Abstract
Background:
State-level public health messaging during the pre-election coronavirus pandemic was very inconsistent. Moral motivational content of the messages, as characterized by moral foundations theory, may have contributed to the degree of compliance in particular states. More attention to this content might result in greater compliance and a lessening of the pandemic's severity.
Methods:
A comprehensive review of official state messaging in six U.S. states (California, Florida, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New York, and Texas) was reviewed for the number and distribution of moral foundations as described by moral foundations theory. A search was done for state-level data concerning compliance with mask-wearing and social distancing, the primary public precautionary measures during the pandemic. Rates of compliance by the state were compared with messaging content and analyzed for associations and correlations with the known partisan leanings of the states. Examples of messages with balanced moral foundations, which might be prospectively employed for greater acceptance, were presented. All data were gathered prior to the introduction of the first available vaccine.
Results:
Message review and compliance data suggested that the quantity and proportion of coronavirus-related official messages and the utilization of a balanced combination of moral foundations were associated with higher levels of compliance with the recommended public health measures and lower infection rates. The political orientations of states did not align with the use of known conservative/liberal preferred moral foundations as previously established by Moral Foundations Theory.
Conclusion:
Adjusting messaging with attention to the balanced employment of moral foundations can lead to wider acceptance of and compliance with preventive public health measures.
Publisher
Bentham Science Publishers Ltd.
Subject
Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health,Community and Home Care,Health (social science)
Reference80 articles.
1. Johns Hopkins University, COVID-19 Dashboard by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering.
Available from: https:// www.arcgis.com/ apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6 (Accessed on: October 30, 2020).
2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
1918.
Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pandemic-resources/1918-pandemic-h1n1.html (Accessed on: 30 Oct, 2020).
3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Basic Statistics (HIV).
Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/basics/statistics.html (Accessed on: 30 Oct 2020).
4. Althouse BM, Wallace B, et al.
The unintended consequences of inconsistent pandemic control policies.
medRxiv
2020;
2020.08.21.20179473.
5. Abbas A.
Politicizing the pandemic: A schemata analysis of COVID-19 news in two selected newspapers.
Int J Semiot Law
2020;
3
: 1-20.