Causes of Non Compliance with Lockdowns in England

Abstracts for Articles

1 Qualitative Article

Anwar, A., Malik, M., Raees, V., & Anwar, A. (2020). Role of mass media and public health communications in the COVID-19 pandemic. Cureus, 12(9).

The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 in late 2019 and its subsequent spread across the globe has led to an unprecedented public health crisis. In this context, mass media, including traditional and social media, played a critical role in disseminating information about the virus, its transmission, prevention, and treatment. However, the media coverage of COVID-19 was not without its challenges, as it also contributed to the spread of misinformation, rumors, and fear.

This qualitative study aims to explore and discuss the role of mass media in public health communication during the pandemic. Specifically, it identifies social, cultural, and economic issues arising from media coverage and their impact on the public's response to the pandemic.

The study highlights the media's contradictory role in promoting both scientifically unproven cures and essential public health guidelines to prevent the spread of the virus. It also identifies how the media's coverage induced fear and stress in the population, contributing to mental health issues. On the one hand, social media was used to spread one set of ideas about the pandemic, and mainstream media was used to spread another set of ideas about the pandemic. This study shows that the differences between legacy media and new media are important, particularly from a public health perspective. The study shows, for instance, that social media platforms provide a platform for users to express their opinions, share information and engage in discussions about the pandemic. However, it is argued that the information shared on social media is not always accurate or reliable, and it may be challenging to distinguish between trustworthy and untrustworthy sources of information. Legacy media, including traditional news outlets such as television, radio, and newspapers, continue to play a critical role in shaping public opinion about the pandemic because of its authoritative nature. These media outlets have established norms and practices for reporting and disseminating information that are based on journalistic ethics and standards. As a result, the information provided by legacy media is often more reliable and trustworthy than the information passed around on social media.

However, the study also emphasizes that the media played an essential role in promoting health and hygiene practices, reinforcing social distancing measures, and encouraging the use of telehealth to reduce the burden on healthcare systems. Moreover, the media helped combat misinformation, discrimination, and inequality by providing a unified platform for healthcare education and communication.

The study concludes that understanding and exploring the media's role in public health communication is vital for combating COVID-19 and future outbreaks. It highlights the importance of developing effective strategies to ensure accurate and timely information dissemination while addressing the challenges posed by misinformation and fear-mongering.

Overall, this study underscores the critical role of the media in shaping public perception and behavior during a public health crisis. By providing accurate and reliable information, the media can help promote public health and prevent the spread of disease. The study provides grounds for discussing the challenges posed by misinformation, rumors, and fear-mongering, and the strategies employed by public health officials to combat these issues.

2 Quantitative Article

Hills, S., & Eraso, Y. (2021). Factors associated with non-adherence to social distancing rules during the COVID-19 pandemic: a logistic regression analysis. BMC Public Health, 21(1), 1-25.

This quantitative study aimed to explore social distancing behaviors and factors associated with non-adherence among residents of North London during the COVID-19 lockdown. The study used a cross-sectional design with logistic regression analysis to measure and analyze relationships between factors that may affect non-compliance with government stay-at-home orders.

The study included 681 participants, and the results revealed that the vast majority of participants did not adhere to all social distancing rules, and nearly half intentionally did not adhere to rules. The study found that non-adherence was associated with vulnerability to COVID-19, control over social distancing, and reporting social distancing behaviors after lockdown relaxation.

The study also found that intentional non-adherence was associated with lower intention to socially distance, certain educational and professional qualifications, voting for the UK government, perceived normative pressure from neighbors, and greater support from friends. These findings highlight the importance of considering individual beliefs, attitudes, and perceptions when designing public health messaging and interventions to improve social distancing behaviors during the pandemic. However, it also showed that non-compliance was potentially a factor related to variables tested in the study that could be used by public health officials in future policy to curb abuses and prevent non-compliance.