Kraege Vanessa, Dumans-Louis Céline, Maglieri Céline, Bochatay Séverine, Durand Marie-Anne, Garnier Antoine, Selby Kevin, von Plessen Christian
Innovation and Clinical Research Directorate, University Hospital of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
Faculty of Biology and Medicine, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
Interact J Med Res. 2025 Jan 7;14:e55636. doi: 10.2196/55636.
Good communication between health authorities and citizens is crucial for adherence to preventive measures during a pandemic. Crisis communication often appeals to worries about negative consequences for oneself or others. While worry can motivate protective behavior, it can also be overwhelming and lead to irrational choices or become a mental health problem. Also, the levels and consequences of worry can differ between different groups of citizens. Little is known about the evolution of worries during the pandemic and adherence to measures in distinct groups.
This study aimed to evaluate worries in the Swiss population as well as associations between worry levels and citizens' adherence to government restrictions during different phases of the COVID-19 pandemic.
We carried out an observational study with 4 cross-sectional online surveys of adults in the Canton of Vaud, Switzerland. Questionnaires were distributed through social media and websites during 4 periods: survey 1: April 17 to May 14, 2020; survey 2: May 15 to June 22, 2020; survey 3: October 30 to December 12, 2020; and survey 4: June 18 to December 30, 2021. On visual analog scales from 0 to 100, participants reported worry, self-adherence to pandemic restrictions, and their perceived adherence to others. We used multivariable linear regression, adjusting for age, gender, health literacy, and education to assess associations between self-reported worry, adherence, and study periods.
We collected 7106 responses. After excluding 2377 questionnaires (incomplete, age <18 years, residence outside Vaud), 4729 (66.55%) were analyzed (mean age 47, SD 15.6 years, 63.96% women). Mean worry across the 4 periods was 42/100, significantly higher in women (44.25/100, vs 37.98/100; P<.001) and young people (43.77/100 in those aged 18-39 years, vs 41.69/100; P=.005; in those aged 40-64 years and 39.16/100; P=.002; in those aged >64 years). Worries were higher during survey 1 and survey 3 (52.41/100 and 56.32/100 vs 38.93/100, P<.001; and 35.71/100, P<.001) than during survey 2 and survey 4, respectively. This corresponds to pandemic peaks during which federal restrictions were better followed with self-reported adherence of 84.80/100 and 89.59/100 in survey 1 and survey 3 versus 78.69/100 (P<.001) and 78.64/100 (P<.001) in survey 2 and survey 4. A 2.9-point increase in worry score, adjusted for the pandemic period, gender, age, education, and health literacy, was associated with a 10-point increase in personal adherence score (95% CI 2.5-3.2; P<.001).
Worries were higher in women, young people, and during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Higher worry levels were associated with increased self-reported adherence to federal restrictions. Authorities should consider population worry levels and population subgroups in the planning and design of pandemic communication.
在疫情期间，卫生当局与公民之间的良好沟通对于遵守预防措施至关重要。危机沟通通常会引发对自身或他人负面后果的担忧。虽然担忧可以促使人们采取保护行为，但它也可能压垮人，导致非理性选择或成为心理健康问题。此外，不同公民群体的担忧程度和后果可能有所不同。对于疫情期间担忧情绪的演变以及不同群体对措施的遵守情况，我们知之甚少。
本研究旨在评估瑞士人群中的担忧情绪，以及在新冠疫情不同阶段担忧程度与公民遵守政府限制措施之间的关联。
我们在瑞士沃州对成年人进行了一项观察性研究，共开展了4次横断面在线调查。问卷通过社交媒体和网站在4个时间段发放：调查1：2020年4月17日至5月14日；调查2：2020年5月15日至6月22日；调查3：2020年10月30日至12月12日；调查4：2021年6月18日至12月3日。参与者在0至100的视觉模拟量表上报告担忧程度、自我遵守疫情限制措施的情况以及他们认为他人的遵守情况。我们使用多变量线性回归，对年龄、性别、健康素养和教育程度进行调整，以评估自我报告的担忧、遵守情况与研究时间段之间的关联。
我们收集到7106份回复。排除2377份问卷（不完整、年龄<18岁、居住在沃州以外）后，对4729份（66.55%）进行了分析（平均年龄47岁，标准差15.6岁，女性占63.96%）。4个时间段的平均担忧程度为42/100，女性（44.25/100，男性为37.98/100；P<0.001）和年轻人（18至39岁人群为43.77/100，40至64岁人群为41.69/100；P=0.005；64岁以上人群为39.16/100；P=0.002）的担忧程度明显更高。调查1和调查3期间的担忧程度更高（分别为52.41/100和5/.32/100，而调查2为38.93/100，P<0.001；调查4为35.71/100，P<0.001）。这与疫情高峰期相对应，在调查1和调查3中，自我报告的遵守联邦限制措施的比例分别为84.80/100和89.59/100，而调查2为%.69/100（P<0.001），调查4为78.64/100（P<0.001）。在对疫情时期、性别、年龄、教育程度和健康素养进行调整后，担忧得分每增加2.9分，个人遵守得分就增加10分（95%置信区间2.5 - 3.2；P<0.001）。
女性、年轻人以及在新冠疫情高峰期的担忧情绪更高。更高的担忧程度与自我报告的遵守联邦限制措施的增加有关。当局在规划和设计疫情沟通时应考虑人群的担忧程度和人群亚组。
