The Model of Community Stigma During the Covid-19 Pandemic Period in East Java Indonesia

ABSTRACT

Background: East Java Area is the epicentre of COVID-19 transmission with the largest number of cases and the highest death rate in Indonesia. This pandemic has created a stigma that can lessen the quality of life. This study was con-ducted to find a model of predictor factors that affect the stigma of society during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: This study involved 322 respondents in East Java, Indonesia and used multivariate analysis with the PLS (Partial Least Square) method to determine the relationship between several variables. The studied variables were demographics (age, gender, educational level, and occupation), attitudes, knowledge, behaviour, stigma and acceptance. Result: Stigma since the CO-VID-19 pandemic outbreak was influenced by demographic, knowledge and behaviour factors, while the attitude variable in this study did not affect the occurrence of stigma. Knowledge aspect had a positive relationship with stigma. The higher the knowledge of the respondents in this study, the higher the tendency to produce stigma. Likewise for demographic variables. Meanwhile, behaviour aspect indicated a negative relationship. Conclusion: The factors that influence stigma, starting from the most powerful are behaviour, knowledge and demographics. This model is a recommendation for the government to improve the quality of life of the people and reduce the spread of COVID-19. © 2022 KBCSM, Zagreb.