Source: New Zealand Ministry of Health
In June 2023, the Public Health Agency, within the Ministry of Health, commissioned research and evaluation agency Verian to undertake a series of research projects and population surveys into attitudes and behaviours related to public health measures following the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this research was to examine the impact of COVID-19 on New Zealanders’ attitudes and behaviours towards public health measures and use this knowledge to better prepare the Ministry, and other decision makers, for future pandemics and other major health threats.
This work is split into two parts, each with two reports. The first part is two repeated behavioural surveys to monitor adherence to public health measures over time, covering both intention and actual behaviour. The second part is a qualitative analysis to explore drivers of COVID-19 related public health behaviours, and a report to quantify the impact of barriers and other factors on adherence to public health measures. All four reports can be found at COVID-19 behavioural science research.
This report, COVID-19’s role in shaping reactions to public health advice and New Zealanders’ preferences for handling a new pandemic is the second report in Part Two, the mixed method project. It follows on from the qualitative report Life since the pandemic: How the COVID-19 pandemic experience has shaped public attitudes and beliefs on public health, infectious disease and vaccination. This report outlines the results of a quantitative survey aiming to quantify the impact of barriers and other factors on adherence to public health measures. It was informed by 1,655 people surveyed online and 200 people surveyed over the phone, conducted between 17 April and 9 May 2024. Māori and Pacific peoples were over-sampled to ensure sufficient sample sizes for analysis. Interviewees came from different parts of New Zealand, urban and rural, and a range of occupations and living situations.
Overall, the report suggests:
- Most people will get vaccinated and respond to public health advice in response to a future pandemic. However, some people are now less likely to heed public health advice than they were before the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Many of the ways used during the COVID-19 pandemic to keep New Zealanders informed, such as daily briefings and webpages, would be effective in a future pandemic.
- Most people want information directly from health authorities focused on how infection spreads and clear advice about when to stay home.
The reports reflect the beliefs of those people surveyed and not the views of the Ministry of Health.
The report will help enhance the Ministry’s understanding of people’s attitudes to public health measures and provides ideas on how to communicate important public health information and support people taking protective and preventative measures.
