TY - JOUR
T1 - The Role of Fear-Related Behaviors in the 2013–2016 West Africa Ebola Virus Disease Outbreak
AU - Shultz, James M.
AU - Cooper, Janice L.
AU - Baingana, Florence
AU - Oquendo, Maria A.
AU - Espinel, Zelde
AU - Althouse, Benjamin M.
AU - Marcelin, Louis Herns
AU - Towers, Sherry
AU - Espinola, Maria
AU - McCoy, Clyde B.
AU - Mazurik, Laurie
AU - Wainberg, Milton L.
AU - Neria, Yuval
AU - Rechkemmer, Andreas
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2016, Springer Science+Business Media New York.
PY - 2016/11/1
Y1 - 2016/11/1
N2 - The 2013–2016 West Africa Ebola virus disease pandemic was the largest, longest, deadliest, and most geographically expansive outbreak in the 40-year interval since Ebola was first identified. Fear-related behaviors played an important role in shaping the outbreak. Fear-related behaviors are defined as “individual or collective behaviors and actions initiated in response to fear reactions that are triggered by a perceived threat or actual exposure to a potentially traumatizing event. FRBs modify the future risk of harm.” This review examines how fear-related behaviors were implicated in (1) accelerating the spread of Ebola, (2) impeding the utilization of life-saving Ebola treatment, (3) curtailing the availability of medical services for treatable conditions, (4) increasing the risks for new-onset psychological distress and psychiatric disorders, and (5) amplifying the downstream cascades of social problems. Fear-related behaviors are identified for each of these outcomes. Particularly notable are behaviors such as treating Ebola patients in home or private clinic settings, the “laying of hands” on Ebola-infected individuals to perform faith-based healing, observing hands-on funeral and burial customs, foregoing available life-saving treatment, and stigmatizing Ebola survivors and health professionals. Future directions include modeling the onset, operation, and perpetuation of fear-related behaviors and devising strategies to redirect behavioral responses to mass threats in a manner that reduces risks and promotes resilience.
AB - The 2013–2016 West Africa Ebola virus disease pandemic was the largest, longest, deadliest, and most geographically expansive outbreak in the 40-year interval since Ebola was first identified. Fear-related behaviors played an important role in shaping the outbreak. Fear-related behaviors are defined as “individual or collective behaviors and actions initiated in response to fear reactions that are triggered by a perceived threat or actual exposure to a potentially traumatizing event. FRBs modify the future risk of harm.” This review examines how fear-related behaviors were implicated in (1) accelerating the spread of Ebola, (2) impeding the utilization of life-saving Ebola treatment, (3) curtailing the availability of medical services for treatable conditions, (4) increasing the risks for new-onset psychological distress and psychiatric disorders, and (5) amplifying the downstream cascades of social problems. Fear-related behaviors are identified for each of these outcomes. Particularly notable are behaviors such as treating Ebola patients in home or private clinic settings, the “laying of hands” on Ebola-infected individuals to perform faith-based healing, observing hands-on funeral and burial customs, foregoing available life-saving treatment, and stigmatizing Ebola survivors and health professionals. Future directions include modeling the onset, operation, and perpetuation of fear-related behaviors and devising strategies to redirect behavioral responses to mass threats in a manner that reduces risks and promotes resilience.
KW - Ebola
KW - Ebola virus disease (EVD)
KW - Fear
KW - Fear-related behaviors
KW - Outbreak
KW - Pandemic
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84991387155&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s11920-016-0741-y
DO - 10.1007/s11920-016-0741-y
M3 - Review article
C2 - 27739026
AN - SCOPUS:84991387155
SN - 1523-3812
VL - 18
JO - Current Psychiatry Reports
JF - Current Psychiatry Reports
IS - 11
M1 - 104
ER -