Prevalence and Perception Among Saudi Arabian Population About Resharing of Information on Social Media Regarding Natural Remedies as Protective Measures Against COVID-19

Abstract

Introduction: Ever since COVID-19 was declared as a global pandemic, there has been a prevalence of misinformation circulating online on social media platforms. In order to better tackle COVID-19 it is important to determine how the general population perceive the sharing of medical information on social media platforms. Based on this, the aim of the study is to analyse the perception of Saudi Arabian Health Care Workers' (HCWs) and Non-Health Care Workers' (NHCWs) regarding the sharing and resharing of medical information, whether true or false, on social media platforms regarding COVID-19. Methods: To achieve the aim of this study, the general objective is to identify the most commonly used Social Media Platforms, determine the proportion of the Saudi Arabian population who have participated in recirculating information in those social media platforms, and to analyse their perception of medical information sharing in social media platforms. This study was conducted using a quantitative research methodology. The measurement tool used for this study was an online survey conducted using Google Survey. A 10-item questionnaire was adopted and translated to Arabic to conduct the survey. Results: The total number of responses for the study were N=1249. The findings of the study indicate that Saudi Arabian general population understand the prevalence of unverified information, but are accepting of the practice of sharing information without evidence on social media platforms, with the belief that such information does not cause actual harm to the general public, but instead would be beneficial. WhatsApp was the most preferred social media platform for receiving and sharing information among participants, followed by Twitter and Snapchat. Conclusion:The findings of this study indicate that the Saudi Arabian population are more wary than the global general population regarding misinformation online on social media platforms regarding COVID-19.

SARS-CoV-2 variants and the global pandemic challenged by vaccine uptake during the emergence of the Delta variant: A national survey seeking vaccine hesitancy causes

“…A national cross-sectional study found that the most reported information sources about the COVID-19 crisis were the internet/social media (85.8%), health practitioners (54.7%), TV/Radio (35.7%), family/friends (29.5%), and other sources (7%) [57] . Similarly, the most widespread social media platforms used among HCWs and non-HCWs during the early stages of the pandemic in KSA were WhatsApp (51.6%), Twitter (27.6%) and Snapchat (13.8%) [58] . Other commonly reported information sources used among HCWs are health care providers and the World Health Organization (WHO) [59] , as well as hospital announcements, MOH official statements among other sources [60] .…”

Fake news on the internet: a literature review, synthesis and directions for future research

“…In Singapore, most Internet users ignore the FNI they come across and only offer corrections when the issue is strongly relevant to them and to people with whom they share strong and close interpersonal relationships (Tandoc et al, 2020). Globally, Saudi Arabia has a comparatively higher level of awareness and higher reluctance to share medical information related to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) INTR 32,5 online (Alshareef and Alotiby, 2021). Mobile connectivity and political freedom in a nation contribute to COVID-19-related FNI propensity, whereas economic and media freedom inhibit it (Shirish et al, 2021).…”

“…, 2020). Globally, Saudi Arabia has a comparatively higher level of awareness and higher reluctance to share medical information related to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) online (Alshareef and Alotiby, 2021). Mobile connectivity and political freedom in a nation contribute to COVID-19-related FNI propensity, whereas economic and media freedom inhibit it (Shirish et al.…”

Assessing the Validity of Health Messages Used by the Saudi Public in WhatsApp

“…15 Alshareef and Alotiby found that Saudi people accept sharing health information without evidence on social media, believing that sharing is harmless, although they were aware of their unreliability. 16 WhatsApp was the most preferred social media platform. 16 In Arabic-speaking communities, research on the validity/safety and credibility of WhatsApp health information is scarce.…”