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Influence of Social Media Use on Practice of COVID-19 Preventive Measures Among Ethiopian Residents: An Online Cross-Sectional Study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 June 2021

Abinet Arega Sadore ,
Demelash Woldeyohannes Handiso ,
Tekle Ejajo Wontamo ,
Dejene Ermias Mekango Open the ORCID record for Dejene Ermias Mekango [Opens in a new window]  and
Sisay Moges
Abinet Arega Sadore
Affiliation:
Department of Public Health, College of Medicine and Health Science, Wachemo University Hosanna, Ethiopia
Demelash Woldeyohannes Handiso
Affiliation:
Department of Public Health, College of Medicine and Health Science, Wachemo University Hosanna, Ethiopia
Tekle Ejajo Wontamo
Affiliation:
Department of Public Health, College of Medicine and Health Science, Wachemo University Hosanna, Ethiopia
Dejene Ermias Mekango*
Affiliation:
Department of Public Health, College of Medicine and Health Science, Wachemo University Hosanna, Ethiopia
Sisay Moges
Affiliation:
Hossana College of Health Science, Department of Health Informatics, Hossana, Ethiopia
*
Corresponding author: Dejene Ermias Mekango, Email: dj.ermi2005@gmail.com.
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Abstract

Background:

Infection with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a severe public health issue worldwide. A broad amount of information related to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic was disseminated by social media in Ethiopia. To date, there is limited evidence on the influence of social media use for COVID-19–related information on COVID-19 preventive practice. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the influence of social media use on the practice of COVID-19 preventive measures in Ethiopia.

Methods:

This study used an anonymous Internet-based online cross-sectional survey using Google Forms to collect the data from the respondents from May 15 to June 17, 2020, in Ethiopia. Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess the relationship between social media use as a predictor and COVID-19 preventive practice, after adjusting for socio-demographic and risk perception of COVID-19 variables. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 21.

Results:

A total of 372 respondents have participated in the study. From 372, a total of 208 (55.9%) respondents in this study were male. Study participants who had good use of social media to get COVID-19–related information were 9.5 times more engaged in COVID-19 preventive practices compared with study participants who had poor use of social media to get COVID-19–related information (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 9.59; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 5.70-16.13). Also, study participants who had a high-risk perception of COVID-19 were 2.6 times more engaged in COVID-19 practices compared with study participants who had a low-risk perception of COVID-19 (AOR = 2.63; 95% CI: 1.58-4.38). Study participants who were students at the time of this study were 4 times more likely to show an adequate COVID-19 preventive practice score compared with those who had another occupational status (AOR = 4.07; 95% CI: 1.66-9.98)

Conclusions:

Our results show that the use of social media networks can have a positive effect on the practice of preventive measures and public safety against COVID-19; high-risk perception contributed to preventive activities against COVID-19. Social networking platforms can be used by public health agencies as an important method to raise public health understanding by disseminating concise messages to targeted audiences.

Keywords

social mediaCOVID-19preventiveEthiopia
Type
Original Research
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 16 , Issue 6 , December 2022 , pp. 2546 - 2551
Copyright
© Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc. 2021

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