Young, Ian (author), Waddell, Lisa (author), Harding, Shannon (author), Greig, Judy (author), Mascarenhas, Mariola (author), Sivaramalingam, Bhairavi (author), Pham, Mai (author), and Papadopoulos, Andrew (author)
Format:
Journal article
Publication Date:
2015
Published:
International
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 153 Document Number: D06782
12 pages, Background
Health risk communication plays a key role in promoting self-protective measures, which are critical in suppressing COVID-19 contagion. Relatively little is known about the communication channels used by rural poor populations to learn novel measures and their effectiveness in promoting self-protective behaviors. Behavioral change can be shaped by people’s trust in government institutions which may be differentiated by social identity, including indigeneity.
Methods
During an early phase of the pandemic, we conducted two telephone surveys with over 460 communities – both Indigenous and mestizo – without road access and limited communication access in the Peruvian Amazon. This is the first report on the association of information sources about self-protective measures against COVID-19 with the adoption of self-protective behaviors in remote rural areas in developing countries.
Results
People mainly relied on mass media (radio, television, newspapers) and interpersonal sources (local authorities, health workers, neighbors/relatives) for information and adopted handwashing, mask-wearing, social distancing, and social restrictions to varying degrees. Overall, self-protective behaviors were largely positively and negatively associated with mass media and interpersonal sources, respectively, depending on the source-measure combination. Mistrust of the government seems to have shaped how Indigenous and mestizo peoples distinctively responded to interpersonal information sources and relied on mass media.
Conclusions
Our findings call for improved media access to better manage pandemics in rural areas, especially among remote Indigenous communities.
9 pages., via online journal., European consumers are faced with a myriad of food related risk and benefit information and it is regularly left up to the consumer to interpret these, often conflicting, pieces of information as a coherent message. This conflict is especially apparent in times of food crises and can have major public health implications. Scientific results and risk assessments cannot always be easily communicated into simple guidelines and advice that non-scientists like the public or the media can easily understand especially when there is conflicting, uncertain or complex information about a particular food or aspects thereof. The need for improved strategies and tools for communication about food risks and benefits is therefore paramount. The FoodRisC project ("Food Risk Communication - Perceptions and communication of food risks/benefits across Europe: development of effective communication strategies") aims to address this issue. The FoodRisC project will examine consumer perceptions and investigate how people acquire and use information in food domains in order to develop targeted strategies for food communication across Europe.
8 pages., More than 800 Australian adults responded to an electronic questionnaire distributed via email and social media. Respondents "were challenged to accurately perceive silhouettes corresponding to an obese body mass index (BMI) in themselves and others. Misperception of weight status was more likely to exist among those with a BMI less than 18.5 - or 30 or more ("overweight" and "obese"). "Silhouettes may act as an effective visual cue in initiating weight related discussions."
Hegglin, Daniel (author), Bontadina, Fabio (author), Gloor, Sandra (author), Romig, Thomas (author), Deplazes, Peter (author), and Kern, Peter (author)
Format:
Abstract
Publication Date:
2008
Published:
International
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 167 Document Number: C27887
