conducted during the first wave of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic (May-June 2020) to investigate how trust in scientists, medical professionals, politicians, and religious leaders and confidence in global, national, and local health organizations affects individual compliance in 16 countries/territories across five world regions. Our analyses, which control for the aforementioned factors as well as several others, suggest that trust in politicians and confidence in national health ministries have the most consistent influence on whether individuals adopt both personal and social mitigation behaviors. Across our sample, we find that greater trust in politicians is associated with lower levels of individual compliance with public health directives, whereas greater confidence in the national health ministry is associated with higher levels of individual compliance. Our findings suggest the need to understand trust and confidence as among the most important individual level characteristics driving compliance when developing and delivering messaging about the adoption of mitigation behaviors. The content of the message, it seems, will be most effective when citizens across countries trust its source. Trusted sources, such as politicians and the national health ministry, should thus consider working closely together when determining and communicating recommended health behaviors to avoid contradicting one another.
| S-EPMC8425551 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundResearch suggests that preventive measures are critical to reducing the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), but evidence regarding the association between trust in government and the practice of preventive measures is limited.ObjectiveTo examine whether the practice of preventive measures against COVID-19 differs by one's level of trust in government.DesignA cross-sectional analysis using the Japan COVID-19 and Society Internet Survey (JACSIS) conducted in August and September 2020.ParticipantsA nationally representative sample of Japanese individuals aged 15 through 79 years.Main measuresThe primary outcome was the composite score for COVID-19 preventive measures, defined as the percentage of preventive measures an individual reported to be practicing (out of nine measures: social distancing, wearing masks, avoiding closed spaces, avoiding crowded spaces, avoiding close contact settings, hand washing, avoiding touching one's face, respiratory hygiene, and surface disinfection). The secondary outcomes were (1) support for stay-at-home requests, (2) use of a contact-tracing app, and (3) receipt of the influenza vaccine in the previous season.Key resultsOur analysis included a total of 25,482 individuals. After adjusting for potential confounders, we found that individuals with high trust in government were likely to practice preventive measures more frequently compared to those with low trust (adjusted composite scores, 83.8% for high- vs. 79.5% for low-trust individuals; adjusted difference, +4.3 percentage points [pp]; 95% CI, +2.4 to +6.2pp; P<0.001). We also found that high trust in government was associated with higher likelihoods of support for stay-at-home requests, use of a contact-tracing app, and receipt of the influenza vaccine in the previous season.ConclusionsHigh trust in government was associated with a higher intensity of practicing COVID-19 preventive measures among Japanese individuals at the national level. Our findings may provide useful information to develop and design effective public health interventions.
| S-EPMC8218973 | biostudies-literature
Project description:This paper draws upon the concept of recreancy to examine the mental well-being of university students during the Covid-19 pandemic. Briefly, recreancy is loss of societal trust that results when institutional actors can no longer be counted on to perform their responsibilities. Our study of mental well-being and recreancy focuses on the role of universities and government regulators within the education sector. We surveyed 600 UK students attending 161 different public higher education providers in October 2020 during a time when many UK students were isolated in their residences and engaged in online learning. We assessed student well-being using the Short Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (scored 7-35) and found the mean score to be 19.9 [95% confidence interval (CI) 19.6, 20.2]. This level of well-being indicates that a significant proportion of UK students face low levels of mental well-being. Structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis indicates that high recreancy-measured as a low trust in universities and the government-is associated with low levels of mental well-being across the student sample. While these findings are suggestive, they are also important and we suggest that government and university leaders should not only work to increase food and housing security during the Covid-19 pandemic, but also consider how to combat various sector trends that might intensify recreancy.
| S-EPMC8107392 | biostudies-literature