Background: As the COVID-19 pandemic progresses, the fear of infection increases and, with it, the stigma-discrimination, which makes it an additional problem of the epidemic. However, studies about stigma associated with coronavirus are scarce worldwide. Aims: To determine the association between stigmatisation and fear of COVID-19 in the general population of Colombia. Method: A cross-sectional study was carried out. A total of 1,687 adults between 18 and 76 years old ( M = 36.3; SD = 12.5), 41.1% health workers, filled out an online questionnaire on Stigma-Discrimination and the COVID-5 Fear Scale, adapted by the research team. Results: The proportion of high fear of COVID-19 was 34.1%; When comparing the affirmative answers to the questionnaire on stigma-discrimination towards COVID-19, it was found that the difference was significantly higher in the general population compared to health workers in most of the questions evaluated, which indicates a high level of stigmatisation in that group. An association between high fear of COVID-19 and stigma was evidenced in 63.6% of the questions in the questionnaire. Conclusion: Stigma-discrimination towards COVID-19 is frequent in the Colombian population and is associated with high levels of fear towards said disease, mainly people who are not health workers.
Los estudios en Colombia muestran una tendencia al descenso en el uso de alcohol y tabaco. Sin embargo, el inicio de su consumo en la niñez multiplica el riesgo de dependencia de otras enfermedades y lesiones. Por lo anterior, identificar los factores que disminuyan la probabilidad del consumo de alcohol y cigarrillos, constituye el fundamento de la prevención con base en evidencia. Siguiendo esta línea, se estimó la asociación entre el consumo de alcohol y cigarrillos con la percepción de riesgo y la influencia normativa mediante un estudio de corte transversal en una muestra de 4.071 estudiantes adolescentes entre 12 y 18 años, como parte de la evaluación de un programa de prevención. Los resultados del estudio mostraron que hay una asociación significativa entre la percepción de riesgo y la influencia normativa, con la intención de consumo de alcohol y cigarrillos y el consumo de cigarrillos en el último mes. Esta asociación no fue confirmada por el análisis multivariado en todos los subgrupos de adolescentes. En todo caso, estos factores deben integrarse en un contexto analítico más amplio para lograr mejores intervenciones preventivas.
The FCV-19S was the first instrument designed to assess the severity of fear related to COVID-19 and has already been validated in many languages. The objective of this study was to evaluate the homogeneity and construct validity of the 5-item version of the FCV19S, using an online questionnaire in 599 people. The participants’ age ranged from 18 to 65 years. Age, gender, marital status, educational level, employment status, and socioeconomic status were analyzed. In the evaluation process we assessed interitem correlation, item rest-correlation, confirmatory factor analysis: Root Mean Square Error of Approximation, Comparative Fix Index, Tucker-Lewis Index; internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha, McDonald’s omega), and the Rasch model was assessed for learning more about the psychometric properties of the scale, which allows a detailed knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of a scale. The FCV-5S has adequate psychometric indicators from the perspective of the Classical Theory of Items. The major limitations were using a self-reported measure and having a convenience sample not necessarily representative of the general population of Argentina.
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