Rural and Urban Differences in COVID-19 Prevention Behaviors
Corresponding Author
Timothy Callaghan PhD
Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Public Health, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
Southwest Rural Health Research Center, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
Correspondence
Timothy Callaghan, PhD, Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Public Health, Texas A&M University, 212 Adriance Lab Rd., 1266 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA.
Email: [email protected]
Search for more papers by this authorJennifer A. Lueck PhD
Department of Communication, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
Search for more papers by this authorKristin Lunz Trujillo ABD
Department of Political Science, University of Minnesota – Twin Cities, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
Department of Political Science, Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota, USA
Search for more papers by this authorAlva O. Ferdinand DrPH, JD
Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Public Health, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
Southwest Rural Health Research Center, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Timothy Callaghan PhD
Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Public Health, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
Southwest Rural Health Research Center, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
Correspondence
Timothy Callaghan, PhD, Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Public Health, Texas A&M University, 212 Adriance Lab Rd., 1266 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA.
Email: [email protected]
Search for more papers by this authorJennifer A. Lueck PhD
Department of Communication, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
Search for more papers by this authorKristin Lunz Trujillo ABD
Department of Political Science, University of Minnesota – Twin Cities, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
Department of Political Science, Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota, USA
Search for more papers by this authorAlva O. Ferdinand DrPH, JD
Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Public Health, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
Southwest Rural Health Research Center, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
Search for more papers by this authorFunding information: This research was funded by the Texas A&M Triads for Transformation grant program. The grant was received by TC and JL. The funder had no role in study design, data collection, data analysis, or the writing of this manuscript.
Abstract
Purpose
To examine whether the adoption of COVID-19-related preventive health behaviors vary in rural versus urban communities of the United States while accounting for the influence of political ideology, demographic factors, and COVID-19 experiences.
Methods
We rely on a representative survey of 5009 American adults collected from May 28 to June 8, 2020. We analyze the influence of rural status, political ideology, demographic factors, and COVID-19 experiences on self-reported adoption of 8 COVID-19-related preventive health behaviors.
Findings
Rural residents are significantly less likely to have worn a mask in public, sanitized their home or workplace with disinfectant, avoided dining at restaurants or bars, or worked from home. These findings, with the exception of dining out, are robust to the inclusion of measures accounting for political ideology, demographic factors, and COVID-19 experiences.
Conclusions
Rural residents are significantly less likely to participate in several COVID-19-related preventive health behaviors. This reality could exacerbate existing disparities in health access and outcomes for rural Americans. Health messaging targeted at improving COVID-19 preventive behavior adoption in rural America is warranted.
Supporting Information
| Filename | Description |
|---|---|
| jrh12556-sup-0001-Appendices.docx30 KB | Table A1. Bivariate regression of relationship between rurality index and COVID-19 behaviors Table A2. Correlates of COVID-19 health behaviors with rurality index Table A3. Replication of Table 1 without weights Table A4. Replication of Table 2 without weights Table A5. Replication of Table 3 without weights |
Please note: The publisher is not responsible for the content or functionality of any supporting information supplied by the authors. Any queries (other than missing content) should be directed to the corresponding author for the article.
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