Accepted for/Published in: Journal of Medical Internet Research
Date Submitted: Jan 30, 2024
Open Peer Review Period: Feb 1, 2024 - Mar 28, 2024
Date Accepted: Jun 12, 2024
(closed for review but you can still tweet)
Warning: This is an author submission that is not peer-reviewed or edited. Preprints - unless they show as "accepted" - should not be relied on to guide clinical practice or health-related behavior and should not be reported in news media as established information.
A Comprehensive Analysis of COVID-19 Misinformation, Public Health Impacts and Communication Strategies: A Scoping Review
ABSTRACT
Background:
The COVID-19 pandemic was marked by an "infodemic"—that is, it witnessed the rapid spread of information that was both accurate and false, and which significantly affected public health.
Objective:
The purpose of this comprehensive analysis was to examine the complexities of COVID-19 misinformation.
Methods:
This scoping review identified misinformation about COVID-19, its sources, themes, target audiences, and the effectiveness of public health communication strategies by utilizing MEDLINE/PubMed, Embase, and Scopus. Arksey and O'Malley's systematic approach was employed in the research methodology, which included all relevant studies from December 2019 to September 2023.
Results:
The findings indicate that misinformation has profoundly impacted mental health, vaccine hesitancy, and healthcare decision-making, with social media and traditional media being the main conduits. Misinformation ranged from the virus's origins to ineffective treatments and misunderstandings about public health measures. Strategies to counter misinformation include enhancing health literacy, utilizing digital technology, and promoting clear, authoritative communication.
Conclusions:
The research results emphasize the need for accurate and consistent messaging and cooperative efforts among policymakers, health professionals, and communication experts to develop effective interventions. Addressing the infodemic is essential for developing a well-informed, health-literate society, one that is better equipped to handle misinformation in future global health crises.
Citation
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Copyright
© The authors. All rights reserved. This is a privileged document currently under peer-review/community review (or an accepted/rejected manuscript). Authors have provided JMIR Publications with an exclusive license to publish this preprint on it's website for review and ahead-of-print citation purposes only. While the final peer-reviewed paper may be licensed under a cc-by license on publication, at this stage authors and publisher expressively prohibit redistribution of this draft paper other than for review purposes.