The role of conformity in mask-wearing during COVID-19.
By September 2020, COVID-19 had claimed the lives of almost 1 million people worldwide, including more than 400,000 in the U.S. and Europe [1] To slow the spread of the virus, health officials advised social distancing, regular handwashing, and wearing a face covering [2]. We hypothesized that publi...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2021-01-01
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| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0261321&type=printable |
| _version_ | 1826552471045013504 |
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| author | Anna Woodcock P Wesley Schultz |
| author_facet | Anna Woodcock P Wesley Schultz |
| author_sort | Anna Woodcock |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | By September 2020, COVID-19 had claimed the lives of almost 1 million people worldwide, including more than 400,000 in the U.S. and Europe [1] To slow the spread of the virus, health officials advised social distancing, regular handwashing, and wearing a face covering [2]. We hypothesized that public adherence to the health guidance would be influenced by prevailing social norms, and the prevalence of these behaviors among others. We focused on mask-wearing behavior during fall 2020, and coded livestream public webcam footage of 1,200 individuals across seven cities. Results showed that only 50% of participants were correctly wearing a mask in public, and that this percentage varied as a function of the mask-wearing behavior of close and distant others in the immediate physical vicinity. How social normative information might be used to increase mask-wearing behavior is discussed. "Cloth face coverings are one of the most powerful weapons we have to slow and stop the spread of the virus-particularly when used universally within a community setting" CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield in July 2020. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T17:11:24Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-6295f775c5364387afe922909cceca7e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-03-14T07:09:39Z |
| publishDate | 2021-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj.art-6295f775c5364387afe922909cceca7e2025-03-04T05:32:09ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032021-01-011612e026132110.1371/journal.pone.0261321The role of conformity in mask-wearing during COVID-19.Anna WoodcockP Wesley SchultzBy September 2020, COVID-19 had claimed the lives of almost 1 million people worldwide, including more than 400,000 in the U.S. and Europe [1] To slow the spread of the virus, health officials advised social distancing, regular handwashing, and wearing a face covering [2]. We hypothesized that public adherence to the health guidance would be influenced by prevailing social norms, and the prevalence of these behaviors among others. We focused on mask-wearing behavior during fall 2020, and coded livestream public webcam footage of 1,200 individuals across seven cities. Results showed that only 50% of participants were correctly wearing a mask in public, and that this percentage varied as a function of the mask-wearing behavior of close and distant others in the immediate physical vicinity. How social normative information might be used to increase mask-wearing behavior is discussed. "Cloth face coverings are one of the most powerful weapons we have to slow and stop the spread of the virus-particularly when used universally within a community setting" CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield in July 2020.https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0261321&type=printable |
| spellingShingle | Anna Woodcock P Wesley Schultz The role of conformity in mask-wearing during COVID-19. PLoS ONE |
| title | The role of conformity in mask-wearing during COVID-19. |
| title_full | The role of conformity in mask-wearing during COVID-19. |
| title_fullStr | The role of conformity in mask-wearing during COVID-19. |
| title_full_unstemmed | The role of conformity in mask-wearing during COVID-19. |
| title_short | The role of conformity in mask-wearing during COVID-19. |
| title_sort | role of conformity in mask wearing during covid 19 |
| url | https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0261321&type=printable |
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