Social media information and its association with the adoption of COVID-19 preventive measures in four Latin American countries

Roberto Ariel Abeldaño Zuñiga; Christian Arturo Cruz Melendez; Morenike Oluwatoyin Folayan; Brandon Brown; Maha El Tantawi; Nourhan M Aly; Giuliana Florencia Abeldaño; Kessketlen Alves Miranda; Eshrat Ara; Passent Ellakany; Nuraldeen Maher Al-Khanati; Abeedha Tu-Allah Khan; Folake Barakat Lawal; Joanne Lusher; Ntombifuthi P Nzimande; Bamidele Olubukola Popoola; Jorma Virtanen; Nicaise Ndembi; Annie Lu Nguyen

doi:10.1080/15358593.2023.2174382

Social media information and its association with the adoption of COVID-19 preventive measures in four Latin American countries

Rev Comm. 2023;23(3):247-262. doi: 10.1080/15358593.2023.2174382. Epub 2023 Jun 25.

Authors

Roberto Ariel Abeldaño Zuñiga^{1

2}, Christian Arturo Cruz Melendez³, Morenike Oluwatoyin Folayan^{1

4}, Brandon Brown^{1

5}, Maha El Tantawi^{1

6}, Nourhan M Aly^{1

6}, Giuliana Florencia Abeldaño^{1

7}, Kessketlen Alves Miranda^{1

8}, Eshrat Ara^{1

9}, Passent Ellakany^{1

10}, Nuraldeen Maher Al-Khanati^{1

11}, Abeedha Tu-Allah Khan^{1

12}, Folake Barakat Lawal^{1

13}, Joanne Lusher^{1

14}, Ntombifuthi P Nzimande^{1

15}, Bamidele Olubukola Popoola^{1

16}, Jorma Virtanen^{1

17}, Nicaise Ndembi^{1

18}, Annie Lu Nguyen^{1

19}

Affiliations

¹ Mental Health and Wellness Study Group.
² Postgraduate Department. University of Sierra Sur, Oaxaca, Mexico.
³ Postgraduate Department. University of Sierra Sur - Cátedras Conacyt, Oaxaca, Mexico.
⁴ Department of Child Dental Health, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria.
⁵ Department of Social Medicine, Population and Public Health, University of California, Riverside, CA, USA.
⁶ Department of Pediatric Dentistry and Dental Public Health, Faculty of Dentistry, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.
⁷ School of Medicine, University of Sierra Sur, Oaxaca, Mexico.
⁸ Research Centre in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, University of Porto, Portugal.
⁹ Government College for Women, Maulana Azad Road Srinagar Kashmir (J&K), India.
¹⁰ Department of Substantive Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia.
¹¹ Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Faculty of Dentistry, Syrian Private University, Damascus, Syria.
¹² School of Biological Sciences, University of the Punjab, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan.
¹³ Department of Periodontology and Community Dentistry, University of Ibadan and University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria.
¹⁴ School of Health and Life Sciences, University of the West of Scotland.
¹⁵ Department of Economic and Human Geography, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary.
¹⁶ Department of Child Oral Health, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.
¹⁷ Faculty of Medicine, University of Turku, Turku, Finland.
¹⁸ Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, African Union Commission, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
¹⁹ Department of Family Medicine, University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA, USA.

Abstract

Objective: The study aimed to assess the association between adherence to COVID-19 preventive measures and access to media information related to COVID-19.

Methods: A multi-country, cross-sectional study using an online survey was conducted from June to December 2020. The sample included 1,457 participants from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Mexico. The outcome variable was self-reported adherence to preventive measures (handwashing, social distancing, self-isolation, use of face masks, and working from home). The explanatory variable was self-report of following media information related to COVID-19 (watching or reading the news, following social media coverage). Multivariable logistic regression analyses were conducted to determine the associations.

Results: Following information on social media was positively associated with higher odds of practicing social distancing (AOR=5.39; 95%CI: 3.93-7.30), self-isolation (AOR=1.44; 95%CI: 1.08-1.92), use of face masks (AOR=16.84; 95%CI: 10.03-28.27), handwashing (AOR=6.95; CI 95%: 4.98-9.71), and working from home (AOR=1.85; 95% CI: 1.43-2.41). Differences in the use of social media for COVID-19 information were observed among the four countries.

Conclusion: Following social media was positively associated with adherence to COVID-19 preventive measures in Latin America. Social media may be effectively used for COVID-19 behaviour modification in Latin America.

Keywords: COVID-19; health communication; health information; preventive measures; social media.

Grants and funding

K01 AG064986/AG/NIA NIH HHS/United States