Abstract
Face masks are now seen as a key tool in the world’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. However, during the early stages of the outbreak, face mask use in the United Kingdom (UK) was significantly lower than that of countries equally impacted by the virus. We were interested to explore whether social cognitions played a role in levels of mask wearing. A cross-sectional online survey of UK adults (n=908) was conducted in July 2020. Estimated face mask use and thoughts about wearing face masks were assessed using measures developed for this study. Participants also answered questions about their general mood, social anxiety and basic demographic data. Multiple regression was used to examine factors associated with mask wearing. Participants’ estimated mask wearing was low when in public spaces, such as the park (17%) or walking on the high street (36%). However, broadly fitting with UK guidance at the time, rates were considerably higher when in situations of closer proximity to others, such as on public transport (94%), in a shop or café (62%), when speaking to somebody in an enclosed public space (67%) or in a busy area when social distancing was not possible (79%). When looking at estimated mask wearing when in proximity to others, positive social cognitions (e.g., I’ll look confident and competent wearing a mask) were associated with more wearing, whereas negative social cognitions (e.g., I’ll look anxious, I’ll look foolish) were associated with less wearing. These results remained after controlling for factors that have indicated increased risk from COVID-19 (age, gender, ethnicity, presence of a health condition or pregnancy), belief about the health benefit for others and levels of depression and social anxiety. The largest predictors of mask wearing were the amount of people believed wearing a mask would keep others safe and the presence of an underlying health condition. The study findings indicate that future public health campaigns would benefit from a focus on strengthening beliefs about the protective benefits of masks, but also promoting positive social messages about wearing in public (e.g., mask wearing means you are confident and competent).
Highlights
Face masks have been used worldwide to help reduce the spread of COVID-19
Estimated Percentages of Mask Wearing Scale Participants were asked to rate how much of the time (0–100%) they would wear a mask in six social situations: (1) walking in the park (2) walking on the high street (3) when on public transport (4) in a shop, café or restaurant (5) when in a busy place and social distancing is not possible and (6) when speaking to somebody in an enclosed public space
Rates varied considerably depending on the social situation, from an average of 17% when walking in the park up to 94% when on public transport
Summary
Face masks have been used worldwide to help reduce the spread of COVID-19. prior to the pandemic, they were not a part of UK culture and were rarely seen outside of surgical settings. Sim et al (2014) conducted a literature review (pre-COVID-19 pandemic) in the context of the health belief model on the use of face masks as a preventative measure in the community They found that perceived susceptibility to illness was the most significant factor related to mask wearing. The YouGov survey of mask wearing rates in the UK carried out in May 2020 found that non-mask wearers were more likely to rate themselves as feeling self-conscious and worried about being judged negatively compared to mask wearers (You Gov/Imperial College London, 2020) This indicates a potential role of social embarrassment in predicting low face mask use. We were interested in whether positive and negative social cognitions about mask wearing are associated with levels of wearing in a UK sample when controlling for a range of other factors
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
