Exploring the Prevalence of Protective Measure Adoption in Mosques during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Indonesia

Choirul Amin, Priyono Priyono, Umrotun Umrotun, Maulida Fatkhiyah and Suliadi Firdaus Sufahani
Additional contact information
Choirul Amin: Faculty of Geography, Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta, Surakarta 57162, Indonesia
Priyono Priyono: Faculty of Geography, Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta, Surakarta 57162, Indonesia
Umrotun Umrotun: Faculty of Geography, Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta, Surakarta 57162, Indonesia
Maulida Fatkhiyah: Faculty of Geography, Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta, Surakarta 57162, Indonesia
Suliadi Firdaus Sufahani: Faculty of Sciences Technology and Human Development, University Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia, Batu Pahat 86400, Johor, Malaysia

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 24, 1-13

Abstract: Muslims worship together more frequently than members of other religions. They pray in congregation at the mosque five times a day, causing the mosque to become a central hub for COVID-19 transmission. Therefore, the adoption of protective measures as a method of mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic in mosques is vital. This study aims to account for the implementation status of protective measures in mosques in Surakarta City, Indonesia, during the COVID-19 pandemic. A cross-sectional survey was conducted using a structured questionnaire sent to mosque caretakers as research participants. The mosques were chosen using a simple random sampling technique for a total sample of 247 mosques in Surakarta City. Participants were asked how often they implement the following protective measures in mosques, as recommended by the Majelis Ulama Indonesia: checking body temperature before entering the mosque, prayer distancing, carrying own prayer mat, wearing a mask when praying and no handshaking after prayer. The prevalence of the adoption of protective measures was revealed to be amongst 44.6% to 92.6%, with the lowest prevalence in checking body temperature before entering the mosque. Overall, only 33.7% of mosques implemented all protective measures. In mosques affiliated with Nahdlatul Ulama and the small mosques, the prevalence of protective measures was lower than in mosques affiliated with Muhammadiyah and the large mosques, respectively, suggesting that it is crucial to develop targeted health messages for these groups. Finally, as religious communities remain active in congregational worship during the outbreak, the contradictions between medical and religious practices must be addressed in society for believers to adopt public health policies and for policymakers to comprehend the importance of religious observances.

Keywords: COVID-19; congregational prayer; mosque; protective measure; Muslim; Indonesia (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/24/13927/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/24/13927/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:24:p:13927-:d:704210

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().