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Can the emotion of disgust be harnessed to promote hand hygiene? Experimental and field-based tests
- Source :
-
Social Science & Medicine . Mar2009, Vol. 68 Issue 6, p1006-1012. 7p. - Publication Year :
- 2009
-
Abstract
- Abstract: Two studies carried out in Sydney, Australia explored whether inducing disgust may be a useful addition to hand-hygiene interventions. Experiment 1 employed a novel laboratory measure of hand hygiene, and tested whether a brief (3-min) video-based intervention using disgust/education, improved hand hygiene relative to education alone and a control condition. On test, a week later, the disgust intervention significantly exceeded the education and control condition combined, although the effect size was modest. Experiment 2 examined the generality of this effect in a field study. During a baseline period, soap and paper towel use in a series of washrooms were covertly monitored. This was followed by an intervention period, in which two washrooms received disgust/education-based posters and a further two, educational posters, exhorting participants to wash their hands. A follow-up period, after the posters were removed, was also monitored. The disgust-based intervention was significantly better at promoting hand hygiene. These findings suggest that even brief disgust-based interventions may be successful and that these can be tested and developed under laboratory conditions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]
- Subjects :
- *HAND washing
*RESTROOMS
*AVERSION
*HEALTH education
*HAND care & hygiene
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 02779536
- Volume :
- 68
- Issue :
- 6
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Social Science & Medicine
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 36990785
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2009.01.013