When acclaimed actor Tom Hanks announced his Covid-19 review last March, many Americans were still learning about the virus and how bad it was. However, Hanks’ social media posts have shaped people’s behavior towards the virus, a new study suggests.
The researchers, including Jessica Gall Myrick of Pennsylvania State University in the USA, surveyed about 700 people about their attitudes and behavior toward the virus the day after Hanks posted the news on social media on 11 March 2020.
Just under 90 percent of those surveyed had heard of Hanks’ social media posts claiming he had contracted the virus, and about half of that group said it changed their minds and their behavior.
“There is a growing body of research into how the behavior of celebrities and social media posts can affect public health,” Myrick said in the study published in the journal Health Communication.
“Celebrities can have great reach, often more than ordinary scientists or doctors or the health department. If they promote positive health behavior change, it can be a de facto public health intervention,” said Myrick.
According to the study, those who heard the news reported Hanks’ diagnosis “clarifies the truth of Covid-19” and broadened their understanding not only of the severity of the condition but also their susceptibility to the disease.
Nearly half of the participants who heard the news during the study reported a range of emotional responses, according to the study.
Responses included “surprise, fear, anger, sadness and hope.”
Respondents who said they made changes said Hanks’ publication encouraged them to seek more information and / or take tougher measures.
Half of the respondents who heard the news and said Hanks’ judgment did not change their thoughts or behavior said the actor would recover from the illness.
They also noted that they were already aware of Covid-19 and its effects and did not believe that the publication of Hanks changed the outlook or intent of the virus.
The researchers performed statistical analysis to see if and what features might predict whether people’s attitudes and behaviors changed after learning Hanks’ diagnosis.
The results showed that people who named Hanks or said they knew were more likely to change their thoughts or behavior related to Covid as a result of the news.