Trust in COVID-19 information sources and perceived risk among smokers: A nationally representative survey

Autor: Reed M. Reynolds, Scott R. Weaver, Amy L. Nyman, Michael P. Eriksen
Rok vydání: 2021
Předmět:
Male
Health Knowledge
Attitudes
Practice
Viral Diseases
Epidemiology
Health Care Providers
Social Sciences
Habits
Medical Conditions
Risk Factors
Psychological Attitudes
Surveys and Questionnaires
Medicine and Health Sciences
Smoking Habits
Psychology
Public and Occupational Health
Medical Personnel
health care economics and organizations
Aged
80 and over
Multidisciplinary
Smokers
Middle Aged
Professions
Infectious Diseases
Medicine
Educational Status
Female
Disease Susceptibility
Public Health
Behavioral and Social Aspects of Health
Attitude to Health
Research Article
Adult
Science
Trust
Cigarette Smoking
Physicians
Humans
Pandemics
Aged
Behavior
Information Dissemination
SARS-CoV-2
COVID-19
Biology and Life Sciences
Covid 19
Patient Acceptance of Health Care
United States
Health Care
Medical Risk Factors
People and Places
Population Groupings
Zdroj: PLoS ONE
PLoS ONE, Vol 17, Iss 1, p e0262097 (2022)
ISSN: 1932-6203
Popis: Background Public health officials have classified smoking as a risk factor for COVID-19 disease severity. Smokers generally have less trust in health experts than do nonsmokers, leading to reduced risk perceptions. This study addresses smokers’ trust in information sources about COVID-19 and how trust is associated with perceived COVID-19 susceptibility and severity among smokers. Methods and findings A nationally representative sample of 1,223 current smokers were surveyed between October and November 2020, indicating their level of trust in COVID-19 information sources, and their perceptions of risk from COVID-19. Multiple differences in trustworthiness emerged; smokers trusted their personal doctor for information about COVID-19 more than other information sources, while news media were generally distrusted. In addition, the FDA was trusted less than the NIH and CDC. Several “trust gaps” were observed, indicating disparities in levels of trust associated with gender, ethnicity, education, and political orientation, which had the strongest association with trust of all factors. Political orientation was also a significant predictor of COVID-19 risk perceptions, but there was no independent effect of political orientation when accounting for trust, which was predictive of all risk perception outcomes. Conclusions Trusted sources, such as personal doctors, may most effectively convey COVID-19 information across political orientations and sociodemographic groups. News media may be ineffective at informing smokers due to their low credibility. The results suggest that trust may explain the apparent effect of political orientation on COVID-19 risk perceptions. Implications for researchers, communication professionals, and policy makers are discussed.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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