Psychological Pathways Linking Public Trust During the Coronavirus Pandemic to Mental and Physical Well-being

Abstract

The well-being of the public during the 2019 coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is deeply rooted in institutional trust in the government’s risk communication effort. The objective of this study was to examine the psychological pathway through which public trust in the government is associated with mental and physical well-being. We collected cross-sectional data from 501 participants aged ≥18 years using an online panel. Public trust in the government was assessed as our exposure variable. We screened for psychological distress by combining the Patient Health Questionnaire and the General Anxiety Disorder scale. Physical well-being was examined using self-rated health. We further assessed the roles of risk perceptions. The author conducted a one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), Pearson’s correlations, multivariable regressions, and mediation analyses (using the Preachers and Hayes’ approach). Participants were 55.29% female, 67.86% Caucasian/white with a mean age of 32.44 ± 11.94 years. Public trust in the government regarding COVID-19 was negatively correlated with psychological distress ( r = −0.20; p < 0.001) and positively associated with physical well-being ( r = 0.13; p < 0.001). After adjusting for sociodemographic and socioeconomic factors, public trust remained negatively associated with psychological distress (β = −0.19; 95% confidence intervals, [CI] −0.30, −0.09) and positively associated with physical well-being (β = 0.26; 95% CI [0.16, −0.37]). Perceived self-efficacy to practice COVID-19 protective behavior partially mediated the relationship between public trust and psychological distress (13.07%); and physical well-being (28.02%). Perceived self-efficacy to protect self against COVID-19 infection can serve as a psychological pathway through which public trust may be associated with mental and physical health.

Why people were less compliant with public health regulations during the second wave of the Covid-19 outbreak: The role of trust in governmental organizations, future anxiety, fatigue, and Covid-19 risk perception

“…In support of our first hypothesis, this study confirmed previous research concerning the association between trust in governmental organizations and compliance with public health regulations during the Covid-19 outbreak (Olagoke et al, 2020 ; Sibley et al, 2020 ; Storopoli et al, 2020 ). Indeed, a greater level of trust in political/administrative institutions seems to be one of the strongest predictors of the population’s level of compliance with public health regulations during a pandemic (Blair et al, 2017 ; Rubin et al, 2009 ; Verger et al, 2018 ).…”

“…This was a challenging phase of the pandemic as individuals were fatigued and compliance with public health regulations seemed to decrease leading to an increase of infection rates, although the country was less affected in comparison with other EU countries (Bontempi, 2020). In support of our first hypothesis, this study confirmed previous research concerning the association between trust in governmental organizations and compliance with public health regulations during the Covid-19 outbreak (Olagoke et al, 2020;Sibley et al, 2020;Storopoli et al, 2020). Indeed, a greater level of trust in political/administrative institutions seems to be one of the strongest predictors of the population's level of compliance with public health regulations during a pandemic (Blair et al, 2017;Rubin et al, 2009;Verger et al, 2018).…”

“…Specifically, based on previous works that have demonstrated the direct relationship between trust in governmental organizations and compliance with public health regulations (Blair et al, 2017;Olagoke et al, 2020;Rubin et al, 2009;Sibley et al, 2020;Storopoli et al, 2020;Verger et al, 2018), we hypothesized that a greater trust in governmental organizations would increase the levels of protective behaviors (Hypothesis 1). Next, based on previous studies which have identified associations between trust in governmental organizations and future anxiety (Hornsey & Esposo, 2009), uncertainty and fatigue (Nitschke et al, 2020), and fatigue and low compliance with public health regulations (WHO, 2020), we hypothesized that the relationship between trust in government organizations and protective behaviors would be mediated by both future anxiety and fatigue (Hypothesis 2).…”

“…In line with the above references, previous research has reported evidence of the role of trust in governmental organizations in terms of following recommended behaviors to avoid the spread of swine flu (Rubin et al, 2009 ) and Ebola (Blair et al, 2017 ), as well as in getting vaccinated against seasonal influenza (Verger et al, 2018 ). Recent evidence has also suggested that trust in governmental organizations represents a crucial factor even in terms of compliance with the public health regulations suggested to slow down the spread of SARS-CoV-2 (e.g., Olagoke et al, 2020 ; Sibley et al, 2020 ; Storopoli et al, 2020 ). However, research conducted during previous epidemics (e.g., swine flu) demonstrated that, while trust in governmental organizations is very high during the initial stages of the pandemic, it tends to decline over time, decreasing the level of compliance with public health regulations (Bangerter et al, 2012 ; Quinn et al, 2013 ).…”

Mental Health Issues in the COVID-19 Pandemic and Responses in Bangladesh: View Point of Media Reporting

“…Thus, the way in which the media characterizes public health messages may potentially play a pivotal role in whether the public develop positive or negative reactions to the situation that has evolved around the COVID-19 pandemic. Population mental health and wellbeing may also be influenced by the level of trust people have in their government and health authorities, which in turn may be influenced by media coverage ( 15 ).…”