Self-efficacy for taking Preventive Measures against COVID-19 among Undergraduate University Students in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has imposed various stresses on individuals and communities Coping with sudden, tense, demanding situations during an infectious disease outbreak requires self-efficacy Increasing the public s self-efficacy for preventive and control measures is important in the management of the COVID-19 pandemic This research was aimed at evaluating the self-efficacy and associated factors of students at a public university in the southwest region of Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic This was a cross-sectional study, and a snowball sampling method was used to recruit participants Data were collected from the beginning of April to the end of June 2020 using an online questionnaire A total of 761 students were included in the study The participants demographic data were collected, and self-efficacy was analyzed using the General Self-efficacy Scale The results showed that self-efficacy for dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic was moderate in almost half of the students but was low in approximately 25% of the participants There were statistically significant associations between self-efficacy regarding the COVID-19 pandemic and gender, college type, marital status, and family income (p < 0 05) However, the participants self-efficacy was not associated with age, residence, or history of chronic illness In dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, most students had either moderate or low self-efficacy Certain demographic variables were positively associated with self-efficacy as perceived by the students These findings provide data central to the development of self-efficacy initiatives They may also be useful for the effective implementation of public health preventive behavior programs during the COVID-19 pandemic [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Pure & Applied Microbiology is the property of Dr M N Khan and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder s express written permission However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use This abstract may be abridged No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract (Copyright applies to all Abstracts )