WhatsApp in India During the COVID-19 Pandemic

NCT04918849 | Unknown

• 1 other identifier: 2020-CERC-001C
• Study Type: observational
• Target: 1,000
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Digital misinformation has been flagged as a major risk of the 21st century, with an estimated cost of $78 billion to the global economy each year. Given this scope, we propose to characterize how misinformation is spread via messenger platforms (e.g. WhatsApp). Specifically, we seek to:

1. 1.Identify metrics of potential misinformation (Aim 1). This is based on the hypothesis that although message contents are highly private, proxy markers can be used to identify potential misinformation.
2. 2.Understand the base-rate by which misinformation is shared via messaging applications (Aim 2). This is founded on the hypothesis that misinformation is endemic on messaging platforms, and thus needs to be documented.
3. 3.Identify "super spreaders" responsible for sending and receiving a large volume of misinformation (Aim 3). Here, we hypothesise that a small group of super spreaders are responsible for the bulk of misinformation-sharing on messaging applications.

Conditions

Covid19

Keywords

WhatsApp; Misinformation; Rumours; India; Experience Sampling

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (3)

• WhatsApp Usage

  Participants were asked a series of questions daily related to their WhatsApp usage behaviors - in particular, their message-forwarding, personal chat and group chat behaviors.

  1 week, starting from date after baseline survey completion

• Changes in fear with regards the COVID-19 situation across 1 week

  1 item each day on fear specifically of the COVID-19 situation (measured on a 4 point scale: min = 1, max = 4; higher scores indicating greater fear about the outbreak).

  1 week, starting from date after baseline survey completion

• Changes in amount of thinking about the COVID-19 situation across 1 week

  1 item each day on how much they thought about the outbreak that day (measured on a 5 point scale: min = 1, max = 5; higher scores indicating more thinking about the outbreak).

  1 week, starting from date after baseline survey completion

Study Arms (1)

Community Sample

We plan to recruit a community sample of 1000 from the Indian Population.

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 21 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)
• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

A community sample of the 1000 people from the Indian population

You may qualify if:

• Lived in India for more than 2 years,
• Currently Living in India
• Owns a WhatsApp account

You may not qualify if:

• Not currently living in India
• Below the ages of 21
• Has not lived in India for more than 2 years
• does not own a WhatsApp account
• Does not speak English or Hindi

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Yale-NUS College: lead

Study Sites (1)

Yale-NUS College

Singapore, 138527, Singapore

RECRUITING

MeSH Terms

Conditions

COVID-19; Communication

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Pneumonia, Viral; Pneumonia; Respiratory Tract Infections; Infections; Virus Diseases; Coronavirus Infections; Coronaviridae Infections; Nidovirales Infections; RNA Virus Infections; Lung Diseases; Respiratory Tract Diseases; Behavior

Central Study Contacts

Jean Liu, PhD

CONTACT

66013694; jeanliu@yale-nus.edu.sg

Study Design

• Study Type: observational
• Observational Model: COHORT
• Time Perspective: CROSS SECTIONAL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: June 8, 2021
• First Posted: June 9, 2021
• Study Start: May 21, 2021
• Primary Completion: December 31, 2021
• Study Completion: December 31, 2021
• Last Updated: June 9, 2021

Record last verified: 2021-06

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

SG (1)