One of the most cost-effective strategies for fighting the spread of COVID-19 is the use of facial masks. Despite health officials’ strong efforts to communicate the importance or wearing a mask, compliance has been low in many countries. In the present paper we propose a novel behavior-intervention strategy to encourage people to wear facial masks. Three studies show that the personalization of a mask, as a form of identity expression, increases mask wearing intentions and, by extension, the percentage of individuals who wear facial masks. Given that mask wearing remains a necessity after deployment of the first vaccines, novel approaches to encouraging mask wearing are essential. Linking facial mask wearing to an individual’s identity is a promising strategy.
【저자키워드】 public health, Diseases, Human behaviour, Health policy, Psychology, 【초록키워드】 Vaccines, Masks, Health, Compliance, Intention, expression, identity, individual, effort, extension, approach, spread of COVID-19, increase, facial, 【제목키워드】 COVID-19, Facial mask, facial,