Table 2.
Attitudes and knowledge of cleaning and disinfection safety precautions among survey respondents* (n = 502), United States, May 2020
| Statement† | Agreed | Disagreed or neutral | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| N (weighted %‡) | Knowledge score§ | N (weighted %‡) | Knowledge score§ | |
| median (95% CI) | median (95% CI) | |||
| I know how to clean and disinfect my home safely. | 408 (81) | 5.44 (5.09–5.78) | 94 (19) | 3.21 (2.22–4.20) |
| I am able to clean and disinfect my home safely. | 413 (82) | 5.44 (5.09–5.78) | 89 (18) | 3.35 (2.24–4.46) |
| I know how to store cleaning products in my home safely. | 422 (84) | 5.44 (5.09–5.79) | 80 (16) | 2.85 (1.81–3.90) |
| I know where to get information on safe cleaning behaviors. | 388 (77) | 5.39 (5.04–5.74) | 114 (23) | 3.86 (2.93–4.80) |
| I am able to buy or locate the household cleaning products I need to clean my home. | 380 (75) | 5.33 (4.99–5.67) | 122 (25) | 4.22 (3.14–5.30) |
| People I care about want me to clean my home safely. | 372 (73) | 5.37 (4.99–5.75) | 130 (27) | 4.42 (3.49–5.34) |
| Misuse of household cleaning products can result in injury. | 434 (86) | 5.41 (5.09–5.73) | 68 (14) | 2.03 (0.93–3.10) |
Respondents were surveyed through the “PN View: 360” opt-in Internet panel survey administered from May 5 to 7, 2020.
Survey items were administered on a five-point Likert scale ranging from one (strongly disagree) to five (strongly agree) and dichotomized to assess agreement (agreed = strongly agree and somewhat agree; disagreed or neutral = strongly disagree, somewhat disagree, and neutral).
Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding. Data were weighted by gender, age, race/ethnicity, region, and education to reflect the composition of the U.S. population using the Current Population Survey proportions.
The highest possible score was nine. The knowledge score was calculated by assigning a score of one to each of the following checked responses and zero to each unchecked response: 1) “For some household cleaning products, gloves should be used during use”; 2) “For some household cleaning products, eye protection should be used during use”; 3) “Bleach should not be mixed with ammonia”; 4) “Bleach should not be mixed with vinegar”; 5) “When making a dilute bleach solution, only room temperature water should be used”; 6) “Hands should be washed with soap and water after using household cleaning products”; 7) “Hand sanitizers should be kept out of reach of children”; 8) “Household cleaning products should be kept out of reach of children”; and 9) “Good ventilation (air flow) is needed when using cleaning chemicals.”