Abstract:

Protective behaviors from COVID-19 such as using medical masks, attention to physical dis-tance, and systematic personal cleaning are recommended by the World Health Organization. However, the pandemic infects more people, especially in Turkey, because the public does not adequately fulfill the protective behaviors. This study aims to create a conceptual framework for social marketing interventions within the scope of the health belief model by identifying the impact of participants' risk perceptions on their pandemic prevention behaviors. Data were col-lected from 459 citizens of the Republic of Turkey through an online survey between May 5 and 12, 2020. The structural equation model was performed with AMOS-20 to assess the proposed model. The data obtained through the surveys indicate some apparent thoughts of participants: COVID-19 can easily spread between people and therefore, has the potential to collapse the health system; the most effective way to protect from the pandemic is to stay at home; state-ments from the Ministry of Health and the Scientific Committee are closely followed; this disease will cause significant damage to the Turkish economy; and the pandemic will continue until a vac-cine is available. Besides, perceived severity, perceived barriers, perceived benefits, and cues to action have a highly significant impact on the target market’s actions toward avoiding COVID-19.

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