Abstract
In response to the global call for strategic information to understand the novel coronavirus, the dataset presented in this paper is an examination of COVID-19-related knowledge, risk perceptions and precautionary health behavior among Nigerians. The data were generated during the COVID-19 lockdown in the country through a survey distributed via an online questionnaire, assessing socio-demographic information (7 items), knowledge (5 items), information sources (1 item), risk perception (9 items), expected end of lockdown (1 item), and COVID-19 precautionary health behavior (10 items), from 28th March to 4th April, 2020, gathering a total of 1,357 responses. A combination of purposive and snowball techniques helped to select the respondents via Whatsapp and Facebook from 180 cities/towns in the 6 geopolitical zones of Nigeria. The survey data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The entire dataset is stored in a Microsoft Excel Worksheet (xls) and the questionnaire is attached as a supplementary file. The data will assist in curbing the Coronavirus pandemic by offering evidence for strategic and targeted interventions as well as health policy formulations and implementation.
Keywords: Survey data, COVID-19, Knowledge, Risk Perceptions, Precautionary Behavior, Nigeria
Specifications table
| Subject | Public Health |
| Specific subject area | Health Psychology, Social psychology |
| Type of data | Primary data, Tables |
| How data were acquired | Data was obtained using questionnaires hosted on an online survey survey platform (google forms). The questionnaire is included in this article and may be accessed online via the following link https://forms.gle/RjrcYpAkVQbhnN2s6 |
| Data format | Raw, Analyzed, Filtered (descriptive statistics) |
| Parameters for data collection | The data for the survey were obtained from respondents in 180 Nigerian cities/towns with internet access. |
| Description of data collection | A combination of purposive and snowball techniques helped to select the respondents via Whatsapp and Facebook from all the 6 geopolitical zones of Nigeria. |
| Data source location | Surveys were conducted in all six (6) geopolitical zones of Nigeria |
| Data accessibility | Dataset is uploaded on Mendeley |
| Repository Name: Mendeley | |
| Direct URL to data: https://data.mendeley.com/datasets/k4nch8rrt5/draft?a=d5e854de-306d-48e7-a88e-71f2ccab80ff |
Value of the data
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The data represent the first and one of the largest pools so far for the exploration of COVID-19-related knowledge, information sources, risk perception, expected end of lockdown and precautionary health behavior among Nigerians.
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The data can be compared with similar studies on knowledge, information sources, risk perception, expected end of lockdown and COVID-19 precautionary health behavior from other countries around the world and may serve as a heuristic basis for further insight into the phenomena of the COVID 19.
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The data can be statistically analyzed to examine the relationships between socio-demographics, knowledge, information sources, risk perception, expected end of lockdown, and COVID-19 precautionary health behaviors.
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The details of the analyzed data are beneficial for preventing and curbing the spread of COVID-19 and the data can assist with planning for public health interventions as well as policy formulation and implementation.
1. Data description
This data set provides information on COVID-19-related knowledge, information sources, risk perception, expected end of lockdown and precautionary health behavior among Nigerians. The obtained raw data used for each table is stored in a Microsoft Excel Worksheet (xls). Items 1-7 elicit respondents’ gender, age, marital status, ethnicity, educational qualification, religion and perceived financial situation. Items 8-12 assessed respondents’ COVID-19 knowledge and item 13 their sources of new information about COVID-19. Items 14 – 23 and 24 – 32 measured their of COVID-19 perceived threat and preventive behavior respectively while item 33 revealed “how soon they expected things to return to normal.” Demographic characteristics of respondents are presented in Table 1. The detailed assessments of responses on COVID-19-related knowledge, information sources, risk perception, expected end of lockdown and precautionary health behavior by residents of Nigeria are depicted in Table 2, Table 3, Table 4, Table 5, Table 6. The data presented below revealed that most Nigerians had sufficient knowledge on COVID-19 (Mean 4.15; S.D. = 0.77), perceived it as a threat and engaged in Precautionary Behavior.
Table 1.
Descriptive statistics of sample characteristics (n = 1,357).
| Variables | Categories | Frequency | Percent | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age | 15 – 24 years | 736 | 54.24 | Mean 26.85, S.D. = 9.17 |
| 25 – 34 years | 401 | 29.55 | ||
| 35 and above | 220 | 16.21 | ||
| Gender | Female | 570 | 42.00 | |
| Male | 787 | 58.00 | ||
| Educational qualification | High School | 349 | 25.72 | |
| Diploma | 313 | 23.07 | ||
| Degree | 421 | 31.02 | ||
| Higher degree | 242 | 17.83 | ||
| Others | 32 | 2.36 | ||
| Perceived Socio-Economic Class | Lower | 246 | 18.13 | |
| Lower Middle | 479 | 35.30 | ||
| Upper Middle | 387 | 28.52 | ||
| Upper | 245 | 18.05 | ||
| Relationship Status | Single/Not dating | 560 | 41.27 | |
| Single/but dating | 524 | 38.61 | ||
| Married | 269 | 19.82 | ||
| Separated/divorced/widowed | 4 | 0.29 | ||
| Ethnic Grouping | Hausa-Fulani | 138 | 10.17 | |
| Igbo | 115 | 8.47 | ||
| Yoruba | 929 | 68.46 | ||
| Other ethnicities | 175 | 12.90 | ||
| Religion | Christianity | 842 | 62.05 | |
| Islam | 506 | 37.29 | ||
| Others | 9 | 0.66 |
Table 2.
Descriptive statistics on COVID-19-related knowledge (Mean is 4.15, S.D. = 0.77).
| Number of correct answers | Frequency | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| None | 1 | 0.07 |
| One | 4 | 0.29 |
| Two | 33 | 2.43 |
| Three | 181 | 13.34 |
| Four | 667 | 49.15 |
| Five | 471 | 34.71 |
| Total | 1357 | 100 |
Table 3.
Descriptive statistics of COVID-19-related information sources (n = 1,357).
| Information sources | Frequency | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| Mass media | 1106 | 81.5 |
| Social media | 953 | 70.23 |
| The Internet | 835 | 61.53 |
| Health workers | 614 | 45.25 |
| Family & friends | 507 | 37.36 |
| Government | 371 | 27.34 |
Table 4.
Descriptive statistics on the practice of COVID-19-related precautionary health behaviors.
| Items | Responses |
Statistics |
|||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Since the start of this Coronavirus pandemic, (1=strongly disagree, 7=strongly agree) | Disagreement (1-3) | undecided (4) | Agreement (5-7) | Mean | S.D. |
| It really bothers me when people sneeze without covering their mouths | 8.99 | 8.40 | 82.61 | 6.02 | 1.60 |
| I prefer to use hand sanitizer or wash my hands after shaking someone's hand | 10.98 | 7.96 | 81.06 | 5.91 | 1.74 |
| I avoid touching door handles and stair case railing at public locations | 15.11 | 9.14 | 75.76 | 5.64 | 1.87 |
| I dislike wearing face mask | 52.98 | 13.71 | 33.31 | 3.42 | 2.33 |
| I want people's temperature to be taken before they enter public places | 21.00 | 11.27 | 67.72 | 5.26 | 2.12 |
| I don't mind going to very crowded places | 82.54 | 6.12 | 11.35 | 2.03 | 1.77 |
| I would self-isolate myself at home if needed | 10.10 | 5.16 | 84.75 | 6.05 | 1.70 |
| I frequently use hand sanitizer | 18.20 | 10.61 | 71.19 | 5.47 | 2.01 |
| I avoid going to public places | 12.16 | 8.84 | 79.00 | 5.80 | 1.74 |
| I have changed the way I live my life because of Coronavirus | 15.92 | 7.22 | 76.86 | 5.62 | 1.96 |
Table 5.
Descriptive statistics on COVID-19-related risk perception (n = 1,357).
| Items | Responses |
Statistics |
|||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (1=Not at all, 7=Extremely) | Not at all (1-3) | undecided (4) | Extremely (5-7) | Mean | S.D. |
| Compared to most people of my age, my risk of getting Coronavirus is | 54.75 | 19.23 | 26.01 | 3.29 | 2.09 |
| What level of threat do you think the Coronavirus pandemic poses to your studies? | 10.17 | 6.56 | 83.27 | 5.93 | 1.66 |
| The likelihood of my getting Coronavirus is | 69.12 | 13.71 | 17.17 | 2.69 | 1.97 |
| How likely do you think people in Nigeria (or your country) are to contract the Coronavirus? | 17.46 | 15.62 | 66.91 | 5.15 | 1.83 |
| How likely do you think your colleagues are to contract the Coronavirus? | 46.43 | 21.74 | 31.83 | 3.66 | 1.98 |
| How likely do you think people in your present location are to contract the Coronavirus? | 54.83 | 16.06 | 29.11 | 3.37 | 2 |
| How worried are you about contracting the Coronavirus? | 31.83 | 11.79 | 56.37 | 4.72 | 2.26 |
| How likely do you think you would meet someone who is infected with Coronavirus? | 62.64 | 15.48 | 21.89 | 2.99 | 1.98 |
| How worried are you that your family members or friend might be infected by Corona Virus? | 42.74 | 13.04 | 44.22 | 4.09 | 2.31 |
Table 6.
Descriptive statistics of respondents’ expected end of COVID-19 lockdown (n = 1,357).
| Expected end | Frequency | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| April-May 2020 | 1004 | 73.99 |
| June-August 2020 | 106 | 7.81 |
| September-December 2020 | 110 | 8.10 |
| I don't know when | 137 | 10.10 |
| Total | 1357 | 100.00 |
2. Survey design, materials, and methods
The research adopted a descriptive survey design to evaluate the dataset on the knowledge, information sources, risk perception, expected end of lockdown and COVID-19 precautionary health behavior in Nigeria. This dataset included 1357 responses collected between 28th March and 4th April, 2020 from the 6 geopolitical zones of Nigeria. Ethical approval was obtained from the Faculty of Social Sciences Ethical Board, University of Ibadan. Respondents’ participation was completely consensual, anonymous and voluntary.
The researchers used an online questionnaire to collect data for this survey (See Appendix). Eight items (section A) elicit respondents’ demographic information, including their gender, age, marital status, ethnicity, educational qualification, religion and perceived financial situation. Five items (Section B) adapted from [1] and validated by [2] assessed respondents’ COVID-19 knowledge by summing correct responses across item 1, source of COVID-19, (correct = [d]), item 2, transmission of COVID-19, (correct = [a], [b] and [c]), item 3, prevention of COVID-19, (correct = [b], [c], [e] and [g]), item 4, symptoms of COVID-19, (correct = [a], [b] and [g]), and item 5, awareness of COVID-19 fatality, (correct = [a]), generating a maximum possible score of five (norm is set at 3 to indicate moderate level of COVID-19 knowledge[2] . One item (Section C) assessed sources of new information about COVID-19, and nine items (section D) adapted from [3] measured perceived threat of COVID-19 (Cronbach Alpha is 0.76), while ten items (Section E) adapted from [4,5] measured preventive behavior (Cronbach Alpha is 0.75) and One item (Section F) asked respondents “how soon they expected things to return to normal”
The respondents’ demographics, COVID-19-related knowledge, knowledge, information sources, risk perception, expected end of lockdown and precautionary health behavior were analyzed using frequencies, percentages, means, and standard deviations. Correlation analyses, to understand the relationships between demographics, knowledge, information sources, risk perception, expected end of lockdown and COVID-19 precautionary health behavior, were conducted using Statistical Package for Social Sciences Version 20.
Acknowledgments
Acknowledgments
The researchers acknowledge the respondents who took part in this study.
Conflict of Interest
The research project did not receive financial support from any institutions. The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
Footnotes
Supplementary material associated with this article can be found, in the online version, at doi:10.1016/j.dib.2020.105685.
Appendix. Supplementary materials
References
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Associated Data
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