This episode of the Globe and Mail’s The Decibel podcast was quite interesting.
I’ll attempt a summary of key points.
Behavioural medicine is applying behavioural science to health, to answer questions such how to get people to quit smoking. Given that the Canadian healthcare system is overwhelmed, especially with sick children, why aren’t more people masking?
People haven’t been empowered to make informed risk assessments. When there were mandates, it was all or nothing, no strategy behind it. People seem to lack the ability to individually assess situations, such as very crowded school event, as high risk. They lack knowledge and understanding about what situations are high risk and what the consequences are of not protecting yourself and others.
This is the consequence of a vaccine only pandemic management strategy to the detriment of promoting other behavioural preventing methods like masking.
And we never really created a social norm of mask wearing.
What could we do now?
- Help evaluate risk; to know which places, conditions, and times masking makes sense.
- Promote masks as accessible, low-cost, non-intrusive prevention tools.
- Make masks a symbol of community unity and values, a way to show solidarity and caring for others.
Stop demonizing masks. Masks have become a symbol of oppression because of the very authoritarian policies around masks, because they were presented as a punishment: wear them or you can’t shop, fly, go to restaurants, etc. This approach is the opposite of what behavioural science would have advised them to do.
With punishment as the motivator, once the punishment (mandate) is removed, the behaviour stops. We missed an opportunity to show the population the benefits of masking and teach them when to wear them.
It is not harmful for kids to wear masks, it does not affect their development, learning, and socialization. What does hurt kids in these areas is missing school because they have Covid, flu, or RSV. Illness is bad for kids and their families.
The early messaging that masks aren’t really necessary probably didn’t help. The message should have been the truth instead: masks probably are helpful but are in short supply, so need to be reserved for medical personnel. Reversing from masks aren’t helpful to masks are mandatory sowed doubt.
Modelling behaviour is also important. We’ve seen health officials recommending masks but then being seen in crowds without them. This naturally leads people to resist the recommendation. It undermines credibility and builds cynicism.
Governments are afraid of imposing mask mandates because of the Convoy, but that didn’t build overnight. People get angry when they’re making sacrifices but see officials flouting them.
The pandemic has actually never been worse but we have basically zero prevention policies now. So thta makes people wonder why they had to make sacrifices before. Government isn’t sharing data about how society benefited from those sacrifices. We’re not getting any positive reinforcement.
So overall we need better education on what masks have done for us previously and how they can continue to benefit us now. It doesn’t have to be all or nothing mask mandates but they should be required in the most significant places of transmission, like schools and daycares. If they’re not being worn there when it’s children’s healthcare that is especially in crisis, people won’t see the point of wearing them to places like the theatre or shopping or the office.
Teach people you don’t have to wear them all the time everywhere, but to do so when it makes sense, like for a crowded meeting but not when setting alone in your office.
Cultureguru Archive 