In a study published in the journal Applied Psychology: Health and Well-Being, Geneva psychologists discussed how the British followed the recommended precautions in their country and focuses on how the behavior of others influences individual decision-making, known as social dilemma. He points out that ideals about COVID-19, such as thinking that the disease is harmful or feeling vulnerable, have little effect on whether or not an individual takes protective measures. Those who least likely take these measures are those who believe that precautions taken through others make them not want to take their own. These psychosocial profiles (among others known in the study) involve imaginable responses to generate more effective prevention messages.
A greater perception of human behavior when it comes to making a positive contribution to a network can be used to expand more appropriate prevention measures and messages. This is a very useful form of behavioral studies for ecological problems and blood donation. Lisa Moussaoui is the first exam writer and professor and study leader in the Health Psychology Research Group of THE UNIGE Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences (FPSE). He explains the approach: “We seek to perceive how other people make decisions and act in a way that can be preventive interventions. “That is why, when the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health announced that it would introduce a semi-close on 13 March 2020, the researcher and her colleagues to put their experience at the service of the COVID-19 fitness crisis.
Use the UK as a model
Geneva psychologists headed to the UK, which, unlike Switzerland, had no way out of the sea yet: this allowed investigators to analyse behaviour before official measures came into force, allowing them to concentrate on the decisive early stages. The basis of the study, which included a number of questions related to monitoring the adoption of preventive measures through British fitness authorities. ‘We measure variables such as perceived vulnerability to COVID-19, perceived severity of the disease and many other beliefs,’ explains Nana Ofosu, PhD student at UNIGE and co-author of the study.
Few sociodemographic differences
Psychologists found that preventive measures were spontaneously followed through a giant component of the population. “It’s a known phenomenon. Informing other people of the presence of a danger is enough to cause a giant and immediate replacement in behavior. We have noticed the same thing in other tragic situations, such as the AIDS pandemic. But despite everything, there is the wallet of resistance,” explains Olivier Desrichard, professor of the FPSE and co-author of the study.
The point of education, circle of relatives, environment, age and number of cases reported in the region do not influence behavior. “This is a result that contradicts rumors that certain categories of the population, such as young people, have followed orders less than others. “, Moussaoui adds.
How others behave: a social dilemma
“If no one else does, why would I be the only one who would make the effort?”The more test participants agreed on this issue, the fewer preventive measures they took. Another thing negatively influences its adoption: the phenomenon of in-the-bucket “- the feeling that its own contribution is in relation to the magnitude of the danger. Finally, the review highlights the fact that the more social contacts participants had, such as business relationships, the more vulnerable they felt, even if it did not inspire them to take the right actions.
Preventive to refine
It confirms that social dilemmas influence behavior. This psychosocial technique provides an attractive counterpoint to how data on COVID-19 is communicated, a technique that emphasizes the harmful nature of the virus and the importance of observing the instructions.