Predicting Social Distancing Intention and Behavior During the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Integrated Social Cognition Model
Open accessAbstract
Background: Social distancing is a key behavior to minimize COVID-19 infections. Identification of potentially modifiable determinants of social distancing behavior may provide essential evidence to inform social distancing behavioral interventions. Purpose: The current study applied an integrated social cognition model to identify the determinants of social distancing behavior, and the processes involved, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: In a prospective correlational survey study, samples of Australian (N = 365) and U.S. (N = 440) residents completed online self-report measures of social cognition constructs (attitude, subjective norm, moral norm, anticipated regret, and perceived behavioral control [PBC]), intention, action planning, habit, and past behavior with respect to social distancing behavior at an initial occasion. Follow-up measures of habit and social distancing behavior were taken 1 week later. Results: Structural equation models indicated that subjective norm, moral norm, and PBC were consistent predictors of intention in both samples. Intention, action planning, and habit at follow-up were consistent predictors of social distancing behavior in both samples. Action planning did not have consistent effects mediating or moderating the intention–behavior relationship. Inclusion of past behavior in the model attenuated effects among constructs, although the effects of the determinants of intention and behavior remained. Conclusions: Current findings highlight the importance of subjective norm, moral obligation, and PBC as determinants of social distancing intention and intention and habit as behavioral determinants. Future research on long-range predictors of social distancing behavior and reciprocal effects in the integrated model is warranted.
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There is a dearth of evidence exploring environmental restructuring in the context of social distancing, which raises an important gap in the pandemic behaviour change literature.
“Despite the speculated benefits of environmental restructuring, there is a dearth of evidence exploring this intervention function in the context of social distancing [35, 36] which raises an important gap in the pandemic behaviour change literature.”
From Facilitators and barriers to social distancing for young people during the COVID-19 pandemic (2022) · cites this paper as [35]
Hagger and colleagues suggest that the physical restructuring of spaces in a way that provides scaffolding on to how to enact social distancing, alongside consistent cues and reminders, can support social distancing behaviour and may eventually lead to habit-formation.
“However Hagger and colleagues [35] suggest that the physical restructuring of spaces in a way that provides scaffolding on to how to enact social distancing, alongside consistent cues and reminders, can support social distancing behaviour and may eventually lead to habit-formation.”
From Facilitators and barriers to social distancing for young people during the COVID-19 pandemic (2022) · cites this paper as [35]
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Bigot, A., Banse, E., Cordonnier, A., & Luminet, O. (2021) · Psychologica Belgica · doi:10.5334/pb.712 · Cited by 21 · see citing works
Facilitators and barriers to social distancing for young people during the COVID-19 pandemic
Berry, E., Jenkins, C., & Allen, S. (2022) · BMC Public Health · doi:10.1186/s12889-022-13325-3 · Cited by 19 · see citing works
“However Hagger and colleagues [35] suggest that the physical restructuring of spaces in a way that provides scaffolding on to how to enact social distancing, alongside consistent cues and reminders, can support social distancing behaviour and may eventually lead to habit-formation.”
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- Authors
- Hagger, M. S., Smith, S. R., Keech, J. J., Moyers, S. A., & Hamilton, K.
- Affiliations
- Griffith University (AU)
- University of California, Merced (US)
- Corresponding author
- Hagger, Martin S
- Venue
- Annals of Behavioral Medicine
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2020-09-11
- Volume
- 54
- Issue
- 10
- Pages
- 713-727
- ISSN
- 0742-5554 (ISSN-L)
- 0883-6612
- 1532-4796
- PMC
- PMC7543267
- OpenAlex
- W3085555732
- Cited by
- 196
- References
- 5
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 20 · 2024: 36 · 2023: 35 · 2022: 52 · 2021: 43 · 2020: 4
- FWCI
- 30.28
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Licence
- academic.oup.com/journals/pages/open_access/funder_policies/chorus/standard_publication_model (vor)
- Locations
- Annals of Behavioral Medicine (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Jyväskylä University Digital Archive (University of Jyväskylä) (submittedVersion)
- eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion)
- Griffith Research Online (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Business Finland (1801/31/2015)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Behavioral Health and Interventions
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › COVID-19 Prevention and Impact
- Social Sciences › Communication › Communication and COVID-19 Impact
- Keywords
- social distancing, COVID-19 pandemic, social cognition, theory of planned behavior, moral obligation, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, anticipated regret, action planning, habit, intention-behavior relationship, past behavior, behavioral factors, behavioral interventions
- MeSH terms
- Betacoronavirus, COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, Humans, Models, Psychological, Pneumonia, Viral, Social Isolation, Coronavirus Infections, Intention, Pandemics
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