Designing and validating the MosquitoWise survey
A new survey has been validated to assess respondents’ perceptions of mosquito bites and mosquito-borne viruses. The MosquitoWise survey was designed and validated for use in Europe and a paper about its development has been published in Scientific reports.
Climate change, mosquitoes and health
Mosquitoes and the viruses they carry are common in Africa and Asia. As the climate in Europe changes, mosquitoes are expected to spread further north and west. There have already been outbreaks of the mosquito-borne viruses dengue, chikungunya and West Nile virus in Europe and it is reasonable to expect that the numbers of people affected will increase.
In 2022, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) recorded 1133 human cases of West Nile virus (in 11 countries) and 71 cases of locally acquired dengue (in France and Spain).
Understanding what the public knows
Mosquito-borne disease is an emerging public health threat in Europe.
Measures can be taken to reduce mosquito populations and to protect individuals against mosquito bites. As with many other public health issues, the success of protective measures against mosquito-borne viruses will depend on what the public knows and does.
In order to design strategies to raise awareness and change behaviour, questionnaires have been used to understand people's beliefs, knowledge and behaviour. Such surveys have been widely used in areas where these viruses are endemic, but until now there was not a survey validated for populations in Europe that looked at mosquito bites and mosquito-borne viruses.
What this study involved
The study team developed a survey based on the pre-existing Health Belief Model (HBM). HBM has six constructs: perceived susceptibility, severity, benefits, barriers, health motivation and self-efficacy.
The researchers used the model to develop and validate a survey for use across Europe. The questions were developed with input from experts in fields including virology, entomology and behaviour.
The survey was tested for validity and reliability with participants in the UK, the Netherlands and Spain. The final survey is available in English, Dutch and Spanish.
The researchers hope that the MosquitoWise survey will, “aid in understanding and creating data-driven decisions to alter populations’ behaviours to prevent mosquito-borne disease transmission.”
Reference
Abourashed A et al. Development and validation of the MosquitoWise survey to assess perceptions towards mosquitoes and mosquito-borne viruses in Europe. Sci Rep 14, 1777, 2024. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-52219-9