Knowledge, attitude and Behavior of the Moroccan Population During Covid-19

Abstract

Background: Since December 2019 the world has experienced a significant spread of the Covid-19
pandemic. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on
the mental health of the population.
Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted in Morocco and was administered to a sample of
702 respondents. The subject was assessed using a questionnaire containing the following information:
Personal demographic characteristics, knowledge and awareness of COVID-19 outbreak, Attitude towards
COVID-19 outbreak, Behavioral change in relation to COVID-19 outbreak, Patient Health Questionnaire
(PHQ-4) screening questions for anxiety and depression, and finally a questionnaire related to people at risk
of psychological harm from social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic, data collection began three
weeks after confinement began and lasted for five weeks, from April 10 to 08 Mai.
Results: 702 participants responded to the survey. The descriptive analysis of the database showed that
the majority of respondents were male (69.3%), aged 20 to 30 years (46.15%), with university diploma
(61.25%) and employed (63.53%).Knowledge differed considerablyby level of education; however, Attitude
differed significantly according to gender and educational level. Correlations between the knowledge,
attitude, behavioral behavioural, PHQ-4 and the psychological harm score shows that the variables “attitude,
behavioural and Psychological harm” are significantly correlated with the PHQ-4 score, the higher the latter
are the greater the last is high.In addition, the “Knowledge” variable is also significantly correlated. The
greater the knowledge, the smaller the PHQ-4 score.
Conclusion: The covid-19 pandemic is a public health problem