KNOWLEDGE AND RISK PERCEPTION OF NIGERIANS TOWARDS THE CORONAVIRUS DISEASE (COVID-19)

Abstract

Background: The Coronavirus Disease 2019(COVID-19) is far from over, although appreciable progress have been made to limit the devastating effects of the pandemic across the globe. Adequate knowledge and risk perception is a critical assessment that is required to ensure proper preventive measures. This study assessed these among Nigerians. Methods: The study was a cross-sectional assessment of 776 consenting Nigerian adults that were distributed across the 6 geo-political zones and the Federal Capital Territory. Online pre-tested, semi-structured questionnaire were used to obtain the socio-demographic data and assessed the knowledge and risk perception of the participants to COVID-19. The knowledge of COVID-19 was assessed based on the number of accurate responses given in comparison to average scores. Chi-square analysis was computed to analysis the association between socio-demographic characteristics and knowledge of COVID-19 and risk perception. Data analysis was done using SPSS version 21, the level of significance was set at value p<0.05 at 95% confidence interval. Results: Majority of the participants were male 451 (58.1%), there was a good knowledge of COVID-19 among 90.3% of respondents with 57% having positive risk perception. There was a statistically significant relationship between good knowledge and positive risk perception of COVID-19 (p < 0.001). Annual income (p =0.012) and the perception that vaccines are good significantly predict positive risk perception of COVID-19 among the respondents. Conclusion: A good knowledge of COVID-19 and vaccination against the virus were the two most important factors that determined risk perception among the population. This may be because of the widespread advocacy, and it portends a good omen at combating COVID-19 menace. Key words: COVID-19, Risk perception, Nigerians