Social determinants of adherence to social distancing measures among adults during the COVID-19 pandemic
Global Knowledge, Memory and Communication
ISSN: 2514-9342
Article publication date: 21 November 2023
Abstract
Purpose
Understanding the factors that influence individuals’ adherence to social distancing is critical to effective policymaking in respiratory pandemics such as COVID-19. This study aims to explore the role of social factors in relation to social distancing measures.
Design/methodology/approach
Stratified convenience sampling was used in this survey research, involving 450 adults residing in both rural and urban areas of Aligodarz County, Lorestan, Iran.
Findings
The findings showed that approximately 14% of participants did not adhere to any of the assessed social distancing behaviors, while only around 30% adhered to all four assessed behaviors. On average, participants reported having 5.13 (SD = 3.60) close physical contact within the 24 h prior to completing the questionnaire. Bridging social capital and gender emerged as the most frequently observed predictors across the assessed social distancing measures. Additionally, age, employment status and residential setting were identified as influential factors for some of the evaluated measures.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the field by highlighting that the likelihood of non-adherence to social distancing measures tends to increase among male participants, those aged above 60, employed individuals, urban residents and those with a higher level of bridging social capital.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank all participants in the study for giving their time.
Funding: This research was supported by the Deputy of Research and Technology at Hamadan University of Medical Sciences (Grant No. 14000124472).
Conflict of interest: The authors have no relevant financial or non-financial interests to disclose.
Authors’ contributions: AKS, MG and MA jointly were responsible for the conception and design of the study. Material preparation was conducted by AKS and MA. Data collection and analysis were performed by MG and LT, respectively. The first draft of the manuscript was written by AKS. All authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Ethical approval: This study has been approved by the Ethics Committee for the Hamadan University of Medical Sciences (IR.UMSHA.REC.1399.969).
Consent to participate: All participants gave their informed consent, including their acknowledgment of the purpose and benefits, as well as their rights as participants, prior to their participation.
Data availability: The data from this study can be made available at the request of the journal and/or reader.
Citation
Ghasemi, M., Karimi-Shahanjarini, A., Afshari, M. and Tapak, L. (2023), "Social determinants of adherence to social distancing measures among adults during the COVID-19 pandemic", Global Knowledge, Memory and Communication, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/GKMC-06-2023-0197
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2023, Emerald Publishing Limited