Associations Between Compliance With Non-pharmaceutical Interventions and Social-distancing Policies in Korea During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

This study explored changes in individuals' behavior in response to social distancing (SD) levels and the "no gatherings of more than 5 people" (NGM5) rule in Korea during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.Methods: Using survey data from the COVID-19 Behavior Tracker, exploratory factor analysis extracted 3 preventive factors: maintenance of personal hygiene, avoiding going out, and avoiding meeting people. Each factor was used as a dependent variable. The chisquare test was used to compare differences in distributions between categorical variables, while binary logistic regression was performed to identify factors associated with high compliance with measures to prevent transmission. Results:In men, all 3 factors were significantly associated with lower compliance. Younger age groups were associated with lower compliance with maintenance of personal hygiene and avoiding meeting people. Employment status was significantly associated with avoiding going out and avoiding meeting people. Residence in the capital area was significantly associated with higher compliance with personal hygiene and avoiding venturing out. Increasing SD levels were associated with personal hygiene, avoiding going out, and avoiding meeting people. The NGM5 policy was not significantly associated with compliance.Conclusions: SD levels, gender, age, employment status, and region had explanatory power for compliance with non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs). Strengthening social campaigns to inspire voluntary compliance with NPIs, especially focused on men, younger people, full-time workers, and residents of the capital area is recommended. Simultaneously, efforts need to be made to segment SD measures into substrategies with detailed guidance at each level.

Generic Logic Model for Coronavirus Disease-2019 Responses Based on the South Korean Experience

“…Maintenance of personal hygiene, reduced time away from home, and avoidance of large gatherings strengthens physical distancing. 33 As the epidemic became severe, the physical distancing level increased, and subway use in Seoul decreased. 34 In addition, the transmission of COVID-19 infection was prevented by mandatory face masks in public facilities, along with prevention and control measures.…”

Behavioural Sciences Contribution to Suppressing Transmission of Covid-19 in the UK: A Systematic Literature Review

“…It is uncertain why findings are equivocal and why some studies investigating age and gender produced null findings, but it may be because the relationship varies by the type of behaviour or it may be due to sampling bias or how the behaviour is defined and measured. Studies conducted in other countries have found a positive association between female gender and older age and adherence to TRBs during the Covid-19 pandemic [32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39] and previous pandemics [40]. These sociodemographic differences in behaviour may be explained by gender-and age-related differences in the psychological predictors of behaviour during the Covid-19 pandemic.…”

The Unequal Effects of Social Distancing Policy on Subway Ridership during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Seoul, South Korea

“…However, studies have discussed the “luxury nature” [ 2 ] of social distancing (i.e., unequal impact on human mobility according to socioeconomic status) during the COVID-19 pandemic [ 3 – 5 ]. In the Republic of Korea, social distancing policies strongly relied on the voluntary participation of citizens without mandates [ 6 ] and exhibited short-term changes. In this situation, the effects of such policies varied depending on each community’s capacity to comply.…”