Disentangling the psychological, behavioural, media and governmental responses to COVID-19 via a cross-border analysis

Posted on: 30 April 2020

Trinity College is leading a major research project to explore the implications of COVID-19 on the public health jurisdictions of the Republic of Ireland (ROI) and Northern Ireland (NI). The research team is led by Professor Catherine Darker, Associate Professor of Health Services Research, Public Health and Primary Care, Institute of Population Health at the School of Medicine.

Professor Darker has brought together a group of experts from University College Dublin, Queens University Belfast and University of Bristol in the UK; those academics are working in tandem with public health leaders in the Health Service Executive (HSE).

The team will produce an evidence-based toolbox for targeting of public health and political leadership in terms of messaging and measures for any further waves of COVID-19, and subsequently for future epidemics/pandemics.

Professor Darker was one of six projects at Trinity College who received government funding for her research through the ‘Covid-19 Rapid Response Call’ announced on April 29^th, 2020.

Explaining the project, Professor Darker said:

COVID-19 is one of the biggest threats to public health in a generation. On the island of Ireland there are two different governments and public health jurisdictions. This represents a unique opportunity to explore the implications of different measures and messaging across these two jurisdictions as they relate to this virus on two similar populations. Arising from this research we will produce a public health toolbox that will guide both public health and political leaders for any further surges of COVID-19 or indeed for future epidemics or pandemics.

The team will:

• talk to people through both surveys and focus groups to assess key behavioural, social and psychological factors of the disease.
• investigate social media messaging and formal media responses in both jurisdictions to investigate the spread of (mis)information.
• model data to plot the psychosocial/behavioural and media messaging information with incidence and mortality data.
• conduct an assessment of health policy in terms of the most significant public health and political insights from each jurisdiction.

Professor Darker concluded:

COVID-19 represents a serious challenge to governments and healthcare systems.

In addition to testing and contact tracing; behavioural responses, like hand-washing and social responses, such as social distancing and cocooning are the most effective tools for stopping the spread of the disease. Psychological factors, that is; how likely you believe it is that you will contract the disease and contextual factors, like government and public health messaging are likely to drive these behaviours.

Professor Darker’s team at Trinity includes: Professor Lina Zgaga, Dr Nicola O’Connell, Dr Ann Nolan, Dr Katy Tobin, Ms Niamh Brennan, Ms Emma Burke, Ms Gail Nicolson.

Institutions involved: Trinity College (lead); University College Dublin; Queens University Belfast; University of Bristol, UK; Health Service Executive

University College Dublin: Dr Cliodhna O’Connor

Queens University Belfast: Dr Martin Dempster, Dr Christopher Graham

University of Bristol, UK: Professor Gabriel Scally

Health Service Executive: Dr Philip Crowley, Professor Joe Barry (also Trinity College Dublin).

READ MORE:

You can read about all six research projects at Trinity that were awarded funding under the ‘COVID-19 Rapid Response Call’ HERE.

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