Changing pace: Using implementation intentions to enhance social distancing behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic

Since the first case of COVID-19 in the U.S. on January 20, 2020, the disease caused by the new strain of coronavirus has spread exponentially across the country. While the spread of this disease can be significantly slowed if people practice "social distancing," it is difficult to break old habits and acquire new behaviors at the needed speed. The purpose of this study is to challenge how health risk messages are currently communicated (specifically by considering how the Center of Disease Control (CDC) communicates its recommendations for social distancing) and suggest an alternative way. We tested and applied the use of a robust behavioral intervention known as "if-then" plans (plans that spell out in advance how one wants to achieve a goal they have previously set) to encourage the acquisition of a new behavior (e.g., social distancing) during this time of crisis. Using a longitudinal mixed design (within-/between-subjects study) daily diary study, we hypothesized and observed (via multilevel modeling) that those randomized into the experimental group (those who created and practiced if-then plans) demonstrated increased social distancing over time, whereas engagement in social distancing did not change in the control condition (those who observed the CDC guidelines). These results were sustained in a 3-week follow-up examination for those who were strongly committed to the goal to social distance. Such evidence suggests that risk communication messaging that includes if-then plans is an effective way of acquiring new behaviors. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).