Anxiety level and compliance with health protocols during the COVID-19 pandemic in Madura, Indonesia

Received September 11, 2023 Revised March 03, 2023 Accepted July 01, 2023
Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused changes in various aspects of life, including the culture of implementing health protocols to prevent transmission. The level of illness anxiety is considered to have a role in adherence to health protocols. Not many studies explain the relationship between anxiety levels and adherence to health protocols. Objectives: This study aimed to determine the relationship between anxiety levels and adherence to health protocols in Madura, Indonesia. Methods: This study used a cross-sectional design. The number of samples is 400 people of Madura Regency. The samples were selected using a purposive sampling technique. The inclusion criteria were at least 17 years old and can read and write. The research instruments were the Zung Self Rating Anxiety Scale and Adherence to COVID-19 Prevention Measures questionnaires. Results: The level of anxiety was dominated by mild anxiety (49.3%), while adherence to health protocols was dominated by low compliance (44.8%). The results of the Spearman rho test showed that there was a relationship between the level of anxiety and adherence to health protocols with p-value = 0.000. Conclusions: This study showed a significant relationship between anxiety levels and adherence to health protocols.