Social media engagement is a vehicle for effective communication and engagement between governments and individuals, especially in crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, it can be used to communicate resilience measures and receive feedback. This research aims to investigate public social media engagement with resilience measures related to COVID-19 in Macao. We examined 1107 posts and 791 comments about the government’s face mask supply and consumption voucher schemes on Facebook. Using the Crisis Lifecycle model, we partitioned the data and analyzed the content and engagement of related posts, as well as the word semantics in user comments. Our findings show that social media engagement in these resilience measures is high and positive in the early stages of the pandemic, suggesting social media’s potential in mobilizing society, preserving social resilience, and serving as a two-way communication tool in public health emergencies.

E-cigarette use among young adults represents a growing public health concern. This pilot randomized controlled trial evaluated the preliminary effects of Protection Motivation Theory (PMT)-based peer education on strengthening university students’ cognition to refuse e-cigarette use in China, where tobacco control policies remain limited. A total of 289 participants completed baseline assessment and were randomly assigned to an intervention group (n=144) and a control group (n=145). The intervention consisted of a 1-month peer education program in which trained peer educators delivered PMT-based messages through weekly one-on-one conversations via phone or messaging platforms. Intervention participants received messages addressing all seven PMT constructs, while control participants received only messages about health risks of two PMT constructs. Primary outcomes were four PMT-based cognitive appraisals measured at baseline, 1 month, and 3 months. Linear mixed-models examined group × time interactions, and effect sizes were calculated for all comparisons. No statistically significant between-group differences were observed for primary outcomes. Subgroup analysis revealed significant intervention effects at 3 months among participants with family or friends who used cigarettes/e-cigarettes: lower perceived rewards (mean difference= -0.55; 95% CI: -1.07 – -0.03, p=0.04) and greater perceived efficacy (mean difference=0.34; 95% CI: 0.06–0.62, p=0.02). While overall effects were not statistically significant, observed effect sizes and significant subgroup findings suggest PMT-based peer education may influence cognitive precursors to e-cigarette use, particularly among students with social exposure to tobacco use. Larger trials with extended follow-up periods are warranted to confirm these preliminary findings.

Introduction: Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) have gained increasing popularity among young adults worldwide, particularly among college students who represent a key target population for e-cigarette marketing. Understanding cognitive factors that influence e-cigarette use susceptibility...

Introduction: While tobacco industry corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities as marketing strategies have been documented globally, the narrative mechanisms through which media coverage legitimizes tobacco industry charitable donations remain understudied, particularly within China’s...

Social distancing restrictions for COVID-19 epidemic prevention have substantially changed the field of youths’ social activities. Many studies have focused on the impact of epidemic-preventative social distancing on individual physical and mental health. However, in the field of social distancing for epidemic prevention, what are the changes in youth anti-epidemic action and states caused by their interpersonal resources and interactions? Responding to this question by studying the impact of the elements of social capital in youths’ anti-epidemic actions and anti-epidemic states could help identify an effective mechanism for balancing social distancing for effective epidemic prevention and sustainable social-participation development among youth. Bourdieu’s field theory holds that the elements of social capital change with a change in the field. Therefore, we introduced the specific elements of social capital as independent variables and used a multinomal logistic model to analyze and predict the levels of youth anti-epidemic action through an empirical investigation of 1043 young people in Guangdong Province, China. The results show that, first, level of social distancing for epidemic prevention shows differences by occupation status and income level and correlates with social support. Second, social support and social norms play positive roles in promoting youth participation in anti-epidemic activities when social distance is certain. Third, social capital has a significant positive effect on youth social satisfaction and core relationships; however, social trust has a significant negative effect on youth physical and mental health. This study emphasized that social distancing for epidemic prevention is a special social situational state, which is a field where social capital has an impact on the differential changes in the public-participating actions and habitus of youth.

Introduction Youth vaping has become a significant public health concern globally. Effective prevention messages are essential to reduce the prevalence of vaping among young people. However, evidence on the design of youth vaping prevention messages is limited. This scoping review aims to systematically map the existing evidence, identify research gaps, and provide recommendations for future research and practice. Methods and analysis The review will be conducted following the Joanna Briggs Institute methodology for scoping reviews and reported according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). A comprehensive search strategy has been developed focusing on the population-concept-context elements of youth, vaping, prevention, message design and global context. Six databases will be searched: Web of Science Core Collection (including MEDLINE), PubMed, Embase, Scopus, APA PsycInfo and China National Knowledge Infrastructure. Grey literature sources, including relevant organisational websites, will also be searched. Two reviewers will independently screen titles and abstracts, review full texts, and extract data using a predefined data charting form. The extracted data will be synthesised narratively. Ethics and dissemination As this scoping review will only include published data and does not involve human participants, institutional review board approval is not required. The findings will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications, conference presentations, academic networks, and social media.