Uncertainty Stress, and Its Impact on Disease Fear and Prevention Behavior during the COVID-19 Epidemic in China: A Panel Study

• Published in: American journal of health behavior Vol. 45; no. 2; p. 334
• Main Authors: Peng, Sihui, Yang, Xiaozhao Yousef, Yang, Tingzhong, Zhang, Weifang, Cottrell, Randall R
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.03.2021
• Subjects: Adult; COVID-19 - prevention & control; COVID-19 - psychology; Fear; Female; Humans; Interviews as Topic; Male; Middle Aged; Prospective Studies; Qualitative Research; SARS-CoV-2; Stress, Psychological; Surveys and Questionnaires; Uncertainty
• ISSN: 1945-7359
• DOI: 10.5993/AJHB.45.2.12

We examined changing trends of uncertainty stress, and its impact on disease fear and prevention behaviors during the Chinese COVID-19 epidemic, using a prospective observational study. We employed a longitudinal design. We recruited participants for an online panel survey from chat groups on social media platforms. There were 5 waves of interviews. Information on uncertainty stress and related variables were collected via the online survey. Descriptive statistics and the GIM program were used for data analysis. Participants numbered 150 for the linkable baseline survey and 102 (68%) for the final survey. Uncertainty stress (β = -.047, SE = .118, p > .05) did not show a statistically significant temporal change trend over the observation period. Disease fear manifested a statistically significant downwards trend (β = -.342, SE = .157, p < .05), and prevention behaviors indicated an upwards trend (β = .048, SE = .021, p < .05) during the observation period. Uncertainty stress was positively associated with disease fear (β = .45046, SE = .05964, p < .001), and negatively associated with self-efficacy (β = -.6698, SE = .01035, p < .001), and prevention behaviors (β = -.02029, SE = .00876, p =.021). This study yielded new information about uncertainty stress among Chinese people during the COVID-19 epidemic. Policy changes and public education are essential for minimizing the negative effects of uncertainty stress in disease prevention.