Survey of Adherence with COVID-19 Prevention Behaviors During the 2020 Thanksgiving and Winter Holidays Among Members of the COVID-19 Community Research Partnership

Abstract

Prevention behaviors represent important public health tools to limit spread of SARS-CoV-2. Adherence with recommended public health prevention behaviors among 20000 + members of a COVID-19 syndromic surveillance cohort from the mid-Atlantic and southeastern United States was assessed via electronic survey following the 2020 Thanksgiving and winter holiday (WH) seasons. Respondents were predominantly non-Hispanic Whites (90%), female (60%), and ≥ 50 years old (59%). Non-household members (NHM) were present at 47.1% of Thanksgiving gatherings and 69.3% of WH gatherings. Women were more likely than men to gather with NHM (p < 0.0001). Attending gatherings with NHM decreased with older age (Thanksgiving: 60.0% of participants aged < 30 years to 36.3% aged ≥ 70 years [p-trend < 0.0001]; WH: 81.6% of those < 30 years to 61.0% of those ≥ 70 years [p-trend < 0.0001]). Non-Hispanic Whites were more likely to gather with NHM than were Hispanics or non-Hispanic Blacks (p < 0.0001). Mask wearing, reported by 37.3% at Thanksgiving and 41.9% during the WH, was more common among older participants, non-Hispanic Blacks, and Hispanics when gatherings included NHM. In this survey, most people did not fully adhere to recommended public health safety behaviors when attending holiday gatherings. It remains unknown to what extent failure to observe these recommendations may have contributed to the COVID-19 surges observed following Thanksgiving and the winter holidays in the United States.

Social influences on mask‐wearing intentions during the COVID‐19 pandemic

“…When it comes to mask-wearing, people's judgment of others, perception of norms, and perceived judgment by others are all more lenient among familiar others than among unfamiliar others. These results explain in part why large outbreaks of COVID occurred after holidays where people gathered with friends/family (Peacock et al, 2021).…”

Risk perceptions and behaviors concerning rural tourism and economic-political drivers of COVID-19 policy in 2020

“…The relationship between tourism and R t dissipated by August, but rurality and Trump support were strong predictors until October. In the winter of 2020, individuals throughout the country were more likely to stay at home, and holiday travel resulted in COVID-19 spikes in urban counties [ 88 ]. At this point there was no significant difference in R t between urban and rural counties.…”

The COVID-19 Community Research Partnership: Objectives, Study Design, Baseline Recruitment, and Retention

“…Surveys were developed to be responsive to changing trends and newly arising research questions during the pandemic. To date, supplemental surveys have focused on risk mitigation behavior such as mask use during the Thanksgiving and winter holidays(6); intentions and hesitancy to vaccinate; a household survey concerning family members (e.g., number, medical history, family income); and an individual adult survey exploring comorbidities, health behaviors (e.g., flu vaccination, alcohol, smoking), education, and occupation. These surveys will be described in detail in relevant manuscripts.…”