Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 6, 2025

Using the Threat Probability Task to Assess Anxiety and Fear During Uncertain and Certain Threat
Published on: September 12, 2014
How Covid-19 literacy influences fear, protective behaviour, and conspiracy beliefs among university students in
Muhammad Asif Naveed1, Rozeen Shaukat2, Ali Asghar3
1Department of Information Management, University of Sargodha, Sargodha, Pakistan.
Background:
Covid-19 literacy, a social vaccine, is crucial to cope pandemic situations as it helps individuals to manage panic situations, adopt health preventive behaviours and adapting to the new normal.
Objectives:
This research examined the effects of Covid-19 literacy on fear, protective behaviour, and conspiracy beliefs of university students using an online questionnaire.
Methods:
A cross-sectional survey was conducted at two universities from Lahore with permission from concerned authorities. A total of 301 received responses were analyzed by applying descriptive as well as inferential statistics in SPSS.
Results:
The results indicated that Covid-19 literacy appeared to predict negatively fear of Covid-19 and conspiracy beliefs and positively health-protective behaviours. In other words, the university students with better Covid-19 literacy appeared to have less fear of Covid-19, more likely to adopt health-protective behaviours and believe less in conspirative information.
Conclusions:
These results demonstrated the potential benefits of Covid-19 literacy to respond proactively to the fear caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, managing infodemic and adoption of health-protective behaviours. These results would be useful for policymakers, NGOs, health professionals, and university librarians in planning health education and promotion for not only university students but also for general public. This research contributed to the existing research on health literacy related to the Covid-19 pandemic in general and Covid-19 literacy in particular as limited studies have been published so far.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Health Literacy
Conformity
Group Polarization
Factors Affecting the Risk of Infection
The integrity and count of the white blood cells help the body resist pathogens and fight infection. When impaired, it reduces the body's resistance to pathogens. The acidic pH levels of the gastrointestinal, genitourinary tracts, and skin...
Preparedness and Phobias
Bullying

