Rationale for Mass Masking in Controlling the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The rapid spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) into a global pandemic caught the world unprepared. Previously effective measures for containing disease outbreaks were overwhelmed, necessitating strict controls such as lockdowns or curfews. Among the disease control interventions, community mass masking was one of the highly controversial issues with differing opinions on its indications or effectiveness from different health authorities around the world. Regions where community mass masking was timely introduced were associated with lower transmission rates, and more effective disease control. In this article, we discuss the evidence on the effectiveness, and rationale for community mass masking to prevent the COVID-19 transmission. Areas for further research to define the role of mass masking in light of the COVID-19 pandemic will be suggested. This would help policy makers in formulating mass masking policies.

Face mask wearing during the COVID-19 pandemic: comparing perceptions in China and three European countries.

Face mask recommendations are conflicting across the world during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. While universal face mask wearing is a useful non-pharmaceutical preventive strategy, little is known about the perception of mask wearing during a pandemic. This study aimed to examine people's face mask use in China and Europe. An online survey was conducted among residents in China, Austria, Germany, and Switzerland from the 1st to 10th of April 2020. With a convenience sampling approach, 655 valid answers were received including 267 Chinese and 388 European residents (261 from Austria, 101 from Germany, 26 from Switzerland). Self-reported face mask wearing status and related perceptions were assessed. Compared with the Europeans, Chinese participants showed a stronger pro-masking tendency. Subjective norm was an important predictor of face mask wearing in public. Wearing of face masks in the Chinese sample was also associated with risk perception as well as obedience to advice from local health authority. Discrepancies in face mask wearing suggest that targeted measures to promote face mask wearing are needed in Europe. Globally coordinated guidelines on pandemics are also warranted to face the next waves of COVID-19 and other infectious respiratory diseases.

COVID-19 and the reenactment of mass masking in South Korea.

How can we explain the divergence of social commitment to mass masking as public health measures in the global response to COVID-19? Rather than searching for deep-rooted cultural norms, this essay views the contemporary practice as a reenactment of multiple layers of accumulated socio-material conditions. This perspective will allow us to pursue a comparative study of the social history of mask-wearing around the world.