Thom, James, Bowen, Sarah, Yang, Yuchen, Devarajan, Sanjeev, Doran, Helen, Zampetis, Marios, Papakonstantinou, Trisevgeni, McDonagh, Maria, McPhedran, Robert, Toombs, Ben, Jarchlo, Ayla Ibrahimi, Rayner, Alice, Jones, Philip Edward and Gold, Natalie ORCID: 0000-0003-0706-1618 (2024) The effect of timers and precommitments on handwashing: a randomised controlled trial in a kitchen laboratory. Behavioural Public Policy. ISSN 2398-063X
Text (Gold_effect-of-timers-and-precommitments--published)
- Published Version
Available under License Creative Commons Attribution. Download (519kB) |
Abstract
Many foodborne illness outbreaks originate in food service establishments. We tested two behavioural interventions designed to improve the duration and quality of handwashing. We ran a three-armed parallel trial in a laboratory kitchen, from 7 March to 27 May 2022. Participants were n = 195 workers who handle food. We randomly allocated participants to three groups: Timer – tap-mounted timer that counted seconds while participants washed their hands; Precommitment – agreed to five statements on good hand hygiene before attending the kitchen; and Control. Participants completed a food preparation task under time pressure. Cameras focused on the sink captured handwashing. Outcome measures were number of times participants washed their hands; number of times they washed their hands using soap; number of times they washed using soap and washed the backs of their hands; and mean duration of handwashing attempts using soap. Participants in Timer washed their hands for 1.9 s longer on average than Control (β = 2.20, 95% CI = 0.34-4.06, p = 0.021). Participants in Precommitment washed their hands for 2.5 s longer on average than Control (β = 2.30, 95% CI = 0.33-4.27, p = 0.022). We found no statistically significant differences on any other outcome measure.
Item Type: | Article |
---|---|
Official URL: | https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/behavioura... |
Additional Information: | © 2024 The Authors |
Divisions: | CPNSS |
Subjects: | H Social Sciences B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology |
Date Deposited: | 17 Nov 2023 15:30 |
Last Modified: | 12 Dec 2024 03:57 |
URI: | http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/120785 |
Actions (login required)
View Item |