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Behavioral insights during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: the role of trust, health literacy, risk and fairness perceptions in compliance with public health and social measures

2025-04-17Research article Open access
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datacite.subject.sdg03:Saúde de Qualidade
datacite.subject.sdg16:Paz, Justiça e Instituições Eficazes
dc.contributor.authorCilović-Lagarija, Šeila
dc.contributor.authorEitze, Sarah
dc.contributor.authorSkočibušić, Siniša
dc.contributor.authorMusa, Sanjin
dc.contributor.authorStojisavljević, Stela
dc.contributor.authorŠabanović, Haris
dc.contributor.authorDizdar, Faris
dc.contributor.authorPalo, Mirza
dc.contributor.authorNitzan, Dorit
dc.contributor.authorArriaga, Miguel Telo de
dc.contributor.authorScherzer, Martha
dc.contributor.authorCurtis, Benjamin
dc.contributor.authorHabersaat, Katrine Bach
dc.date.accessioned2025-08-05T11:19:17Z
dc.date.available2025-08-05T11:19:17Z
dc.date.issued2025-04-17
dc.description.abstractBackground and aim Public health and social measures (PHSM) are critical aspects of limiting the spread of infections in pandemics. Compliance with PHSM depends on a wide range of factors, including behavioral determinants such as emotional response, trust in institutions or risk perceptions. This study examines self-reported compliance with PHSM during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBIH). Materials and methods We analyze the association between compliance and behavioral determinants, using data from five cross-sectional surveys that were conducted between June 2020 and August 2021 in FBIH. Quota-based sampling ensured that the 1000 people per wave were population representative regarding age, sex, and education level based on the data from the latest census in Bosnia and Herzegovina. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to identify significant changes between studies on determinants and PHSM measures. Regression was used to find relations between behavioral determinants and PHSM.Results Participants reported strong emotional responses to the rapid spread of the virus and its proximity to them. Risk perception was spiking in December 2020 when rates of infection and death were particularly high. Trends in policy acceptance were divergent; participants did not rate PHSM as exaggerated, but perceived fairness was low. Trust in institutions was low across all waves and declined for specific institutions such as the health ministry. In five wave-specific regression analyses, emotional response (βmin/max = .11*/.21*), risk perception (βmin/max = .06/.18*), policy acceptance (βmin/max = .09/.20*), and trust in institutions (βmin/max = .06/.21*) emerged as significant predictors of PHSM. Conclusions This study contributes to the body of research on factors influencing compliance with PHSM. It emphasizes the importance of behavioral monitoring through repeated surveys to understand and improve compliance. The study also affirms the impact of public trust on compliance, the risk of eroding compliance over time, and the need for health literacy support to help reinforce protective behaviors.eng
dc.identifier.doi10.1371/journal.pone.0320433
dc.identifier.eid105003076186
dc.identifier.issn1932-6203
dc.identifier.other3731c405-acaf-4cd2-b87b-dd89378b2d78
dc.identifier.pmcPMC12005501
dc.identifier.pmid40245095
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10400.14/54153
dc.identifier.wos001470333200027
dc.language.isoeng
dc.peerreviewedyes
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.titleBehavioral insights during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: the role of trust, health literacy, risk and fairness perceptions in compliance with public health and social measureseng
dc.typeresearch article
dspace.entity.typePublication
oaire.citation.issue4
oaire.citation.titlePLoS ONE
oaire.citation.volume20
oaire.versionhttp://purl.org/coar/version/c_970fb48d4fbd8a85

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