Explainer
Covid: Major study by Swansea University shows why coronavirus compliance in Wales may be waning
A leading coronavirus behavioural expert from Swansea University has warned that clear messaging from the UK and Welsh Government is essential if to ensure public compliance if additional measures are introduced over the winter.
Dr Simon Williams, senior lecturer in people and organisation at Swansea University, said that to avert a winter crisis in the NHS, the government must take into consideration the
reasons why some people might not be following the rules, otherwise adherence may wane over the coming months.
A joint study by Swansea and Manchester universities found confusion over rules, a lack of trust in government, and feelings of helplessness or rebelliousness are the main reasons for rule-breaking during the pandemic.
What did the study find?
Confusion
Confusion
The main cause of non-compliance was caused by confusion over rules that were changing frequently, as well as there being different rules in countries across the UK, such as where face coverings are required.
Frequent Changes to rules
Frequent Changes to rules
Frequent rule changes and government announcements led to alert fatigue – where many people feel they are unable to follow, understand or recall specific rules, due to the overload instructions and information.
A sense of helplessness
A sense of helplessness
As the pandemic draws on, some people are experiencing a learned helplessness, and feel like they have given up following Covid rules.
Rebelliousness to restrictions
Rebelliousness to restrictions
Others may be increasingly resistant or rebellious about the rules, with some peopleconcerned that sustained lockdown measures would increasingly bring about civilunrest.
Dr Williams, continued: “Our study found that more often than not, where people didn’t follow measures, it was because they felt like the rules were hard to understand because they had been changing so often over time, and across different places – for example in different countries in the UK.
“In these cases, people weren’t intentionally breaking rules, but were adapting or interpreting them as best they can.
“Another of our key themes was alert fatigue. This is where people stop taking information in, or find it hard to recall important information, because of information overload.
“Many people are left feeling fed up or overwhelmed by the constant rule changes and announcements and it could be leading to unintentional rule breaking.
The study comes as concerns of rising cases of coronavirus coupled with winter flu could push the NHS to breaking point.
Compliance with measures such as wearing face-coverings also appears to be dropping.
The Welsh Government's cabinet has met on Thursday to discuss its latest Covid review, the results of which will be announced on Friday.
According to the study's authors, any reintroduction of restrictions, or extension of current rules such as face-coverings or Covid passes, will need to be paired with an understanding of patterns of public compliance.
Co-author Dr Kimberly Dienes, a clinical and health psychologist, said: “A significant finding in our research was learned helplessness.
“This is a psychological state where people give up trying to achieve something because they come to feel powerless.
“Normally, this means giving up a certain health behaviour, like admitting defeat when trying to quit smoking or stick to a diet.
“In this case, learned helplessness happened for some people who gave up trying to follow rules they either couldn’t understand or felt weren’t working.”
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