Public Behaviour Change Research Articles

Public trust in Chinese elder-care social enterprises: common awareness and diverse perspectives from key stakeholders

Chinese elder-care social enterprises (SEs), emerging hybrid organizations that address welfare problems in elder care through business activities, face ambiguity as the institutionalization of the SE sector is growing rapidly. Few studies have focused on changes in public behavior and trust in this emerging organizational form. The purpose of this research is to identify public trust in Chinese elder-care SEs through the theoretical lens of stakeholder trust. A qualitative methodology was adopted in this study. Common awareness and diverse perspectives among stakeholders were identified by conducting 17 semi-interviews and 3 participatory observations on 5 key stakeholder groups of Chinese elder-care SE, followed by a thematic analysis. The findings identified common awareness and diverse perspectives among stakeholders. First, weak public awareness and confusion were emphasized toward the concept and practice of elder-care SEs. Additionally, although conceptualizing the hybrid nature evoked positive perceptions, the analysis identified a weak consensus about SE norms. In terms of the diverse perspectives of stakeholders, this study found that stakeholders manifested heterogeneous rigor and adherence to social and business dimensions, suggesting the hybrid nature of elder-care SEs. We further interpreted these diverse findings and proposed a framework to explicate different characteristics of stakeholder trust on the basis of hybridity. This research fills a research gap by providing empirical findings on the public trust of an emerging organization. Despite its limitations, the findings demonstrated an understanding of public trust through a relationship-specific perspective, which qualitatively integrated the commonalities and particularities of entities that constitute the public. This work contributes to future studies through its theoretical scope and analytic framework.

Impact of Foodborne Disease in Taiwan during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Background and Objectives: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic originated in Wuhan, China, in December 2019, the first case diagnosed since January 2020 in Taiwan. The study about the potential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on event, location, food source, and pathogens of foodborne disease (FBD) is limited in Taiwan. Our aim in this study is to investigate FBD in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Materials and Methods: We collected publicly available annual summary data from the FBD dataset in the Taiwan Food and Drug Administration and Certifiable Disease on reported FBD in Taiwan from 2019 to 2020. We used logistic regression to evaluate changes in the occurrence or likelihood of FBD cases and Poisson regression to examine the relative risk (RR) between FBD and climate factors. Results: Similar events occurred in 2019 and 2020, but the total number of FBD cases decreased from 6935 in 2019 to 4920 in 2020. The places where FBD decreased were in schools, hospitals, outdoors, vendors, and exteriors. The top place in FBD shifted from schools to restaurants. The top food source for FBD has changed from boxed food to compound food. Bacillus cereus and Salmonella emerged as the top two observed bacterial pathogens causing FBD. The risk of FBD cases increased with a higher air temperature, with an RR of 1.055 (1.05-1.061, p < 0.001) every 1 °C. Conclusion: The incidence of FBD decreased significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic in Taiwan. This decline may be attributed to protective measures implemented to control the spread of the virus. This shift in locations could be influenced by changes in public behavior, regulations, or other external factors. The study emphasizes the importance of understanding the sources and effectiveness of severe infection prevention policies. The government can use these findings to formulate evidence-based policies aimed at reducing FBD cases and promoting public health. Consumers can reduce the risk of FBD by following safe food handling and preparation recommendations.

The role of social media in public health crises caused by infectious disease: a scoping review

ImportanceThe onset of the COVID-19 global pandemic highlighted the increasing role played by social media in the generation, dissemination and consumption of outbreak-related information.ObjectiveThe objective of the current review is...

Swachh Bharat Mission or the Mission to Make India Clean: Addressing Open Defecation at Massive Scale (A)

This case is the first of a three-part series that follows the managerial, strategic, and communications decisions of the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) or Clean India Mission, the flagship programme of the Government of India to eliminate the practice of open defecation (i.e., not using a toilet) from 2014 to 2019. As of 2014, 550 million people in India practiced open defecation. This problem posed a massive public health hazard and economic drag for the country as well as a threat to global health. Written from an insider's perspective, the cases centre on the decisions made by a new Secretary of the India's Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation, who was hired to manage SBM, and the team he assembled. Case A sets the stage for addressing open defecation in rural India and discusses the human resources and strategic challenges to implementing SBM from the vantage point of the new Secretary. It ends with strategic dilemmas related to what the new SBM team should do once they had sized up the challenges to eliminating open defecation by 2019. The case provides an opportunity to deliberate the managerial and strategic decisions of a globally relevant public behaviour change and rural infrastructure development program as well as different forms of public sector implementation in the Indian context.

Determinants of Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Consumption Among Adults in Perambalur District of India

Background Sugar is a ubiquitous element in processed meals and is a major source of the energy we derive from them. The risk of obesity and other chronic conditions, such as high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes mellitus, tooth destruction, as well as dental cavities, increases proportionally with the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs). This study intends to determine the prevalence of SSB intake among adults in the Perambalur area of Tamil Nadu, India, as well as the factors that influence it. Methodology We surveyed 1007 individuals using a cross-sectional design from June to November 2022. We included residents who were at least 18 years old and less than 80 years old. Using a convenience sample method, we gathered responses from the public in the urban and rural field practice areas of a teaching medical college in the district of Perambalur, India. We conducted in-person interviews to get data regarding the consumption of SSBs. Among other socio-demographic information, the participants' names, ages, religions, levels of education and employment, household incomes, family compositions, marital statuses, lifestyle behaviors, and comorbid conditions were also gathered. We measured the SSB consumption frequency and duration, and we also considered the contexts in which they consumed SSBs. We examined the factors that play a role in SSB consumption and questioned the participants' familiarity with SSBs' constituents, adverse effects, and cumulative toll. Besides examining the effects of SSB use, the research also explores the possibility of reducing or stopping it altogether. Results The prevalence of SSB use among the current study population was 96.3%. Half of the population has consumed SSBs, between 100 and 200 ml, for over 10 years. Taste and peer pressure are the primary reasons for facilitating SSBs, whereas the media has a minor impact. Most of the population (69%) began consuming SSBs, mostly during vacations and at parties. About one-fifth of the population experiences negative consequences after ingesting SSBs, while only half of the population is aware of the contents of SSBs. Likewise, just 50% of the population is aware of the long-term implications of SSBs. Nearly 16.7% of the population attempted to stop using SSBs. Being overweight, belonging to a high socioeconomic class, and dwelling in a rural location are risk factors related to the consumption of SSBs. Conclusion The prevalence of SSB use among the current study population is exceptionally high. Being overweight, belonging to a high socioeconomic class, and dwelling in a rural location are risk factors related to the consumption of SSBs. There is a need to educate the public about the short- and long-term negative effects of consuming SSBs. Government and non-government entities must work together to generate public behavior change communication.

COVID-19 forecasting using new viral variants and vaccination effectiveness models

Recently, a high number of daily positive COVID-19 cases have been reported in regions with relatively high vaccination rates; hence, booster vaccination has become necessary. In addition, infections caused by the different variants and correlated factors have not been discussed in depth. With large variabilities and different co-factors, it is difficult to use conventional mathematical models to forecast the incidence of COVID-19. Machine learning based on long short-term memory was applied to forecasting the time series of new daily positive cases (DPC), serious cases, hospitalized cases, and deaths. Data acquired from regions with high rates of vaccination, such as Israel, were blended with the current data of other regions in Japan such that the effect of vaccination was considered in efficient manner. The protection provided by symptomatic infection was also considered in terms of the population effectiveness of vaccination as well as the vaccination protection waning effect and ratio and infectivity of different viral variants. To represent changes in public behavior, public mobility and interactions through social media were also included in the analysis. Comparing the observed and estimated new DPC in Tel Aviv, Israel, the parameters characterizing vaccination effectiveness and the waning protection from infection were well estimated; the vaccination effectiveness of the second dose after 5 months and the third dose after two weeks from infection by the delta variant were 0.24 and 0.95, respectively. Using the extracted parameters regarding vaccination effectiveness, DPC in three major prefectures of Japan were replicated. The key factor influencing the prevention of COVID-19 transmission is the vaccination effectiveness at the population level, which considers the waning protection from vaccination rather than the percentage of fully vaccinated people. The threshold of the efficiency at the population level was estimated as 0.3 in Tel Aviv and 0.4 in Tokyo, Osaka, and Aichi. Moreover, a weighting scheme associated with infectivity results in more accurate forecasting by the infectivity model of viral variants. Results indicate that vaccination effectiveness and infectivity of viral variants are important factors in future forecasting of DPC. Moreover, this study demonstrate a feasible way to project the effect of vaccination using data obtained from other country.

International Perspectives of Prehospital and Hospital Trauma Services: A Literature Review

Background: Evidence suggests that reductions in the incidence in trauma observed in some countries are related to interventions including legislation around road and vehicle safety measures, public behaviour change campaigns, and changes in trauma response systems. This study aims to briefly review recent refereed and grey literature about prehospital and hospital trauma care services in different regions around the world and describe similarities and differences in identified systems to demonstrate the diversity of characteristics present. Methods: Articles published between 2000 and 2020 were retrieved from MEDLINE and EMBASE. Since detailed comparable information was lacking in the published literature, prehospital emergency service providers’ annual performance reports from selected example countries or regions were reviewed to obtain additional information about the performance of prehospital care. Results: The review retained 34 studies from refereed literature related to trauma systems in different regions. In the U.S. and Canada, the trauma care facilities consisted of five different levels of trauma centres ranging from Level I to Level IV and Level I to Level V, respectively. Hospital care and organisation in Japan is different from the U.S. model, with no dedicated trauma centres; however, patients with severe injury are transported to university hospitals’ emergency departments. Other similarities and differences in regional examples were observed. Conclusions: The refereed literature was dominated by research from developed countries such as Australia, Canada, and the U.S., which all have organised trauma systems. Many European countries have implemented trauma systems between the 1990s and 2000s; however, some countries, such as France and Greece, are still forming an integrated system. This review aims to encourage countries with immature trauma systems to consider the similarities and differences in approaches of other countries to implementing a trauma system.

Perilaku Masyarakat Terhadap Penyebaran Hoax Selama Pandemi Covid-19 Melalui Media di Indonesia: Tinjauan Literatur Sistematis

The spread of hoaxes is increasingly widespread in various media, causing changes in public behavior, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. This research was conducted to see the development of publications related to public behavior towards hoaxes, the analysis related to the media for spreading hoaxes, and the impact of the spread of hoaxes on public behavior during the covid-19 pandemic This study uses the Systematic Literature Review (SLR) method by collecting literature related to the topics discussed then conducting an analysis of research on community behavior towards the spread of hoaxes during the COVID-19 pandemic through the media in Indonesia from 2020 to 2021. The results show that there are many the media used as a means of spreading hoaxes makes hoaxes more widespread, lack of understanding of information selection causes the spread of hoaxes to affect public behavior where people are anxious to take action during the covid-19 pandemic. This must be a concern for the government and the community, actions need to be taken to minimize the spread of hoaxes such as information literacy to the public regarding how to filter information from trusted sources.

The impact of COVID-19 vaccination on California's return to normalcy.

SARS-CoV-2 has infected nearly 3.7 million and killed 61,722 Californians, as of May 22, 2021. Non-pharmaceutical interventions have been instrumental in mitigating the spread of the coronavirus. However, as we ease restrictions, widespread implementation of COVID-19 vaccines is essential to prevent its resurgence. In this work, we addressed the adequacy and deficiency of vaccine uptake within California and the possibility and severity of resurgence of COVID-19 as restrictions are lifted given the current vaccination rates. We implemented a real-time Bayesian data assimilation approach to provide projections of incident cases and deaths in California following the reopening of its economy on June 15, 2021. We implemented scenarios that vary vaccine uptake prior to reopening, and transmission rates and effective population sizes following the reopening. For comparison purposes, we adopted a baseline scenario using the current vaccination rates, which projects a total 11,429 cases and 429 deaths in a 15-day period after reopening. We used posterior estimates based on CA historical data to provide realistic model parameters after reopening. When the transmission rate is increased after reopening, we projected an increase in cases by 21.8% and deaths by 4.4% above the baseline after reopening. When the effective population is increased after reopening, we observed an increase in cases by 51.8% and deaths by 12.3% above baseline. A 30% reduction in vaccine uptake alone has the potential to increase cases and deaths by 35% and 21.6%, respectively. Conversely, increasing vaccine uptake by 30% could decrease cases and deaths by 26.1% and 17.9%, respectively. As California unfolds its plan to reopen its economy on June 15, 2021, it is critical that social distancing and public behavior changes continue to be promoted, particularly in communities with low vaccine uptake. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendation to ease mask-wearing for fully vaccinated individuals despite major inequities in vaccine uptake in counties across the state highlights some of the logistical challenges that society faces as we enthusiastically phase out of this pandemic.

Legal countermeasures against COVID-19 in Japan: effectiveness and limits of non-coercive measures

This paper analyzes the Japanese legal responses to COVID-19. Japan did not declare the state of emergency on the constitutional level. In addition, it did not enact a new law and instead amended existing statutes several times to cope with the situation. The paper first introduces provisions of the Novel Influenza Act and Infectious Diseases Acts provisions before and after the February 2021 amendments. The remarkable feature of the Japanese countermeasures was the focus on non-coercive measures. There is no compulsory scheme to ensure “staying at home” for general residents. Regarding the facility managers, the NIA provided for the public announcement of non-compliance of the “recommendation” to ensure effectiveness. The legal nature of such public announcements is disputed in Japanese administrative law. The February 2021 amendments added the possibility of issuing an order whose effectiveness was guaranteed by administrative fines. This paper analyzes the traditional emphasis of “administrative guidance” in Japan and proposes hypotheses as to why open non-compliance cases of facility managers are observed. Concerning patients, prior to the February 2021 amendment, the IDA provided for the problematic legal figures of “recommendation” and “immediate execution”. The Feb. 2021 amendment, which added administrative fines, made the legal figure more complex. COVID-19 countermeasures have highlighted the difficulty of legal control when public behavior change is a policy goal. We must proceed by trial and error and accumulate knowledge regarding legal regulations or governmental messages that effectively affect public behavior. In the process, we should embrace the basic principles of constitutional democracy, such as the democratic legitimacy and accountability of government decisions and the principle of the rule of law. Simultaneously, we must remember that infectious disease control is a matter of human rights and discrimination, especially considering the unfortunate history of infectious disease control in Japan.

What Has Changed in the Behaviors of the Public After the COVID-19 Pandemic? A Cross-Sectional Study From the Saudi Community Perspective.

BackgroundCoronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus (SARS-CoV) and represents a major public health threat that aggressively promotes increased morbidity and mortality. Changes in public behavior were more common during the pandemic to protect against the infection. Suboptimal behavioral practices for a specific disease would increase the susceptibility of the public to infection. This study aimed to determine changes in behaviors of the general public during the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted using an online questionnaire survey to determine the extent of public behavioral changes in Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were collected with a self-reported survey, and analysis was conducted using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 26 (SPSS). A chi-square test was performed to determine the association among variables. A P ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant.ResultsOf 348 respondents, 244 (70.1%) were male, and 270 (77.6%) had a university degree. Approximately 48% used social media to seek COVID-19 information, and 36% (n = 124) avoided large gatherings. Approximately one-fourth of the respondents always avoided public transportation, while 65.8% reported avoiding traveling to infected areas. Of the participants, 33% always washed their hands, while 36% always used an alcohol-based sanitizer. There was a significant association between age group and employment status with respect to hand washing frequency (p < 0.05). There was also a significant association between age group (p < 0.0001) and employment status and wearing of face masks (p < 0.048).ConclusionThis study highlights changes in the public's behaviors in Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic for protection against the infection and reports acceptable preventative practices against COVID-19 in the Saudi community. Furthermore, continuous awareness of recommended protective measures for COVID-19 is still warranted.

Estimation of Real-World Vaccination Effectiveness of mRNA COVID-19 Vaccines against Delta and Omicron Variants in Japan.

A resurgence of COVID-19-positive cases has been observed in many countries in the latter half of 2021. The primary reasons for this resurgence are the waning immunity of vaccination after the second dose of vaccination and the changes in public behavior due to temporal convergence. The vaccination effectiveness for the omicron and delta variants has been reported from some countries, but it is still unclear for several other regions worldwide. Here, we numerically derived the effectiveness of vaccination for infection protection in individuals and populations against viral variants for the entire Japanese population (126 million). The waning immunity of vaccination for the delta variant of Japanese individuals was 93.8% (95% CI: 93.1–94.6%) among individuals <65 years of age and 95.0% (95% CI: 95.6–96.9%) among individuals ≥65 years of age. We found that waning immunity of vaccination in individuals >65 years of age was lower than in those <65 years of age, which may be attributable to human behavior and a higher vaccination rate among individuals >65 years of age. From the reported data of 25,187 positive cases with confirmed omicron variant in Tokyo in January 2022, the effectiveness of vaccination was also estimated at 62.1% (95% CI: 48–66%) compared to that of the delta variant. Derived effectiveness of vaccination would be useful to discuss the vaccination strategy for the booster shot, as well as the status of herd immunity.

Mass media utilization to promote public behavior change during COVID-19 situation: A population survey of Dhaka city

A huge amount of information associated with the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak was circulated by mass media in Bangladesh. There has been a rare example so far of how media intervention during the epidemic can affect the public behaviour of Bangladesh. We aimed to assess mass media's influence on changing public behaviour during the second wave of COVID-19. An online cross-sectional survey among 416 Bangladeshi respondents was conducted between August and September 2021. Besides descriptive statistics, datasets were analyzed through a set of statistical methods such as Pearson’s correlation coefficient, and stepwise multiple regression model. The results showed that knowledge level change towards COVID-19 (10 items) had the highest association with behaviour change towards COVID-19 (16 items), indicating a high adoption of public behavior change. There was a positive significant relationship between the behaviour change towards COVID-19 (16 items) with the media's role in making awareness regarding COVID-19 (r= 0.342, p &lt; .001), while there was a negative relationship between the behaviour change towards COVID-19 (16 items) of the respondents with age of participants (r= -.234, p &lt; .001). The results also disclosed that knowledge level, media credibility, and media check-in had the largest contribution to influence the public behavior change. We also found that social media was highly used media as expected during the COVID-19 outbreak. The outcomes of the survey have vital implications for public behavior change and may support infectious disease suppression and control. Our outcomes also stress the significance of the reliability of information shared via mass media outlets and practical strategies to counter misinformation during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Impact of non-pharmaceutical interventions on the incidences of vaccine-preventable diseases during the COVID-19 pandemic in the eastern of China

ABSTRACT Background In response to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, many countries have implemented mitigating non-pharmaceutical interventions. We investigated the impact of these interventions and changes in public behavior on the incidences of selected vaccine-preventable diseases (VPDs) during the COVID-19 pandemic in the eastern of China. Methods From routine monitoring data collected in the capital of eastern China’s Jiangsu Province, we extracted and analyzed the incidences of influenza; hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD); varicella; mumps; pertussis; and hepatitis B. We also investigated the changes in public behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic through telephone interviews and questionnaire surveys. Results Compared with the baseline (2017–2019), the incidences of all VPDs except influenza declined significantly in 2020 (HFMD decreased by 79.92%, varicella decreased by 7.71%, mumps decreased by 2.03%, pertussis decreased by 78.91%, and hepatitis B decreased by 0.31%). The reduction in reported cases in children (0–14 years) was greater than that in adults, and pertussis had the largest reduction (approximately 80%) in children. Influenza peaks in winter; in the three years before the COVID-19 pandemic, Influenza rates took an average of 10 weeks to recede to their lowest levels after the Spring Festival, while in 2020, this took only 1 week. A total of 366 outbreaks with 20,205 cases were reported during the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the participants in the study, 94.2% of the interviewees avoided going to high-risk areas, 82.4% avoided going to crowded places, 92.9% wore masks when going out,88.4% washed their hands frequently, and 67.9% maintained social distance. Conclusions Our study showed significant reductions in the incidences of VPDs after the implementation of a series of non-pharmaceutical interventions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Analysis of changes in public behavior regarding 3M health protocols during the Covid-19 pandemic in Indonesia

The Covid-19 pandemic has occurred in Indonesia since March 2020. The pandemic period required adjustments in all sectors of life, including changes in people's behavior, namely spending more time at home. Changes in people’s behavior are needed to break the chain of Covid-19 transmissions, one of which is the implementation of Health protocols. Research on the behavior of the Indonesian people in dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic includes public knowledge and understanding, compliance in implementing the 3M health protocols, and the important factors that influence changes in people's behavior to comply with the health protocol. Data was collected by distributing online questionnaires, surveys to crowd locations and FGDs. National online and offline surveys are divided into 3 regions, namely Java, West Indonesia and East Indonesia. The analysis was carried out using statistical methods, namely dependency analysis, factor analysis, and multinomial regression. The conclusion is that people who have implemented the 3M protocol and have confidence in the effectiveness of 3M tend to believe that the 3M protocol is important to continue to be implemented. In addition, it is known that social media, TV, and online media almost always ranked in the top three of the most media respondents to get information about the importance of implementing health protocols.

Impact of Covid-19 on the dynamics of MTPL insurance premiums and claims paid in Latvia

COVID-19 has devastated societies and economies around the world, leaving no sector untouched. The unprecedented crisis caused by Covid-19 led to unexpected changes in public behaviour: the restrictions imposed, especially during the pandemic outbreaks in March-April and November-December 2020, left a significant impact on traffic volumes. By the spring of 2020, more than half of the world’s population had been isolated with tough containment measures. Opportunities to work from home reduced the need to use private cars and, consequently, the demand for motor third party liability (MTPL) insurance. In order to understand the significance of the impact of the pandemic on MTPL insurance premiums and claims, the authors studied the impact of macroeconomic factors on the insurance market in Latvia in the period from 2005-2020. Using regression analysis methods, the evidence was obtained that changes in the macroeconomic situation significantly affect one of the main non-life insurance segments MTPL insurance. A set of indicators, that most significantly affect revenues and expenses in this business segment of insurance companies, was determined. The findings provide useful recommendations for insurance companies to reduce business risks and promote sustainable development. The results of the study are important for insurance-related econometric analysis, investment decisions, forecasting, and policy development.

Pemantauan Perhatian Publik terhadap Pandemi COVID-19 melalui Klasifikasi Teks dengan Deep Learning

Monitoring public concern in the surrounding environment to certain events is done to address changes in public behavior individually and socially. The results of monitoring public attention can be used as a benchmark for related parties in making the right policies and strategies to deal with changes in public behavior as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Monitoring public attention can be done using Twitter social media data because the users of the media are quite high, so that they can represent the aspirations of the general public. However, Twitter data contains varied topics, so a classification process is required to obtain data related to COVID-19. Classification is done by using word embedding variations (Word2Vec and fastText) and deep learning variations (CNN, RNN, and LSTM) to get the classification results with the best accuracy. The percentage of COVID-19 data based on the best accuracy is calculated to determine how high the public's attention is to the COVID-19 pandemic. Experiments were carried out with three scenarios, which were differentiated by the number of data trains. The classification results with the best accuracy are obtained by the combination of fasText and LSTM which shows the highest accuracy of 97.86% and the lowest of 93.63%. The results of monitoring public attention to the time vulnerability between June and October show that the highest public attention to COVID-19 is in June.

Identifying Degree-of-Concern on COVID-19 topics with text classification of Twitters

The COVID-19 pandemic has various impacts on changing people’s behavior socially and individually. This study identifies the Degree-of-Concern topic of COVID-19 through citizen conversations on Twitter. It aims to help related parties make policies for developing appropriate emergency response strategies in dealing with changes in people’s behavior due to the pandemic. The object of research is 12,000 data from verified Twitter accounts in Surabaya. The varied nature of Twitter needs to be classified to address specific COVID-19 topics. The first stage of classification is to separate Twitter data into COVID-19 and non-COVID-19. The second stage is to classify the COVID-19 data into seven classes: warnings and suggestions, notification of information, donations, emotional support, seeking help, criticism, and hoaxes. Classification is carried out using a combination of word embedding (Word2Vec and fastText) and deep learning methods (CNN, RNN, and LSTM). The trial was carried out with three scenarios with different numbers of train data for each scenario. The classification results show the highest accuracy is 97.3% and 99.4% for the first and second stage classification obtained from the combination of fastText and LSTM. The results show that the classification of the COVID-19 topic can be used to identify Degree-of-Concern properly. The results of the Degree-of-Concern identification based on the classification can be used as a basis for related parties in making policies to formulate appropriate emergency response strategies in dealing with changes in public behavior due to a pandemic.

Investigating Handwashing Frequency in Canadians as a Result of the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic was an unprecedented event that has generated many changes in public behaviour. The purpose of this study was to examine if Canadians are increasing their handwashing compliance due to the pandemic as well as to assess if different demographic variables are associated with handwashing knowledge or behaviour.

The impact of policy timing on the spread of COVID-19.

We model COVID-19 data for 89 nations and US states with a recently developed formalism that describes mathematically any pattern of growth with the minimum number of parameters. The results show that the disease has a typical duration of 18 days, with a significant increase in fatality when it lasts longer than about 4 months. Searching for correlations between “flattening of the curve” and preventive public policies, we find strong statistical evidence for the impact of the first implemented policy on decreasing the pandemic growth rate; a delay of one week in implementation nearly triples the size of the infected population, on average. Without any government action, the initial outburst still slows down after 36 days, possibly thanks to changes in public behavior in response to the pandemic toll. Stay-at-home (lockdown) was not the first policy of any sample member, and we could not find statistically meaningful evidence for its added impact, similar to a recent study that employed an entirely different approach. However, lockdown was mostly imposed only shortly before the exponential rise was arrested by other measures, too late for a meaningful impact. A third of the sample members that did implement lockdown imposed it only after the outburst had already started to slow down. The possibility remains that lockdown might have significantly shortened the initial exponential rise had it been employed as first resort rather than last.