Effects of Government-Driven Smartphone Text Messages on Public Compliance With COVID-19 Preventative Measures

The new pandemic situation caused by a highly infectious virus has prompted the government of many countries to strengthen epidemic prevention measures. An unprecedented action was taken by the Korean government by sending text messages on COVID-19 preventative measures and the movement routes of confirmed-positive persons to the entire nation's smartphones. This study aimed to examine how effective the government-driven smartphone text messages were for public compliance with the measures. A total of 489 participants completed an online questionnaire or a pencil-and-paper questionnaire between September and October 2020. A self-reported questionnaire was used to measure the degree of compliance with the measures, the perceptions of the role of smartphone text messages in compliance with the measures, and the overall feelings toward smartphone text messages. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and two-way analysis of variance. The written responses were grouped by meaning. The participants presented a high degree of compliance with the measures and perceived the importance of the role of continuous smartphone text messages in complying with the measures. Positive feelings toward smartphone text messages predominated over negative feelings. Using smartphone text messages in nursing practice is recommended for patients requiring the continuous management of their disease.