Estimating perceptions of the relative COVID risk of different social-distancing behaviors from respondents' pairwise assessments.

How do people compare the effectiveness of different social-distancing behaviors in avoiding the spread of viral infection? During the COVID pandemic, we showed 676 online respondents in the United States, United Kingdom, and Israel 30 pairs of brief videos of acquaintances meeting. We asked respondents to indicate which video from each pair depicted greater risk of COVID infection. Their choices imply that on average, respondents considered talking 14 min longer to be as risky as standing 1 foot closer, being indoors as standing 3 feet closer, being exposed to coughs or sneezes as 3 to 4 ft closer, greeting with a hug as 7 ft closer, and with a handshake as 5 ft closer. Respondents considered properly masking as protecting the wearer and interlocutor equally, removing the mask entirely or only when talking as standing 4 to 5 ft closer but wearing it under the nose as only 1 to 2 ft closer. We provide weaker evidence on beliefs about the interaction effects of different behaviors. In a more limited, ex post analysis, we find little evidence of differences in beliefs across subpopulations.

The impact of social distance on the processing of social evaluation: evidence from brain potentials and neural oscillations.

Previous research indicates that social distance can influence people's social evaluations of others. Individuals tend to evaluate intimate others more positively than distant others. The present study investigates the modulating effect of social distance on the time course underlying individuals' evaluation processes of others using adequate electroencephalography methods. The results reveal that in the initial processing stage, the P2 component is larger when friends are negatively evaluated, whereas this pattern is the opposite for strangers. In the second stage, medial frontal negativity and early mid-frontal theta band activity is enhanced for negative evaluations of friends, whereas this effect is absent in social evaluations of strangers. At the late stage, the P3 is larger for positive evaluations of friends but insensitive to social evaluations of strangers, and the late mid-frontal theta is also modulated by social distance. These findings provide direct and powerful evidence that social distance modulates individuals' evaluations of others with different levels of intimacy throughout all processing stages.

Social contact patterns during the early COVID-19 pandemic in Norway: insights from a panel study, April to September 2020.

BACKGROUND: During the COVID-19 pandemic, many countries adopted social distance measures and lockdowns of varying strictness. Social contact patterns are essential in driving the spread of respiratory infections, and country-specific measurements are needed. This study aimed to gain insights into changes in social contacts and behaviour during the early pandemic phase in Norway. METHODS: We conducted an online panel study among a nationally representative sample of Norwegian adults by age and gender. The panel study included six data collections waves between April and September 2020, and 2017 survey data from a random sample of the Norwegian population (including children < 18 years old) were used as baseline. The market research company Ipsos was responsible for carrying out the 2020 surveys. We calculated mean daily contacts, and estimated age-stratified contact matrices during the study period employing imputation of child-to-child contacts. We used the next-generation method to assess the relative reduction of R0 and compared the results to reproduction numbers estimated for Norway during the 2020 study period. RESULTS: Over the six waves in 2020, 5 938 observations/responses were registered from 1 718 individuals who reported data on 22 074 contacts. The mean daily number of contacts among adults varied between 3.2 (95%CI 3.0-3.4) to 3.9 (95%CI 3.6-4.2) across the data collection waves, representing a 67-73% decline compared to pre-pandemic levels (baseline). Fewer contacts in the community setting largely drove the reduction; the drop was most prominent among younger adults. Despite gradual easing of social distance measures during the survey period, the estimated population contact matrices remained relatively stable and displayed more inter-age group mixing than at baseline. Contacts within households and the community outside schools and workplaces contributed most to social encounters. Using the next-generation method R0 was found to be roughly 25% of pre-pandemic levels during the study period, suggesting controlled transmission. CONCLUSION: Social contacts declined significantly in the months following the March 2020 lockdown, aligning with implementation of stringent social distancing measures. These findings contribute valuable empirical information into the social behaviour in Norway during the early pandemic, which can be used to enhance policy-relevant models for addressing future crises when mitigation measures might be implemented.

Unravelling consumer acceptance of local food: Physical versus social distance and the important role of social identification.

Including more locally grown products in our diet is a way to reduce our diets' environmental impact. Therefore, it is important to investigate how this can be effectively communicated on food products to increase consumer acceptance. We propose that product communication that focuses on decreasing the physical and social distance between the food producer and the consumer can result in consumers identifying more with the food producer, which, in turn, can increase the buying intention of food products. The current research comprises an online survey that includes an experimental design and a real-life assessment among 825 Dutch participants. Results of the experiment show that decreasing physical distance, but not social distance, increases consumers' intention to buy a food product. This effect can be explained by increased feelings of identification with a food producer. Moreover, the real-life assessment provides a first indication that both having a food producer living close by (physical distance) and personally knowing a food producer (social distance) might increase acceptance of the producer and the product, and highlights the relevance of perceived connection. These findings give insights into how food producers can market local food products to increase acceptance; communication on a decreased distance between consumers and the food producer is only effective when it results in more identification with the food producer. Perceived connection seems to be an essential part of the acceptance of local products.

Social power and perceived risk of contagious disease: High power leads to lower risk estimation of catching COVID-19.

An accurate estimation of COVID-19 contagion risk is important in terms of understanding the dynamic of disease transmission and health behavior. Previous research has documented that many health-related variables influence the risk estimation of communicable diseases. We expanded the current understanding by investigating whether health-irrelevant factors-such as one's sense of power-can have a systematic and consequential impact on perceived risks of catching the coronavirus. Based on the social distance theory of power, we propose that people in a higher power position develop a greater sense of social distance than those in a lower power position, which may in turn predispose the former to think that they are less likely to catch contagious diseases from other people. In Study 1, we provided correlational evidence that the personal sense of power was associated with the underestimation of contagion probability in Chinese university students. In Study 2, we established the causal relationship between power and concerns for contagious diseases in nonstudent adults and revealed the mediating role of social distance in the observed effect. Overall, these results, for the first time, indicate that power can elevate perceived social distance, exerting downstreaming effects on health cognition during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The stigma of intellectual disability in Spain: a nationally representative survey.

BACKGROUND: Stigma towards people with intellectual disability affects various aspects of their lives, including access to employment, housing, health and social care services. Furthermore, this stigma reduces their social opportunities and is even reflected in laws that diminish their autonomy. Due to the practical significance of this issue, the aim of this research is to explore for the first time the social stigma associated with intellectual disability in a representative sample of the Spanish population. METHOD: A cross-sectional quantitative descriptive study was conducted, involving a representative sample of the population (N = 2746). The study includes descriptive analyses and hierarchical regressions to examine various dimensions of stigma, such as attitudes, attributions, and intentions of social distance. RESULTS: Medium levels of stigma are found regarding attitudes and attributions towards people with intellectual disability, while levels are medium-low concerning the intention of social distance. The most reliable indicators of stigma across its various dimensions encompass attitudes, attributions, and the intention of social distance. Factors that contribute to lower stigma include knowing someone with an intellectual disability, being willing to discuss intellectual disability with an acquaintance who has it and having a progressive political ideology. People with intellectual disability show more negative attributions towards themselves. Living with a person with an intellectual disability is another predictor of more stigmatising attitudes, but less intention of social distance. Results are mixed regarding age, gender, and educational level. CONCLUSION: Combating the stigmatisation of people with intellectual disabilities must include comprehensive actions to address attitudes, attributions and behavioural intentions. Public policies, such as national campaigns and programmes, should include contact with and open conversations about intellectual disability, and sensitivity to sociodemographic variables.

Patient racism toward nurses in a divided society: The case of Jews and Arabs in Israel.

AIM: This study examines whether racism exists among Jewish and Arab patients in Israel, as reflected in patient preference for receiving treatment from a nurse with the same ethnic background. BACKGROUND: We examine the relationship between racism and the level of trust in a nurse from a different ethnic group than the patient, as well as the preferred level of social distance, in the context of ongoing conflicts between the Jewish majority and the Arab minority in Israel. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted using a unique study questionnaire that asked 534 Jewish and 478 Arab respondents to express their preference for an Arab and a Jewish nurse. RESULTS: Among both the Jews and the Arabs, there is a similar tendency of racism toward nurses of the dissimilar ethnic group. This racism was also prevalent among participants who live in a mixed environment or those who studied or are studying and worked or work in a mixed environment. As the trust in nursing staff members from the other group increases, the level of racism decreases. The greater the social distance the participants felt from the members of the other group, the more racist the attitudes they expressed. CONCLUSIONS: Both Jews and Arabs preferred to be treated by nurses of their own ethnic group. In contrast to the contact hypothesis theory, participants who live in a mixed environment did not express fewer racist preferences. We conclude with some useful practical suggestions aimed at decreasing racism in health care. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Findings imply that prospective patients prefer to receive nursing care from nurses of their own ethnic group and trust these nurses more than they trust nurses of different ethnic group.

The relationship of stereotypes, social distance and sexuality knowledge with attitudes towards sexuality of people with mild intellectual disabilities.

BACKGROUND: The present study examines the relationship between stereotypical beliefs about people with intellectual disabilities, desire for social distance, and general knowledge about human sexuality with attitudes towards the sexuality of adults with mild intellectual disabilities. METHOD: Two hundred fifty participants from staff, family and community samples completed an online set of questionnaires. RESULTS: Higher agreement with stereotypical beliefs and lower sexual knowledge were associated with less normalising and more paternalistic attitudes towards the sexuality of adults with mild intellectual disabilities. Higher agreement with stereotypical beliefs was also associated with more negative attitudes. On the other hand, willingness to interact with these adults was associated with more normalising and less paternalistic attitudes. CONCLUSIONS: Interventions that aim to support adults with intellectual disabilities in relation to their sexuality should also address the perceptions of their support network towards them as individuals with disabilities, as well as their knowledge about sexuality.

Influence of Social Distance on Foreign Language Effect in Moral Judgment.

Previous research has shown that moral choice depends on language, a phenomenon known as the moral foreign language effect (mFLE). The current study examines the influence of social distance on the mFLE. In Experiment 1, 200 participants were randomly assigned to either close or distant social distance in English or Chinese. In Experiment 2, 188 participants were randomly assigned to either English or Chinese and were presented with eight moral dilemmas, each with five different levels of social distance. After reading the dilemma, participants made a choice on a binary scale (Yes/No) in both Experiments 1 and 2 or on a more sensitive 100-point scale in Experiment 2. The results showed that the mFLE was present in distant social distance but absent in close social distance. Finally, a meta-analysis of the results from both studies confirmed the effect of social distance on the mFLE. These findings demonstrate that social distance might play an important role in moderating the mFLE in moral judgment.

Racial and ethnic disparities in COVID-19 diagnosis and adherence to mitigation behaviours in a national United States older adult sample.

Older adults and people of colour are vulnerable to the COVID-19 pandemic, and mitigation behaviours reduce COVID-19 infection. We examined racial and ethnic differences in COVID-19 diagnosis and adherence to COVID-19 mitigation behaviours among U.S. older adults. Data were retrieved from the National Health and Aging Trends Study, a nationally representative prospective cohort with 3257 U.S. Medicare beneficiaries aged 65+. COVID-19 variables were collected in 2020; all other data in 2019. Odds of COVID-19 diagnosis and adherence to mitigation behaviours (handwashing, masking, social distancing) were analysed using logistic regression. Compared to White older adults, only Hispanic respondents had 2.7 times significantly higher odds of COVID-19 after adjusting for sociodemographics, health, and mitigation behaviours (aOR = 2.71, 95% CI = 1.20-6.12). Black older adults had 7.9 times significantly higher odds of masking (aOR = 7.94, 95% CI = 2.33-27.04) and 2.3 times higher odds of social distancing (aOR = 2.33, 95% CI = 1.28-4.24), after adjusting for sociodemographics and health. Among all racial and ethnic groups, only Hispanic older adults had a significantly elevated COVID-19 diagnosis. Despite higher adherence to COVID-19 mitigation behaviours among racial and ethnic minorities, especially Black older adults, odds of COVID-19 remained elevated. Research is needed to explore potential mechanisms for higher odds of COVID-19 among minority older adults.

Behaviour of aerosols and their role in the transmission of SARS-CoV-2; a scoping review.

Covid-19 has triggered an unprecedented global health crisis. The highly contagious nature and airborne transmission route of SARS-CoV-2 virus requires extraordinary measures for its containment. It is necessary to know the behaviour of aerosols carrying the virus to avoid this contagion. This paper describes the behaviour of aerosols and their role in the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 according to published models using a scoping review based on the PubMed, Scopus, and WOS databases. From an initial 530 references, 9 papers were selected after applying defined inclusion criteria. The results reinforce the airborne transmission route as a means of contagion of the virus and recommend the use of face masks, extending social distance to more than 2 metres, and natural ventilation of enclosed spaces as preventive measures. These results contribute to a better understanding of SARS-CoV-2 and help design effective strategies to prevent its spread.

Social contact patterns during the COVID-19 pandemic in 21 European countries - evidence from a two-year study.

BACKGROUND: Most countries have enacted some restrictions to reduce social contacts to slow down disease transmission during the COVID-19 pandemic. For nearly two years, individuals likely also adopted new behaviours to avoid pathogen exposure based on personal circumstances. We aimed to understand the way in which different factors affect social contacts - a critical step to improving future pandemic responses. METHODS: The analysis was based on repeated cross-sectional contact survey data collected in a standardized international study from 21 European countries between March 2020 and March 2022. We calculated the mean daily contacts reported using a clustered bootstrap by country and by settings (at home, at work, or in other settings). Where data were available, contact rates during the study period were compared with rates recorded prior to the pandemic. We fitted censored individual-level generalized additive mixed models to examine the effects of various factors on the number of social contacts. RESULTS: The survey recorded 463,336 observations from 96,456 participants. In all countries where comparison data were available, contact rates over the previous two years were substantially lower than those seen prior to the pandemic (approximately from over 10 to < 5), predominantly due to fewer contacts outside the home. Government restrictions imposed immediate effect on contacts, and these effects lingered after the restrictions were lifted. Across countries, the relationships between national policy, individual perceptions, or personal circumstances determining contacts varied. CONCLUSIONS: Our study, coordinated at the regional level, provides important insights into the understanding of the factors associated with social contacts to support future infectious disease outbreak responses.

Have attitudes toward epilepsy improved in Germany over the last 50 years?

OBJECTIVE: In Germany, six previous representative surveys on attitudes toward epilepsy (AE) have been conducted between 1967 and 2008 using the four original Caveness questions (CQs) from 1949 to 1980. The aims of this study were (1) to investigate changes in AE over the time span of 50 years, including the current survey in 2018 (2) to investigate the first-time emotional reactions measured with the Scales of Attitudes toward People with Epilepsy (SAPE) (3) to identify predictors of AE. METHODS: A representative face-to-face survey with CQ, in addition with the SAPE scales of Social Distance, Stereotypes, Personal Concerns, and Emotional Reactions was carried out in Germany in 2018. One thousand and twenty-six persons who ever had heard of epilepsy participated. Respondents who answered "don't know" in the CQs were subsequently asked to answer only yes/no. The analysis of trends from 1967 to 2018 was based on the pooled data of the surveys. The four CQs in the 2018 survey were included in the SAPE item pool and an exploratory principal axis factor analysis was performed. General linear models were performed to identify predictors. RESULTS: For all four CQs, the trend of improved AE was significant over the past 50 years. In the 2018 survey, excluding the "don't know" answer option increased the proportion of negative responses for contact of one's own children with a person with epilepsy (PWE) from 6.9% to 11.4% and for the marriage of one's own children with a PWE from 13.9% to 23.8%. When encountering a PWE, 30.1% would feel insecure or uncomfortable and nearly 60% were concerned that the PWE might be injured in case of a seizure. Knowing what to do in case of a seizure, knowing that seizures can be treated successfully, personal contact with a PWE along with younger age, and higher education were found to be the strongest predictors for positive AE identified by multivariate analyses. Exploratory principal axis factor analysis revealed that three of the four CQs items loaded > 0.30 at the factors of Social Distance and Stereotypes of SAPE but none on the factors measuring emotional reactions. SIGNIFICANCE: AE measured by CQs have markedly improved in Germany over the last 50 years. Germany is to our knowledge the only country with such a long-term trend investigation in AE. Negative AE may be underestimated by survey questions with "don't know" answer option. Emotional aspects of attitudes are underexposed resp. neglected in the CQs, which are used worldwide for measuring AE. Additional tools like SAPE can close this gap. The identified predictors may help to derive interventions against negative AE.

Built environment factors moderate pandemic fatigue in social distance during the COVID-19 pandemic: A nationwide longitudinal study in the United States.

Non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) remain some of the most effective measures for coping with the ever-changing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Pandemic fatigue, which manifests as the declined willingness to follow the recommended protective behaviors (e.g., keeping social distance policies, wearing masks), has commanded increasing attention from researchers and policymakers after the prolonged NPIs and COVID-19 worldwide. However, long-term changes in pandemic fatigue are not well understood, especially amidst the ever-changing pandemic landscape. Built environment factors have been shown to positively affect mental and physical health, but it is still unclear whether built environments can moderate pandemic fatigue. In this study, we used Google mobility data to investigate longitudinal trends of pandemic fatigue in social distance since the onset of NPIs enforcement in the United States. The results indicated that pandemic fatigue continuously worsened over nearly two years of NPIs implementation, and a sharp increase occurred after the vaccination program began. Additionally, we detected a significant moderation effect of greenspace and urbanicity levels on pandemic fatigue. People living in areas with high levels of greenness or urbanicity experienced lower levels of pandemic fatigue. These findings not only shed new light on the effects of greenness and urbanicity on COVID-19 pandemic fatigue, but also provide evidence for developing more tailored and effective strategies to cope with pandemic fatigue.

Does racism toward nurses increase as treatment invasiveness rises?

One of the unspoken issues in public discourse in most countries is the racism of patients toward nurses who originate from a different ethnic group than theirs. The aim of the present study is to examine whether patients' racism toward nurses increases as the invasiveness of treatment rises. This study was conducted in Israel, a highly conflictual society where Jews and Arabs live together and meet in the same health facilities. Despite the tension and sometimes animosity caused by the political situation, members of each group regularly encounter members of the other group during the provision of health-care, both as patients and as medical and nursing staff. A study questionnaire which presented nine nursing treatments of diverse levels of invasiveness was filled out by Arab and Jewish participants. They were asked to convey their preference for an Arab or a Jewish nurse for each treatment. Results of Logistic Regression Analyses reveal that in both sectors, racism toward nurses increases as the treatment invasiveness rises. These findings are discussed in light of the concept of social distance, and serve as an empirical basis for several proposed practical recommendations for eradicating racism against nurses.

Queers in quarantine: Young LGBTQ+ people's experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic in Sweden.

The COVID-19 pandemic led to major restrictions of everyday life activities. This worsened the social situation of many people, and marginalized groups have been especially affected. This article explores how LGBTQ+ young adults in Sweden have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent recommendations and restrictions. Fifteen participants between 20-29 years, who self-identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+), were interviewed about their experiences. A thematic analysis of the data showed that the participants perceived their psychological wellbeing to have been greatly affected by the pandemic. Several reported symptoms of clinical depression, as well as anxiety, worry, rumination, and a heightened sensitivity to stress. Stressors included fear of the disease itself, and fear of spreading the virus, as well as the negative consequences of adhering to the recommendations of social distancing, which constantly interplayed with the marginalized position of being a young LGBTQ+ person. Most participants experienced a decrease in minority stress in face-to-face interaction with social distancing measures in place, but an increase in minority stress online. Those who faced minority stress at home experienced the isolation as particularly stressful. Limited access to the LGBTQ+ community was a common stressor. For transgender participants, the effects on transgender healthcare, such as prolonged waiting times for gender dysphoria assessment and hormone treatment, were a major challenge. Our results have added valuable knowledge to research indicating how vulnerable young adults were highly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.

Predicting different dimensions of schizophrenia-related stigma in Israel: Exploring the applicability of the common sense model of illness.

The common sense model of illness is a promising conceptual framework that can promote our understanding of the predictors of schizophrenia-related public stigma. Because stigma is a multidimensional phenomenon, studies on schizophrenia-related stigma need to account for the origins of the various aspects of this phenomenon. This study explored which common sense model of illness components (cognitive and emotional) predicted three distinct indicators of stigma (stereotypes and discrimination on the individual and structural levels). A nonprobability sample of 149 students from one of the largest universities in Israel was drawn. Data were collected via a self-reported questionnaire. We found that five of the nine common sense model of illness variables predicted schizophrenia stereotypes, whereas very few predicted discrimination. Additionally, we found that greater belief in the effectiveness of schizophrenia treatment was associated with lower stereotypes and social-level discrimination. The less the perceived consequences of schizophrenia (the extent to which the illness is perceived to affect one's life), the lower the stereotypes and discrimination (individual and social). The perceived cause of schizophrenia and attribution of personal control over the illness did not predict any stigma dimension. The findings suggest that the common sense model of illness is more suitable for predicting stereotypes than discrimination. More research is needed to understand the unique drivers of different dimensions of stigma. The findings also imply the need to design separate programs to address different aspects of schizophrenia-related stigma.

Explaining immigrants' social distance towards natives: A multilevel mediation approach across immigrant groups in Germany.

What factors underlie immigrants' social distance towards natives? Previous studies found that immigrants who perceive themselves as rejected by natives express more negative intergroup attitudes towards natives. Another line of research found that contingent on their origin country, immigrants face different degrees of social distance from natives. In this study, we employ an intergroup threat approach to integrate these separate research strands. The theoretical model we develop predicts that immigrants from groups that receive greater social distance from natives will perceive more personal discrimination, which, as a mediating mechanism, will be associated with greater social distance towards natives. Empirically, we draw on a cross-sectional probability sample of 1789 immigrants from 38 origin countries living in Germany (i.e., a comparative origin design). The results of multilevel mediation analyses prove consistent with our theoretical expectations, which points to the benefits of examining social distance among immigrants and natives in conjunction.

Capacity, Collision Avoidance and Shopping Rate under a Social Distancing Regime.

Capacity restrictions in stores, maintained by mechanisms like spacing customer intake, became familiar features of retailing in the time of the pandemic. Shopping rates in a crowded store under a social distancing regime are prone to considerable slowdown. Inspired by the random particle collision concepts of statistical mechanics, we introduce a dynamical model of the evolution of the shopping rate as a function of a given customer intake rate. The slowdown of each individual customer is incorporated as an additive term to the baseline value of the shopping time, proportionally to the number of other customers in the store. We determine analytically and via simulation the trajectory of the model as it approaches a Little's law equilibrium and identify the point beyond which equilibrium cannot be achieved. By relating the customer shopping rate to the slowdown compared with the baseline, we can calculate the optimal intake rate leading to maximum equilibrium spending. This turns out to be the maximum rate compatible with equilibrium. The slowdown due to the largest possible number of shoppers is more than compensated for by the increased volume of shopping. This macroscopic model is validated by simulation experiments in which avoidance interactions between pairs of shoppers are responsible for shopping delays.

Human Research Study of Particulate Propagation Distance From Human Respiratory Function.

BACKGROUND: Airborne viral pathogens like severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) can be encapsulated and transmitted through liquid droplets/aerosols formed during human respiratory events. METHODS: The number and extent of droplets/aerosols at distances between 1 and 6 ft (0.305-1.829 m) for a participant wearing no face covering, a cotton single-layer cloth face covering, and a 3-layer disposable face covering were measured for defined speech and cough events. The data include planar particle imagery to illuminate emissions by a light-sheet and local aerosol/droplet probes taken with phase Doppler interferometry and an aerodynamic particle sizer. RESULTS: Without face coverings, droplets/aerosols were detected up to a maximum of 1.25 m (4.1ft ±â€…0.22-0.28 ft) during speech and up to 1.37 m (4.5ft ±â€…0.19-0.33 ft) while coughing. The cloth face covering reduced maximum axial distances to 0.61 m (2.0 ft ±â€…0.11-0.15 ft) for speech and to 0.67 m (2.2 ft ±â€…0.02-0.20 ft) while coughing. Using the disposable face covering, safe distance was reduced further to 0.15 m (0.50 ft ±â€…0.01-0.03 ft) measured for both emission scenarios. In addition, the use of face coverings was highly effective in reducing the count of expelled aerosols. CONCLUSIONS: The experimental study indicates that 0.914 m (3 ft) physical distancing with face coverings is equally as effective at reducing aerosol/droplet exposure as 1.829 m (6 ft) with no face covering.