Fostering compliance with COVID-19 guidelines: insights for risk communication strategies during a pandemic

To prevent the spread of infectious diseases such as COVID-19, health organizations must employ effective risk communication. Specifically, it is critical for public health organizations to identify factors affecting citizens' compliance behaviors. Focusing on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the United States' national public health agency, this study advanced a theoretical framework predicting Americans' social-distancing behavior and compliance with general CDC guidelines. Accordingly, we explored the theory of planned behavior (TPB), fatalism, and optimism with respect to public perceptions of COVID-19 and individuals' beliefs about organizations (i.e., organizational efficacy and CDC reputation). The results of our online survey (N = 584) revealed that TPB-related variables significantly predicted social-distancing and compliance behaviors, with subjective norms being the strongest predictor. Fatalistic attitudes toward COVID-19 were negatively associated with social-distancing and compliance behaviors, while individuals' beliefs about organizational efficacy also significantly predicted social-distancing and compliance behaviors. Further, individuals' perceptions of the CDC's reputation significantly predicted overall compliance behaviors. We discuss theoretical and practical implications based on these findings.