Running the COVID-19 marathon: the behavioral adaptations in mobility and facemask over 27 weeks of pandemic in Seoul, South Korea

TL;DR

This study analyzes how individuals in Seoul adapted their mobility and mask-wearing behaviors over 27 weeks of COVID-19, highlighting phase-specific responses and the effectiveness of communication strategies.

Contribution

It provides a data-centric analysis of behavioral adaptations in mobility and mask use during different epidemic phases in Seoul, Korea.

Findings

Mobility reductions were significant during the first wave, especially in public transit and non-essential trips.

Mask-wearing increased during the second wave as mobility restrictions eased.

Targeted communication effectively promoted sustained behavioral changes.

Abstract

Battle with COVID-19 turned out to be a marathon, not a sprint, and behavioral adjustments have been unavoidable to stay viable. In this paper, we employ a data-centric approach to investigate individual mobility adaptations and mask-wearing in Seoul, South Korea. We first identify six epidemic phases and two waves based on COVID-19 case count and its geospatial dispersion. The phase-specific linear models reveal the strong, self-driven mobility reductions in the first escalation and peak with a common focus on public transit use and less-essential weekend/afternoon trips. However, comparable reduction was not present in the second wave, as the shifted focus from mobility to mask-wearing was evident. Although no lockdowns and gentle nudge to wear mask seemed counter-intuitive, simple and persistent communication on personal safety has been effective and sustainable to induce cooperative behavioral adaptations. Our phase-specific analyses and interpretation highlight the importance of targeted response consistent with the fluctuating epidemic risk.