THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURAL AND FORESTRY SHERRY MARIZ BIA RAFAEL DETERMINANTS OF MASK-USING BEHAVIOUR IN RURAL AREAS DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC IN THE PHILIPPINES, INDONESIA, AND VIETNAM BACHELOR THESIS Study Mode: Full-time Major: Agricultural Economics Faculty: Advanced Education Program Office Batch: 2018-2021 Thai Nguyen, 12/10/2022 DOCUMENTATION PAGE WITH ABSTRACT Thai Nguyen University of Agriculture and Forestry Degree Program Bachelor of Agricultural Economics Student name Sherry Mariz Bia Rafael Student ID DTN1854250006 Thesis Title Determinants of Mask-Using Behaviour in Rural Areas During the COVID-19 Pandemic in the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam Supervisor (s) Dr. Duong Hoai An Dr. Ernoiz Antriyandarti Supervisor’s Signature Abstract: e Due to the COVID-19 epidemic, the world has experienced economic hardships and lost their social freedom. Wearing face masks has become the new normal for every person in the world even with the presence of the COVID-19 vaccines.
However, the public notoriously misuse it which reduces its positive effectiveness. The improper use of face masks may result in negative externalities; it can increase the number of active cases by infecting more household members to essential workers which can worsen the economic situation of a country. Therefore, understanding what drives people from misusing face masks is needed to further improve the COVID-19 contamination. Data from July 12 to August 5, 2021 from 397 household members in the rural areas of the Philippines, Vietnam, and Indonesia were gathered and analysed through logistic regressions.
Nearly more than half of the respondents have poor mask-changing and mask-disposing behaviour which needs to be addressed primarily. This paper investigates the factors that influence the mask-using behaviour. These habits not only minimize an individual's risk of infection, but they also help to prevent sickness from spreading to others. Practical recommendations were made based on the findings.
face mask, mask behaviour, rural areas, public places, Keywords: COVID-19 Number of pages: 75 Date of 12/10/2022 Submission: ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First and foremost, I want to express my gratitude to God for all the challenges and obstacles I overcame and the things I was able to achieve along this journey. His greatness and unwavering love flooded upon me while I built my thesis, which enabled me to effectively complete my research. Next, I want to offer my sincere gratitude to my family and friends for their unwavering support and comprehension during this study project. To my amazing supervisors, Dr.
Duong Hoai An and Dr. Ernoiz Antriyandarti, who made this research feasible by constantly being by my side and encouraging, guiding, and imparting invaluable knowledge. I also want to express my gratitude to my fellow Filipinos and classmates for making working on my thesis in Vietnam more exciting and entertaining. Continuously inspired me and provided me with unwavering support during difficult periods as well as during my final semester of education in Vietnam.
I also want to thank Thai Nguyen University of Agriculture and Forestry and the Advanced Program Office for providing a convenient learning environment and making it possible for my thesis. Lastly, to the people who participated in my survey, I thank you all. This research would not be successful without the data you provided me. iii TABLE OF CONTENT List of Figures.
1 List of Tables. 2 List of Abbreviations. Research questions and hypotheses .2 Studies in the Philippines, Vietnam, and Indonesia. OBJECTS AND METHODS.
Face Masks in Rural Places .1 Determinants of Mask-Wearing Behaviour .2 Determinants of Mask-Removing Behaviour .3 Determinants of Mask-Changing Behaviour.4 Determinants of Mask-Disposal Behaviour. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION. 7167 iv LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.Face Masks Used in Rural Areas. Error! Bookmark not defined.
Usage of Face Mask. Error! Bookmark not defined. Mask Chaging Frrequency. Error! Bookmark not defined.
4018 1 LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Socio-economic Characteristics. Error! Bookmark not defined.18 Table 2: Chaacterisitics of Mask-Wearing Behaviours. Error! Bookmark not defined.19 Table 3: Determinants of Mask-Removal Behaviour. Error! Bookmark not defined.20 Table 4: Determinants of Mask-Changing Behaviour.
Error! Bookmark not defined.21 Table 5: Determinants of Mask-Disposal BehaviourError! Bookmark not defined.22 2 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS BMI – Body Mass Index Formatted: Font: (Default) Times New Roman, 13 pt CDC – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Formatted: Font: (Default) Times New Roman, 13 pt CI – Confidence Interval OR – Odd Ratio WHO – World Health Organization Formatted: Font: (Default) Times New Roman, 13 pt 3 PART I. Research rationale The world has been devastated by a global pandemic known as the COVID-19 (WHO, 2020). It dramatically affected every life and imposed huge economic losses on people worldwide; from health issues to medical scarcity, from lockdowns to limited economic activities, from travel bans to degraded tourist economy, from closed schools to low online academic resources, and from shutdown of businesses to higher unemployment rate. It presents tremendous medical, economic, and sociological difficulties that limit daily living in ways that were previously unthinkable for the majority of people.
The impact of the pandemic is more severe in developing countries where medical infrastructure and facilities are poor like the Philippines, Vietnam, and Indonesia. Billions of debts continue to pile up in an attempt to contain the virus but to no avail. The rapid transmission of the COVID-19 virus has been prominent around the world even with the availability of the COVID-19 vaccines. The WHO recommended preventive measures to subdue the COVID-19 outbreak by COVID-19 vaccination and medical declaration, disinfection, social distancing, limiting from going outside and avoiding crowded places, and mass masking.
Several governments recognized the threat of COVID-19 authorized lockdown, quarantine, and closed public buildings. These policies have been able to control the spread of the virus; however, these restrictions negatively affect the daily lives of everyone and the country's economic status. The 4 maximum potential of one person to act for the benefit of oneself and the economy was traded-off to focus on limiting the spread of the virus. Universal mask use is one preventive measure that has been shown to be the most successful strategy to stop the spread of COVID-19 and spare the nation from more economic hardships (Wrucke, et al.
Medical experts recommended people who are vaccinated or not should properly wear their face mask when in a public place (CDC, 2021). The spread of the COVID-19 is largely influenced by human behaviour. It creates negative externalities on people since it has had and continues to have adverse effects on the economy, social life, and health care system. At the moment, wearing a mask in public areas is required, and failure to comply carries a fine.
For many people, choosing whether or not to wear a mask means balancing their personal goals with the significant societal benefits of doing so. Mandatory masking was implemented to trade- off individual freedom to address public health, economic prosperity, and social stability. This opportunity cost contributes to a public good, namely public health and all its social and economic consequences, by limiting the spread of the virus. Face masks are beneficial and effective, but not everyone uses them correctly, which reduces these qualities.
The general public's compliance with such measures is crucial to their success. No matter how strongly government promotes appropriate behaviour or how harsh the potential punishment in the event of civil disobedience, the efficacy of these measures ultimately depends on the people's continued social cooperation. Therefore, it is significant to identify the determinants that affect the mask-using behaviour. Problems were addressed, however, there are no significant policies related to the right way to use face masks which makes people use them improperly.
Bad mask- 5 using behaviour decreases the effectiveness of face masks where people touch it while using them, use it but hang it below their chin to breathe even when they are in public areas, discard it in an inappropriate trash bin, removing the used face masks in the wrong way, and using it for an extensive time. Moreover, people living in rural areas do not exhibit good mask-wearing compliance (Tan, Wang et al. As a developing country, most of the population in the Philippines, Vietnam, and Indonesia are living in rural areas. This may be one of the reasons why the Philippines, Vietnam, and Indonesia remain as one with the most number of COVID-19 active cases.
Together, these features will provide valuable information on how individuals with different household characteristics and different policy environments respond to a pandemic. There is an abundance of documented evidence in other countries, but there is substantial limited information in the developing countries like the Philippines, Vietnam, and Indonesia. Mandatory mask-wearing was implemented in these places as a preventive measure for the COVID-19 virus. There is no policy governing the appropriate usage of masks, but people who are seen not wearing them are penalized.
Despite the fact that many people wear face masks, regardless of the present pandemic, the prevalence of using the proper mask precautions was insufficient (Machida et. The remainder of this paper proceeds as follows. Section II provides international evidence on the review of the related literature on the determinants of mask-using behaviour. Section III describes the design of the surveys and defines the variables of the study.
Section IV presents the results of the study. Lastly, section V concludes and discusses masks policy practical recommendations. Research’s objectives The study aimed to attain the following objectives: 1. The study aims toTo evaluate whether the household members in rural Formatted: Numbered + Level: 1 + Numbering Style: 1, 2, 3, … + Start at: 1 + Alignment: Left + Aligned at: 1.9 cm + Indent at: 2.54 cm areas exhibit good mask-using behaviour and to examine its social and economic determinants.
Formatted: Font color: Auto 2. This study adds to the existing literature on the determinants of mask- wearing behaviour. The spread of disease is highly associated with human behaviour. Thus, it is essential to analyze and understand what drives people to engage and refrain from health-related behaviour during a pandemic.
Moreover, this study adds to the extensive literature on the economic behaviour during the COVID-19 pandemic. The proper use of face masks does not just save lives but also saves the economy. Finding strategies to encourage appropriate mask-using behaviours will require an understanding of how the general public utilizes face masks and what elements are linked to excellent compliance. To provide effective nudges that can increase widespread adoption of the proper use of face masks.
Formatted: Font color: Auto 3. To the existing literature on the determinants of mask-wearing behaviour and to add to the extensive literature on the economic behaviour during the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, policymakers and organizations will be able to locate risk populations and geographic areas in order to allocate limited medical or surveillance resources connected to the use of face masks and mask enforcement. This will be helpful in controlling the 7 virus's transmission and in assisting with pandemic preparedness in the future.
Formatted: Font color: Auto Formatted: Indent: First line: 0 cm 1. Research questions and hypotheses 1. What are the social and economic determinants of the mask-using behaviour in rural areas during the COVID-19 pandemic? H1a: The socio-economic characteristics, economic preferences, social preferences, features of masks, law enforcement, and the severity of the pandemic have a significant impact on the mask-wearing behaviour of Filipinos, Vietnamese, and Indonesians. How do these determinants affect the mask-using behaviour in rural areas during the COVID-19 pandemic? H1a: Mandatory mask-wearing increases mask-using compliance.
How to encourage Filipinos, Vietnamese, and Indonesian’s to properly wear a mask in public places during the COVID 19? 8 1. Limitations Due to resource limitations, the study cannot cover other countries or territories in ASEAN countries where the pandemic may also be severe. Furthermore, the data that were collected are based on the subjective decision of the participants where policies in each countries are different. Therefore, weWe recommend future researchers to conduct an observation study.
This is to have an objective set of data and to limit the participant’s bias.