Kresna Social Science and Humanities Research
Full Lenght Article
Role of Media and Communication Channels in Creating Panic during Covid-19 Movement Control Order
Received 18 February 2021, Published 13 February 2021
Abstract
Media and Communication Channels as carriers of news on COVID-19 might have a role in spreading panic among the population. This study was conducted to determine the media and communication channels responsible for creating panic among Malaysians during COVID-19 Movement Control Order (MCO). A survey using questionnaire was used to collect data from 253 respondents across Malaysia. In terms of media and communication channels, most of the respondents reported that they panic due to the exposure to reports from online media (Internet and social media). This is followed by communication with family members. TV, radio and newspaper reports are the third contributors of panic among Malaysians during COVID-19 MCO. Meanwhile about half of the respondents said they panic because of curiosity about COVID-19. It is an irony that online media, which contributes to the panic is also a source of information on COVID-19 and platform to work from home.
Keywords
Declarations
Conflict of Interest Statement
The author (s) declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
References
[2] World Health Organisation. COVID-19 SITUATION OVERVIEW IN MALAYSIA. 2020.
[3] Teck Ling G, Chyong Ho C. Effects of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic on Social Behaviours: From a Social Dilemma Perspective. Technium Social Sciences Journal. 2020;7:312-320.
[4] Mertens G, Gerritsen L, Duijndam S, Salemink E, Engelhard I. Fear of the coronavirus (COVID-19): Predictors in an online study conducted in March 2020. Journal of Anxiety Disorders. 2020;74:102258.
[5] Tasnim S, Hossain M, Mazumder H. Impact of Rumors and Misinformation on COVID-19 in Social Media. Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health. 2020;53(3):171-174.
[6] Depoux A, Martin S, Karafillakis E, Preet R, Wilder-Smith A, Larson H. The pandemic of social media panic travels faster than the COVID-19 outbreak. Journal of Travel Medicine. 2020;27(3).
[7] Azlan A, Hamzah M, Sern T, Ayub S, Mohamad E. Public knowledge, attitudes and practices towards COVID-19: A cross-sectional study in Malaysia. PLOS ONE. 2020;15(5):e0233668.
[8] Mukhtar S. Mental Health and Psychosocial Aspects of Coronavirus Outbreak in Pakistan: Psychological Intervention for Public Mental Health Crisis. Asian Journal of Psychiatry. 2020;51:102069
[9] Blustein D, Duffy R, Ferreira J, Cohen-Scali V, Cinamon R, Allan B. Unemployment in the time of COVID-19: A research agenda. Journal of Vocational Behavior. 2020;119:103436.
[10] Mukhtar S. Pakistanis’ mental health during the COVID-19. Asian Journal of Psychiatry. 2020;51:102127.
[11] Mohd Hanafiah K, Wan C. Public knowledge, perception and communication behavior surrounding COVID-19 in Malaysia. 2020;.
[12] Shakeel S, Ahmed Hassali M, Abbas Naqvi A. Health and Economic Impact of COVID-19: Mapping the Consequences of a Pandemic in Malaysia. Malaysian Journal of Medical Sciences. 2020;27(2):159-164.
[13] Ahmad, A. R., Murad, H. R. (2020). The Impact of Social Media on Panic During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Iraqi Kurdistan: Online Questionnaire Study. J Med Internet Res, 22(5). DOI: 10.2196/19556
[14] Kilgo, D. K., Yoo, J., Johnson, T. J. (2019). Spreading Ebola Panic: Newspaper and Social Media Coverage of the 2014 Ebola Health Crisis. Health Communication, 34 (8):811-817.
[15] Crank, M. C., Mascola, J. R., Graham, B. S. (2019). Preparing for the Next Influenza Pandemic: The Development of a Universal Influenza Vaccine. The Journal of Infectious Diseases, Volume 219, Issue Supplement_1, pages S107–S109
[16] Shearer, F. M., Moss, R., McVernon, J., Ross, J. V., McCaw, J. M. (2020). Infectious disease pandemic planning and response: Incorporating decision analysis. PLoS Med 17(1)
[17] Al-Garadia, M. A., Khan, M. S., Varathan, K. D., Mujtaba, G., Al-Kabsib, M. A. K. (2016). Using online social networks to track a pandemic: A systematic review. Journal of Biomedical Informatics, Vol. 62: 1-11.
[18] Kushner, J. (2020). The role of social media during a pandemic. Retrieved from https://khoros.com/blog/social-medias-role-during-covid-19 (14 April, 2020)
[19] Merchant, R. M., Lurie, N. (2020). Social Media and Emergency Preparedness in Response to Novel Coronavirus. JAMA Network. Retrieved from https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2763596 (15 April, 2020)
Copyright and permissions
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Bibliographic Information
-
Submitted
18 February 2021 -
Revised
18 October 2021 -
Published
13 February 2021