Examining Access to and Trust in Sources of COVID-19 Information among CALD Asian Communities in New Zealand

Abstract

During the COVID-19 pandemic, effective crisis communication has been crucial yet challenging, especially for culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities. This study aimed to explore how CALD Asian communities accessed and trusted various sources of COVID-19 information. A cross-sectional online survey was conducted in 2021 with 1,267 Asian respondents informing this research. The study employed descriptive analyses to examine how different sociodemographic subgroups accessed COVID-19 information and examined their trust levels in these sources. The study revealed that CALD Asian communities actively engaged with diverse information sources for COVID-19 information updates, despite delayed government interventions. Mainstream media, social media, and government websites were most widely used. Notably, older and Korean individuals preferred local ethnic media channels. Trust varied significantly, with formal institutions like the government, mainstream media, and workplace being more trusted than online platforms and personal networks. The research underscores the necessity of multifaceted, linguistically, and culturally appropriate crisis communication strategies. It advocates for proactive measures to establish networks for distributing relevant information to CALD communities for future crisis communication.