Construction of influencing factors model for public information avoidance behavior in major infectious disease outbreaks based on meta-ethnography

Abstract

ObjectiveMajor infectious disease outbreaks are highly susceptible to diffuse outbreaks due to their sudden and more widespread nature. Compared to previous outbreaks such as the Spanish flu and SARS in China, COVID-19 has greatly affected the health of citizens and the economic development of countries worldwide, and is representative of major infectious disease outbreaks in many ways. Information avoidance, a common information behaviour during major infectious disease outbreaks, can alleviate the stress caused by information overload as a strategy to reduce negative emotions and maintain optimism. However, it can also bias risk perceptions and avoid content of greater value. Therefore, a deeper understanding of public information behaviour, particularly how and why relevant information is circumvented, places a demand on researchers. MethodsA meta-ethnographic qualitative research methodology was used, and the seven steps of the methodology were strictly followed, including identifying integration themes, defining the connotations of integration themes, reading original studies, identifying relationships between studies, inter-translation between studies, synthetic translation, and presenting integration results. 26 original studies were integrated in a unified research framework, with a macro perspective that integrates consistent as well as complex and even contradictory findings and identifies dominant factors. ConclusionsIdentify demographic factors, information literacy, risk perception, cognitive structure, information quality, information sources, external characteristics of information, and environmental characteristics sub-dimensions around the dimensions of ‘individual’, ‘information’ and ‘environment’. The study also explored the factors under each sub-dimension. The study finally identified three dimensions, nine sub-dimensions and 26 factors, and obtained a more complete theoretical framework to construct a “model of factors influencing public information avoidance behaviour in major infectious disease epidemics”, with a view to providing a theoretical basis and practical reference for relevant departments in guiding public information behaviour and health practices in major infectious disease epidemics.