TABLE 3.
Comments or reflections proactively raised by participants during interviews (i.e., these themes were not responses to specific survey-style questions, but rather were volunteered by participants).
| Comment or reflection | Number out of those who tested positive (n = 20) | Number out of those who consistently tested negative (n = 10) |
| Believed that Bay Area regulations to prevent transmission of COVID-19 were “too much” | 2 | 0 |
| Believed that Bay Area regulations to prevent transmission of COVID-19 were “just right” | 10 | 6 |
| Believed that Bay Area regulations to prevent transmission of COVID-19 were “not enough” | 4 | 4 |
| Believed that they had been closely adhering to all public health regulations | 4 | 1 |
| Reported always wearing a mask outside their home in August/Sept 2020, even when outside, unless they were sure no one was around | 4 | 4 |
| Reported consistently wearing masks around strangers, but not outdoors or when around people they knew well | 5 | 3 |
| Reported making calculated exceptions to official rules or recommendations about masking or social distancing | 3 | 0 |
| Reported continuing to see friends or family outside their household during early shelter-in-place orders without masking or other mitigation strategies because of discussions implying a shared commitment to protective behavior (i.e., “they’re pretty safe”) | 4 | 1 |
| Reported continuing to see friends or family outside their household during early shelter-in-place orders but only with mitigation strategies in place such as masking, outdoor interactions, and/or open windows and social distancing | 1 | 3 |
| Reporting making decisions about COVID-19-related behaviors to influence not just personal risk but also risk to others around them | 4 | 4 |
| Identified a specific incident of high risk that they would not have done if able to do it over again | 4 | 1 |
| Believed others around them were unable or unwilling to do what was needed to keep themselves and others safe during the pandemic | 2 | 1 |
| Described a sense of anxiety watching others taking COVID-19-related risks | 1 | 2 |
| Reported wishing they had “gotten out more” and/or seen more people during the first 6 months of the pandemic, given the mental health toll of isolation | 1 | 4 |