Differential effects of traditional and social media use on COVID-19 preventive behaviors: The mediating role of risk and efficacy perceptions

Abstract

The study explored how traditional and social media use produced various cognitive responses toward COVID-19, including perceived severity, susceptibility, and efficacy, and direct and indirect facilitation of COVID-19 preventive behaviors. We tested the hypotheses on data collected from 433 university students in Wuhan, China, using structural equation modeling. We found that traditional media enhanced engagement for preventive behaviors both directly and indirectly by enhancing perceived severity and efficacy, whereas social media showed no impact on preventive behaviors, either directly or indirectly. Furthermore, the direct effect of traditional media on preventive behaviors was markedly stronger than the indirect effect through perceptions.

Keywords: efficacy perception; preventive behaviors; risk perception; social media; traditional media.