Harnessing behavioural science in public health campaigns to maintain ‘social distancing’ in response to the COVID-19 pandemic: key principles

• Published in: Journal of epidemiology and community health (1979) 2020-08, Vol.74 (8), p.617-619
• Main Authors: Bonell, Chris, Michie, Susan, Reicher, Stephen, West, Robert, Bear, Laura, Yardley, Lucy, Curtis, Val, Amlôt, Richard, Rubin, G James
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Authoritarianism; Behavior; Behavioral Sciences; Betacoronavirus; Communicable Disease Control - methods; Communication; Coronavirus Infections - epidemiology; Coronavirus Infections - prevention & control; Coronavirus Infections - transmission; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; Disease transmission; Green infrastructure; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; Health promotion; Health Promotion - methods; Humans; Infections; Information Dissemination; Middle East respiratory syndrome; Minority & ethnic groups; Morbidity; Pandemics; Pandemics - prevention & control; Physical Distancing; Pneumonia, Viral - epidemiology; Pneumonia, Viral - prevention & control; Pneumonia, Viral - transmission; Population; Principles; Public access; Public Health; Punishment; Reinforcement; Respiratory diseases; Risk Reduction Behavior; SARS-CoV-2; Science; Severe acute respiratory syndrome; Social Behavior; Social distancing; Social networks; Social organization; Socioeconomics; Teenagers
• ISSN: 0143-005X; 1470-2738
• DOI: 10.1136/jech-2020-214290

Correspondence to Professor Chris Bonell, Department of Public Health, Environment and Society, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London WC1H 9SH, UK; [e-mail] Coronovirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), like Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), is an infection arising from a coronavirus. The COVID-19 pandemic is unprecedented in recent times in terms of the global spread of infection and the resultant morbidity, mortality and burden on health systems. 1 2 In the absence of a vaccine, reducing transmission of the COVID-19 virus requires rapid and extensive behaviour change to enact protective behaviours 3 and ‘social distancing’ across whole populations. Images and accounts of widespread population adherence (rather than examples of non-adherence) can persuade ‘conditional co-operators’ (those whose willingness to help others is conditional on being aware of others doing so) to over-ride individual self-interest and to act in the collective interest. 17 18 In communicating such messages, it is important to recognise variation across population groups, for example by age, socio-economic status and ethnic group, in terms of what is given up when adhering to social distancing, 19 which might inform segmented communication and enablement strategies (see principle 8 below). Reward, incentives and enablement tend to be more effective influences on this kind of behaviour than punishment, disincentives or castigation. 33 34 Since behaviour is influenced by social context, 35 messaging will be more persuasive and effective if there is a clearly communicated offer of timely and generous support in terms of income, employment rights and food, online access to social networks, communication, entertainment, education, and parenting and mental health support, and opening up more green space to public access.