The Relationship Between Handwashing, Covid-19  Stress Scale and Perceived Vulnerability to Disease during the Covid-19 Pandemic

Covid-19 can spread through close contact with an infected individual, but also through contaminated surfaces. Handwashing can reduce transmission by eliminating viral particles. This study aimed to investigate if handwashing behavior could potentially be predicted from perceived vulnerability to disease (PVD) and Covid-19 related stress (CSS). Furthermore, this study examined if CSS possibly moderated the relationship between PVD and handwashing. The results of the simple, multiple linear regression and moderation analysis indicated that an increase in the PVD score was associated with an increase in the handwashing habits score. The results of the simple linear regression indicated that the CSS score was also associated with an increase in the handwashing habits score, however the CSS lost its significance in the multiple linear regression and moderation analysis. The results of the moderation analysis also indicated that the relationship between the PVD and handwashing was not...Show moreCovid-19 can spread through close contact with an infected individual, but also through contaminated surfaces. Handwashing can reduce transmission by eliminating viral particles. This study aimed to investigate if handwashing behavior could potentially be predicted from perceived vulnerability to disease (PVD) and Covid-19 related stress (CSS). Furthermore, this study examined if CSS possibly moderated the relationship between PVD and handwashing. The results of the simple, multiple linear regression and moderation analysis indicated that an increase in the PVD score was associated with an increase in the handwashing habits score. The results of the simple linear regression indicated that the CSS score was also associated with an increase in the handwashing habits score, however the CSS lost its significance in the multiple linear regression and moderation analysis. The results of the moderation analysis also indicated that the relationship between the PVD and handwashing was not moderated by CSS. In conclusion, this study found that the individual’s perceived vulnerability to disease and Covid-19 related stress are associated with a significant increase in handwashing behavior. The relationship between perceived vulnerability to disease and handwashing behavior was not associated with different values of Covid-19 related stress. For future research, it would be valuable to conduct a mediation analysis to investigate the effect of PVD on the relationship between CSS and handwashing, since CSS lost its significant association when considering PVD in data analysis. Predicting handwashing behavior could provide possible targets to increase the effectiveness of public campaigns that aim to improve preventive behaviors.Show less

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The Relationship Between Handwashing, Covid-19 Stress Scale and Perceived Vulnerability to Disease during the Covid-19 Pandemic