The Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong.
Department of Media and Communication, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong.
J Med Internet Res. 2022 Mar 22;24(3):e31088. doi: 10.2196/31088.
Although timely and accurate information during the COVID-19 pandemic is essential for containing the disease and reducing mental distress, an infodemic, which refers to an overabundance of information, may trigger unpleasant emotions and reduce compliance. Prior research has shown the negative consequences of an infodemic during the pandemic; however, we know less about which subpopulations are more exposed to the infodemic and are more vulnerable to the adverse psychological and behavioral effects.
This study aimed to examine how sociodemographic factors and information-seeking behaviors affect the perceived information overload during the COVID-19 pandemic. We also investigated the effect of perceived information overload on psychological distress and protective behavior and analyzed the socioeconomic differences in the effects.
The data for this study were obtained from a cross-national survey of residents in 6 jurisdictions in Asia in May 2020. The survey targeted residents aged 18 years or older. A probability-based quota sampling strategy was adopted to ensure that the selected samples matched the population's geographical and demographic characteristics released by the latest available census in each jurisdiction. The final sample included 10,063 respondents. Information overload about COVID-19 was measured by asking the respondents to what extent they feel overwhelmed by news related to COVID-19. The measure of psychological distress was adapted from the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5 (DSM-5). Protective behaviors included personal hygienic behavior and compliance with social distancing measures.
Younger respondents and women (b=0.20, 95% CI 0.14 to 0.26) were more likely to perceive information overload. Participants self-perceived as upper or upper-middle class (b=0.19, 95% CI 0.09 to 0.30) and those with full-time jobs (b=0.11, 95% CI 0.04 to 0.17) tended to perceive higher information overload. Respondents who more frequently sought COVID-19 information from newspapers (b=0.12, 95% CI 0.11 to 0.14), television (b=0.07, 95% CI 0.05 to 0.09), and family and friends (b=0.11, 95% CI 0.09 to 0.14) were more likely to feel overwhelmed. In contrast, obtaining COVID-19 information from online news outlets and social media was not associated with perceived information overload. There was a positive relationship between perceived information overload and psychological distress (b=2.18, 95% CI 2.09 to 2.26). Such an association was stronger among urban residents, full-time employees, and those living in privately owned housing. The effect of perceived information overload on protective behavior was not significant.
Our findings revealed that respondents who were younger, were female, had a higher socioeconomic status (SES), and had vulnerable populations in the household were more likely to feel overwhelmed by COVID-19 information. Perceived information overload tended to increase psychological distress, and people with higher SES were more vulnerable to this adverse psychological consequence. Effective policies and interventions should be promoted to target vulnerable populations who are more susceptible to the occurrence and negative psychological influence of perceived information overload.
虽然在 COVID-19 大流行期间及时、准确的信息对于控制疾病和减轻精神压力至关重要，但信息过剩，即信息过多，可能会引发不愉快的情绪，并降低人们的配合度。先前的研究表明，大流行期间存在信息过剩会产生负面影响；然而，我们对于哪些亚人群更容易接触到信息过剩，以及哪些亚人群更容易受到不良心理和行为影响知之甚少。
本研究旨在探讨社会人口因素和信息搜索行为如何影响 COVID-19 大流行期间的感知信息过载。我们还研究了感知信息过载对心理困扰和保护行为的影响，并分析了社会经济差异的影响。
本研究的数据来自 2020 年 5 月亚洲 6 个司法管辖区居民的跨国调查。该调查的目标人群是年龄在 18 岁及以上的居民。采用基于概率的配额抽样策略，以确保所选样本与每个司法管辖区最新可用人口普查的地理和人口特征相匹配。最终样本包括 10063 名受访者。感知到的 COVID-19 信息过载程度通过要求受访者在多大程度上感到被与 COVID-19 相关的新闻所淹没来衡量。心理困扰的衡量标准是改编自《精神疾病诊断与统计手册第五版》（DSM-5）的创伤后应激障碍检查表。保护行为包括个人卫生行为和遵守社会距离措施。
年轻的受访者和女性（b=0.20，95%置信区间 0.14 至 0.26）更有可能感到信息过载。自认为属于中上阶层（b=0.19，95%置信区间 0.09 至 0.30）和全职工作者（b=0.11，95%置信区间 0.04 至 0.17）往往会感到更高的信息过载。更频繁地从报纸（b=0.12，95%置信区间 0.11 至 0.14）、电视（b=0.07，95%置信区间 0.05 至 0.09）和家人朋友（b=0.11，95%置信区间 0.09 至 0.14）获取 COVID-19 信息的受访者更有可能感到不知所措。相比之下，从在线新闻媒体和社交媒体获取 COVID-19 信息与感知到的信息过载无关。感知到的信息过载与心理困扰之间存在正相关关系（b=2.18，95%置信区间 2.09 至 2.26）。这种关联在城市居民、全职员工和居住在自有住房的人中更强。感知到的信息过载对保护行为的影响并不显著。
我们的研究结果表明，年龄较小、女性、社会经济地位较高（SES）以及家中有弱势群体的受访者更容易被 COVID-19 信息淹没。感知到的信息过载往往会增加心理困扰，而 SES 较高的人更容易受到这种不良心理后果的影响。应该推广有效的政策和干预措施，以针对更容易受到感知信息过载发生和负面影响的弱势群体。
