engleski

Generation Z and COVID-19 pandemic: perceptions and prosocial behavior analysis

Having been living with COVID-19 pandemic for over two years many issues regarding it have been open for scientific interest, not only in the area of health and medicine but also of different social, economic, cultural and other issues. One of the major areas studied is the prosocial behavior of citizens, i.e. adherence to prescribed measures, as a main factor to control the pandemic. Different generations bear different individual costs – economic, social, emotional and others in order to contribute to prosocial behavior adoption and to the efficiency of prescribed measures. One of the major issues in this context is the emphasized criticism of younger generations as irresponsible and dismissive of COVID-19 risks and public health. The aim of this study is to analyze the perceptions and behaviors of Croatian generation Z with respect to COVID-19 pandemic and evaluate their prosocial behaviors and behavioral intentions. The study was conducted during the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic and included a sample of 442 Croatian participants aged 18 – 25, so called generation Z. Descriptive statistics, correlation and regression analysis were used to identify major characteristics of their prosocial behavior, behavioral intentions and perceptions about the pandemic and efficiency of prescribed measures. Measures regarding social distancing were found to be the most difficult and the least adopted. Low institutional trust turned out to have a significant impact on prosocial behavior adoption. This calls for careful design of communication strategies and social marketing approach to generation Z in order to motivate them for personal responsibility in the pandemic context.

COVID-19 ; generation Z ; institutional trust ; prosocial behavior

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