A Population Study on COVID-19 Information Sharing: Sociodemographic Differences and Associations with Family Communication Quality and Well-Being in Hong Kong

Shirley Man-Man Sit, Wei-Jie Gong, Sai-Yin Ho, Agnes Yuen-Kwan Lai, Bonny Yee-Man Wong, Man-Ping Wang and Tai-Hing Lam
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Shirley Man-Man Sit: School of Public Health, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
Wei-Jie Gong: School of Public Health, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
Sai-Yin Ho: School of Public Health, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
Agnes Yuen-Kwan Lai: School of Nursing, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
Bonny Yee-Man Wong: School of Public Health, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
Man-Ping Wang: School of Nursing, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
Tai-Hing Lam: School of Public Health, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 6, 1-11

Abstract: Family support through the sharing of information helps to shape and regulate the health and behaviours of family members, but little is known about how families are sharing COVID-19-related information, or about its associations with family communication quality and well-being. We examined the associations of COVID-19 information sharing methods with sociodemographic characteristics, the perceived benefits of information communication and technology (ICT) methods, and family communication quality and well-being in Hong Kong. Of 4852 respondents (53.2% female, 41.1% aged over 55 years), the most common sharing method was instant messaging (82.3%), followed by face-to-face communication (65.7%), phone (25.5%) and social media (15.8%). Female sex (adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR) 1.09), older age (aPRs 1.14–1.22) and higher household income (aPR 1.06) (all p ≤ 0.04) were associated with instant messaging use, while post-secondary education was associated with face-to-face (aPR 1.10), video call (aPR 1.79), and email (aPR 2.76) communications (all p ≤ 0.03). Each ICT sharing method used was associated with a higher likelihood of both reported benefits (aPRs 1.26 and 1.52), better family communication quality and family well-being (adjusted βs 0.43 and 0.30) (all p ≤ 0.001). We have first shown that COVID-19 information sharing in families using both traditional methods and ICTs, and using more types of methods, was associated with perceived benefits and better family communication quality and well-being amidst the pandemic. Sociodemographic differences in COVID-19 information sharing using ICTs were observed. Digital training may help enhance social connections and promote family well-being.

Keywords: COVID-19; information sharing; information and communication technologies; digital technologies; communication inequalities; family communication; family well-being (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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