Social media information and its association with the adoption of COVID-19 preventive measures in four Latin American countries

ABSTRACT

The study aimed to assess the association between adherence to COVID-19 preventive measures and access to media information related to COVID-19. A multicountry, cross-sectional study using an online survey was conducted from June to December 2020. The sample included 1,457 participants from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Mexico. The outcome variable was self-reported adherence to preventive measures (handwashing, social distancing, self-isolation, use of face masks, and working from home). The explanatory variable was self-report of following media information related to COVID-19 (watching or reading the news, following social media coverage). Multivariable logistic regression analyses were conducted to determine the associations. Following information on social media was positively associated with higher odds of practicing social distancing [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 5.39; 95% confidence interval (CI): 3.93–7.30], self-isolation (AOR = 1.44; 95% CI: 1.08–1.92), use of face masks (AOR = 16.84; 95% CI: 10.03–28.27), handwashing (AOR = 6.95; 95% CI: 4.98–9.71), and working from home (AOR = 1.85; 95% CI: 1.43–2.41). Differences in the use of social media for COVID-19 information were observed among the four countries. Following social media was positively associated with adherence to COVID-19 preventive measures in Latin America. Social media may be used effectively for COVID-19 behavior modification in Latin America.

KEYWORDS:

• COVID-19
• health information
• social media
• preventive measures
• health communication

Declaration of interest statement

All authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest. We acknowledge funding from the National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Aging (K01 AG064986-01) to A.L.N.

Data availability statement

All data are available upon request to MOF.

Notes

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