Information-seeking behaviour of Tanzanians in the time of COVID-19
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/GKMC-04-2021-0060 |
| Published date | 20 January 2022 |
| Date | 20 January 2022 |
| Pages | 356-375 |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science,Information behaviour & retrieval,Information in society,Information literacy,Library & information services |
| Author | Emmanuel Frank Elia |
Information-seeking behaviour of
Tanzanians in the time of
COVID-19
Emmanuel Frank Elia
Department of Information Studies,
University of Dar es Salaam, Dar es Salaam, United Republic of Tanzania
Abstract
Purpose –This study aims to investigate on accessand communication of COVID-19 information among
Tanzanians.
Design/methodology/approach –Quantitative methods were applied to identify a total of 636
respondents.
Findings –Results show that the majority(86.9%) of respondents seek information on COVID-19. Gender,
age, education and maritalstatus did not influence individual’s information-seekingbehaviour. Respondents
largely used socialmedia, particularly WhatsApp, to communicate. Respondentsprefer blending professional
and traditionalinformation to combat COVID-19.The majority (51%) of respondents indicatedthat COVID-19
information was not communicated ethically. Employed people are more likely to ethically communicate
informationon the pandemic in social media.
Practical implications –Findings imply that novelty of the pandemic has enhancedactive information-
seeking behaviour. Respondents rely on multiple information sources to seek and collaboratively
communicate COVID information. Employment status is associated with respondents’information-seeking
behaviour. Audio-visual sources are mostly preferred and relied in communicating information on the
pandemic. Social media usage has enhancedtimely and appropriate decision-making measures to tackle the
COVID menace. Level of educationhas an influence on the use of crediblesources and ethical communication
of information on the pandemic. Utilization of COVID-19 preventive information was not statistically
associated with socio-demographic variables. Availability of information infrastructures, particularly the
internet,influences access, use and clear informed decision on preventionand treatment of COVID-19 disease.
Originality/value –The study contributes to knowledge and literature on response and preventive
measureson COVID-19 pandemic in developing countries.
Keywords Corona, COVID-19, Communication behaviour, Developing countries,
Information sources, Information-seeking, Information ethics, Social demographic determinants,
Tanzania
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Lately in 2019, communities around the world have witnessed a global health outbreak of
Corona, a deadly disease scientifically known as COVID-19. The disease was officially
detected and named a pandemic in December 2019. Impacts of the fatal virus which
originated in Wuhan, China have transcended all over the world. The disease has so far
caused adverse impact to livelihood, including deaths, loss of properties and economic
disruption. The impacts ofthe disease, which have been felt by almost every person around
the globe (Baig, et al.,2020), severely ruined the global economy affecting the necessary
Research funding: The author did not receive any funding to conduct the research.
GKMC
72,4/5
356
Received8 April 2021
Revised30 October 2021
Accepted15 December 2021
GlobalKnowledge, Memory and
Communication
Vol.72 No. 4/5, 2023
pp. 356-375
© Emerald Publishing Limited
2514-9342
DOI 10.1108/GKMC-04-2021-0060
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
https://www.emerald.com/insight/2514-9342.htm
human beings access to basic needs, namely, food, shelter and clothing. Tourism,
transportation, agriculture,business, entertainment and education are sectors highly hit by
Corona.
Although impacts of Corona virus have crossed borders, the global overview of its
impact indicates developed countries to be mostly affected in terms of disease burden and
deaths related to COVID-19 (Hageret al., 2020). According to the World Health Organization
(WHO) (2021), developed countries highly affected include the USA, Italy, Brazil, Germany,
UK, France, Spain, China and Russia. The developing countries affected include India,
Bangladesh, South Africa, Turkey and Indonesia. In Eastern Africa, Kenya, Rwanda,
Uganda, Burundi andTanzania have all been affected by the disease (ibid).
Developing countries, unlike developed countries, are mostly affected by COVID-19
because of their little ability to effectively respond to global pandemics and unstable
economies. Most developing countries are resource-constrained facing climate change
impacts, food deficiencies, impoverished health facilities, diseases prevalence, insufficient
rainfall and geographicallyprone to natural disasters providing limited capacity to respond
to disasters (Elia, 2019b;Hager et al., 2020;). The Corona virus outbreak has caused more
challenges to developingcountries, especially in the sub-Saharan Africa, which alreadyface
a number of existing climate and social-economicproblems (WHO, 2021;Elia, 2019b).
Corona virus has continued to be a threat to the entire globe, requiring joint efforts to
fight the disease. Being new, the publictends to be overwhelmed with the information influx
and overload on COVID-19 fromdifferent sources prompting change of information-seeking
behaviour (Zimmerman, 2021. Understanding such communication strategies is imperative
in preventing new infections and equipinformation users with abilities to make appropriate
choices. Collective efforts are crucial in clearing misconceptions, misinformation and
influencing positive behavioural change towards fighting the pandemic (Baig, et al.,2020).
Access to relevant, clear and affordable information by the public is crucial in addressing
health informationneeds and sustainable society.
Tanzania, which is among the sub-Saharan countries,reported its first case on 16 March
2020 (Richey, et al.,2021). On the 18th of March 2020, the government decided to close
schools, universities and suspend community gatherings. Since its first official reportage,
the Tanzania government initiated efforts, which promoted awareness on world health and
safety procedures to be followed to mitigate effects of COVID-19. One notable exertion, for
instance, was Tanzania government announcing a two-month and a half curfew to slow
down infection rate and respond to the disease. On the 1st of June, the government opened
all universities while all schoolswere opened on the 8th of June. Tanzania attracted global
attention and headlines worth noting and being an interesting case study on COVID-19 as
was the first country in the Eastern Africa to remove restrictions and lockdown.The rest of
East African countriesand affected countries worldwide were still in totallockdown.
In developed world, thereare a number of studies that have been conductedon COVID-19
(Ludvigsson, 2020;Pachetti et al.,2020;Casado-Aranda et al.,2020). Studies in developing
countries excluding Africa are by Dardas et al. (2020),Baig et al. (2020) and Hanafiah and
Wan (2020). In Africa, Deressa et al. (2020) and Isahet al. (2020) researched on COVID-19 in
Ethiopia and Nigeria. In spite of a number of research on COVID-19 worldwide, there is
dearth of studies conducted in sub-Saharan African countries. In fact, no study could be
traced which investigated on COVID-19information-seeking and communication behaviour
in Eastern Africa. Additionally, research on information ethics in developing countries is
found to be limited (Oladokun and Jorosi, 2020) with scanty studies associated relating it
with the pandemic. Recent studies conducted in Tanzania on COVID-19 were on COVID
organics and south–south humanitarianism (Richey, et al., 2021) and knowledge, attitudes
Information-
seeking
behaviour of
Tanzanians
357
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