Information Safety Assurances Increase Intentions to Use COVID-19 Contact Tracing Applications, Regardless of Autonomy-Supportive or Controlling Message Framing

Frontiers in Psychology 11 (2021)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

Promoting the use of contact tracing technology will be an important step in global recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Across two studies, we assessed two messaging strategies as motivators of intended contact tracing uptake. In one sample of 1117 Australian adults and one sample of 888 American adults, we examined autonomy-supportive and controlling message framing and the presence or absence of information safety as predictors of intended contact tracing application uptake, using an online randomized 2 × 2 experimental design. The results suggested that the provision of data safety assurances may be key in affecting people’s intentions to use contact tracing technology, an effect we found in both samples regardless of whether messages were framed as autonomy-supportive or controlling. Those in high information safety conditions consistently reported higher intended uptake and more positive perceptions of the application than those in low information safety conditions. In Study 2, we also found that perceptions of government legitimacy related positively to intended application uptake, as did political affiliation. In sum, individuals appeared more willing to assent to authority regarding contact tracing insofar as their data safety can be assured. Yet, public messaging strategies alone may be insufficient to initiate intentions to change behavior, even in these unprecedented circumstances.

Other Versions

No versions found

Links

PhilArchive



    Upload a copy of this work     Papers currently archived: 103,486

External links

Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Similar books and articles

Ethics of digital contact tracing wearables.G. Owen Schaefer & Angela Ballantyne - 2022 - Journal of Medical Ethics 48 (9):611-615.
In defence of digital contact-tracing: human rights, South Korea and Covid-19.Mark Ryan - 2020 - International Journal of Pervasive Computing and Communications 1 (1).

Analytics

Added to PP
2021-01-07

Downloads
28 (#851,325)

6 months
11 (#271,319)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Author's Profile

References found in this work

No references found.

Add more references