Dataset Information

Trust in Institutions and the COVID-19 Threat: A Cross-Sectional Study on the Public Perception of Official Recommendations and of Othering in Switzerland.

ABSTRACT: Objectives: To explore how perceived disease threat and trust in institutions relate to vaccination intent, perceived effectiveness of official recommendations, and to othering strategies. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of Swiss adults in July 2020. Outcome variables were vaccination intent, perceived effectiveness of official recommendations and othering strategies (labelling a given social group as responsible for the disease and distancing from it). Independent variables were perceived disease threat, trust in various institutions, perceived health-related measures, and sociodemographic variables. Linear and logistic regressions were performed. Results: The response rate was 20.2% (1518/7500). Perceived disease threat and trust in medical/scientific institutions were positively associated with vaccination intent and perceived effectiveness of official recommendations for coronavirus mitigation measures. Only disease threat was associated with a perception of effectiveness among othering strategies. Age and education levels were associated with vaccination intent. Conclusion: Reinforcing trust in medical/scientific institutions can help strengthen the perceived effectiveness of official recommendations and vaccination. It however does not prevent adherence to ineffective protecting measures such as othering strategies, where decreasing perceptions of epidemic threat appears to be more efficient.

SUBMITTER: Gilles I

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8790817 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Trust in Institutions and the COVID-19 Threat: A Cross-Sectional Study on the Public Perception of Official Recommendations and of Othering in Switzerland.

Gilles Ingrid I Le Pogam Marie-Annick MA Perriraz Margaux M Bangerter Adrian A Green Eva G T EGT Staerklé Christian C Krings Franciska F Wagner-Egger Pascal P Peytremann-Bridevaux Isabelle I

International journal of public health 20210101

<b>Objectives:</b> To explore how perceived disease threat and trust in institutions relate to vaccination intent, perceived effectiveness of official recommendations, and to othering strategies. <b>Methods:</b> We conducted a cross-sectional survey of Swiss adults in July 2020. Outcome variables were vaccination intent, perceived effectiveness of official recommendations and othering strategies (labelling a given social group as responsible for the disease and distancing from it). Independent v ...[more]

PMID: 35095384

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Project description:The central focus of this research is the fast and crucial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on a crucial psychological, relational, and political construct: trust. We investigate how the consequences of the pandemic, in terms of healthcare, state intervention and impositions, and daily life and habits, have affected trust in public institutions in Italy, at the time when the contagion was rapidly spreading in the country (early March 2020). In this survey, addressed to 4260 Italian citizens, we analyzed and measured such impact, focusing on various aspects of trust. This attention to multiple dimensions of trust constitutes the key conceptual advantage of this research, since trust is a complex and layered construct, with its own internal dynamics. In particular, the analysis focuses on how citizens attribute trust to Public Authorities, in relation to the management of the health crisis: with regard to the measures and guidelines adopted, the purposes pursued, the motivations that determine them, their capacity for involvement, and their effectiveness for the containment of the virus itself. A pandemic creates a bilateral need for trust, both in Public Authorities (they have to rely on citizens' compliance and must try to promote and maintain their trust in order to be effective) and in citizens, since they need to feel that somebody can do something, can (has the power to) protect them, to act at the needed collective level. We are interested to explore how this need for trust affects the attributional process, regarding both attitudes and the corresponding decisions and actions. The most striking result of this survey is the very high level of institutional trust expressed by respondents: 75% of them trust Italian public authorities to be able to deal with the COVID-19 emergency. This is in sharp contrast with the relatively low levels of institutional trust characteristic of Italy, both historically and in recent surveys. Moreover, the survey allowed the discrimination of several potential predictors for trust, thus emphasizing factors that, during this crisis, are exhibiting an anomalous impact on trust.

Project description:The legality of euthanasia and assisted suicide (AS) and nature of regulations of these practices remain controversial and the subject of lively debate among experts and the general public. Our study investigates attitudes and behaviours towards AS among older adults in Switzerland where the practice of AS has a relatively long history and remains rather unregulated. We aim to explore how individuals' preferences regarding their end of life, as well as individuals' trust in institutions involved in the practice or control of AS are associated with attitudes and behaviours towards AS. We analyse nationally representative data of adults aged 55 and over from wave 6 (2015) of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) in Switzerland (n = 2,145). While large majorities supported current legal arrangements around AS in Switzerland (81.7%) and stated that they could consider AS for themselves under certain circumstances (61.0%), only a minority either was a member of a right-to-die organisation already (4.9%) or stated they were likely to become a member of such an organisation (28.2%). Stated preferences for control over the end of life and for maintaining essential capabilities at the end of life showed a positive association with AS-related attitudes and behaviours, whereas preferences for feeling socially and spiritually connected, as well as for not being a burden displayed a negative association with our outcomes. Higher levels of trust in one's relative were positively associated with both support for the legality of AS and potential use of AS. A positive association was also found between trust in the Swiss legal system and support for the legality of AS. By contrast, trust in religious institutions displayed a negative association with all five AS-related attitudes and behaviours. Similarly, trust in healthcare insurance companies was negatively associated with potential use of AS. Taken together, older adults were generally supportive towards current practices regarding AS. This approval appears to be closely related to individuals' preferences and, at different extends, to trust in social and public institutions with regard to end-of-life issues, which is relatively high in Switzerland.

Project description:Introduction and objectiveRoad Traffic Injuries (RTIs) represent the predominant cause of morbidity and mortality globally. Thus, impactful interventions and trustworthy authorities are imperative to mitigate traffic accidents. The present study seeks to assess public trust in traffic accident diminution policies and measures within the country of Iran.MethodThis cross-sectional study utilized a questionnaire comprising 31 questions distributed across eight dimensions. The questionnaire's design was informed by a literature review and semi-structured interviews with experts specializing in traffic accidents. The target population consisted of Tabriz city residents, who were selected via convenience sampling. The collected data were then analyzed using SPSS-16 software, employing the T-test, One-way ANOVA, and Pearson correlation coefficient to present the study's results. structural equation modeling (SEM) was conducted using R 4-4-2 programming language.ResultsA total of 681 participants completed the questionnaire, yielding a commendable response rate of 88.6%. The majority of participants were male (60.8%), and 86.2% identified as drivers, with 61.8% having experienced driving accidents. The overall score for public trust in RTIs policies was calculated to be 46.9%. The individual scores for specific domains of trust in traffic safety were as follows: safer roads (43.1%), safe vehicle (43.3%), safety laws (48.8%), safe user (51.1%), safe technology (51.5%), road safety management (46.8%). All the latent variables except education are significantly effective on public trust.ConclusionThe study findings indicate relatively low levels of public trust in RTIs policies among the Iranian population. These results emphasize the need for targeted interventions to enhance public confidence in specific aspects of traffic safety. Policymakers can use these insights to implement effective measures, thus contributing to the RTIs and the promotion of road safety in the country.

Project description:ObjectivesWe previously identified that general practitioners (GPs) in French-speaking regions of Europe had a variable uptake of common preventive recommendations. In this study, we describe GPs' reports of how they put different preventive recommendations into practice.Design, setting and participantsCross-sectional study conducted in 2015 in Switzerland and France. 3400 randomly selected GPs were asked to complete a postal (n=1100) or online (n=2300) questionnaire. GPs who exclusively practiced complementary and alternative medicine were not eligible for the study. 764 GPs (response rate: postal 47%, online 11%) returned the questionnaire (428 in Switzerland and 336 in France).Main outcome measuresWe investigated how the GPs performed five preventive practices (screening for dyslipidaemia, colorectal and prostate cancer, identification of hazardous alcohol consumption and brief intervention), examining which age group they selected, the screening frequency, the test they used, whether they favoured shared decision for prostate cancer screening and their definition of hazardous alcohol use.ResultsA large variability was observed in the way in which GPs provide these practices. 41% reported screening yearly for cholesterol, starting and stopping at variable ages. 82% did not use any test to identify hazardous drinking. The most common responses for defining hazardous drinking were, for men, ≥21 drinks/week (24%) and ≥4 drinks/occasion for binge drinking (20%), and for women, ≥14 drinks/week (28%) and ≥3 drinks/occasion (21%). Screening for colorectal cancer, mainly with colonoscopy in Switzerland (86%) and stool-based tests in France (93%), was provided every 10 years in Switzerland (65%) and 2 years in France (91%) to patients between 50 years (87%) and 75 years (67%). Prostate cancer screening, usually with shared decision (82%), was provided yearly (62%) to patients between 50 years (74%) and 75-80 years (32%-34%).ConclusionsThe large diversity in the way these practices are provided needs to be addressed, as it could be related to some misunderstandingof the current guidelines, to barriers for guideline uptake or, more likely, to the absence of agreement between the various recommendations.

Dataset Information

Trust in Institutions and the COVID-19 Threat: A Cross-Sectional Study on the Public Perception of Official Recommendations and of Othering in Switzerland.

Publications

Trust in Institutions and the COVID-19 Threat: A Cross-Sectional Study on the Public Perception of Official Recommendations and of Othering in Switzerland.

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