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Demographic and Attitudinal Factors of Adherence to Quarantine Guidelines During COVID-19: The Italian Model
15 Pages Posted: 1 Jun 2020
More...Abstract
Background: A large outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) affecting Italian community occurred from 2020 January 30, after WHO has stated that it is a pandemic. The widespread use of quarantine is having the desired impact of controlling the epidemic, although presents many challenges, given its large economic and social costs. Complete adherence to recommendations could potentially decelerate and reduce infectious disease outbreaks.To date, it is not clear how compliant the Italian public has been with voluntary home quarantine neither which factors have influenced an individual’s decision to comply with a quarantine order. The purposes of this study were to investigate the degree of the adherence with quarantine restrictions and the factors associated with the reported adherence (or protective behaviours).
Methods: During the very early stage of the nationwide lockdown, a total of 3672 Italian quarantined adult residents (65% females, range 18-85 years) participated in an online cross-sectional survey focused on the risk perception of contracting COVID-19 and their reported adherence with quarantine protocols, including staying at home or traveling.
Findings: Analysis of variance showed differences among demographic groups in willingness to comply with quarantine orders, with women, well educated people, resident in South of Italy, middle-aged, and health workers more likely to adhere to quarantine guidelines. Regression analysis indicated that gender, age, geographic area, and employment status, as well as the person’s assessment of risk for themselves and others to contract COVID-19 were significant predictive.
Interpretation: The results of this study can help public health policy makers to recognize target populations for COVID-19 prevention and health education, and to understand how inform communication strategies aimed at minimizing the impact and spread of the disease.
Funding Statement: Authors received no financial support for the research.
Declaration of Interests: The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.
Ethics Approval Statement: The study has been registered to Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR)and approved by the Department of Psychological Sciences, Health and Territory, University of Chieti, Italy, Review Board. Written informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.
Keywords: adherence; risk perception; quarantine; protective behaviours; coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)
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