Gender Differences in Health Protective Behaviours During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Taiwan: A Multistage, Nationwide, Empirical Study

Abstract

Introduction: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection produces more severe symptoms and a higher mortality in men than in women. The role of biological sex in the immune response to SARS-CoV-2 is believed to explain this sex disparity. However, the contribution of gender factors that influence health protective behaviors and therefore health outcomes, remains poorly explored. Methods: We assessed the contributions of gender in attitudes towards the COVID-19 pandemic, using a hypothetical influenza pandemic data from the 2014 Taiwan Social Change Survey. Participants were selected through a stratified, three-stage probability proportional-to-size sampling from across the nation, to fill in questionnaires that asked about their perception of the hypothetical pandemic, and intention to adopt health protective behaviors. Results: A total of 1,990 participants (median age 45·92 years, 49% women) were included. Significant gender disparities (pConclusion: This study unveils gender differences in risk perception, health protective behaviors, vaccine hesitancy, and compliance with contact-tracing using a hypothetical viral pandemic. Gender-specific health education raising awareness of health protective behaviors may be beneficial to prevent future pandemics.Funding: None to declare. Declaration of Interest: None to declare. Ethical Approval: The ethics committees/institutional review boards of the Academia Sinica, Taiwan approved this study and the consent procedure.