Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2020 Mar;27(2):45-50.
doi: 10.21315/mjms2020.27.2.5. Epub 2020 Apr 30.

The Behaviour Changes in Response to COVID-19 Pandemic within Malaysia

Eugene Koh Boon Yau  1 , Nicholas Pang Tze Ping  2 , Wendy Diana Shoesmith  2 , Sandi James  2   3 , Noor Melissa Nor Hadi  4 , Jiann Lin Loo  5
Affiliations

The Behaviour Changes in Response to COVID-19 Pandemic within Malaysia

Eugene Koh Boon Yau et al. Malays J Med Sci. 2020 Mar.

Abstract

The novel coronavirus infection, COVID-19, is a pandemic that currently affects the whole world. During this period, Malaysians displayed a variety of behaviour changes as a response to COVID-19, including panic buying, mass travelling during movement restriction and even absconding from treatment facilities. This article attempts to explore some of these behaviour changes from a behaviourist perspective in order to get a better understanding of the rationale behind the changes.

Keywords: COVID-19; behaviourism; mental health; psychiatry; social sciences.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest None.

Comment in

References

    1. Bernama. COVID-19 chronology in Malaysia [Internet] Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Malaysia National News Agency; 2020. Mar 17, Retrieved 2020 March 24. Available at: https://www.bernama.com/en/news.php?id=1821902.
    1. Hayes SC. Acceptance and commitment therapy, relational frame theory, and the third wave of behavioral and cognitive therapies—republished article. Behav Ther. 2016;47(6):869–885. doi: 10.1016/j.beth.2016.11.006. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Rainer G. Denial in physical illness. J Psychosom Res. 1997;43(6):575–593. doi: 10.1016/S0022-3999(97)00168-2. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Channel News Asia. Wuhan virus: Chinese parents who refused quarantine of toddler in Johor stopped at Senai airport. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Mediacorp; 2020. Jan 26, Retrieved 2020 March 24. Available at: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/wuhan-virus-chinese-toddler-pa....
    1. The Star. Loo and behold, panic buying hits Penang. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Star Media Group Bhd; 2020. Mar 12, Retrieved 2020 March 24. Available at: https://www-behold-panic-buying-hits-penang.

LinkOut - more resources