TY - JOUR

T1 - Early perceptions of COVID-19 contact tracing apps in German-speaking countries

T2 - Comparative mixed methods study

AU - Zimmermann, Bettina Maria

AU - Fiske, Amelia

AU - Prainsack, Barbara

AU - Hangel, Nora

AU - McLennan, Stuart

AU - Buyx, Alena

N1 - Funding Information: The interview study was conducted as part of the SolPan consortium, and we acknowledge all consortium members for their valuable discussions and contributions concerning study design and strategy. We particularly thank Dr. Katharina Kieslich for her insights into Austrian contact tracing app policies and student assistants Magnus Tibbe and Justus Bredthauer for extracting data from Austrian and Swiss newspaper articles. This work was supported by the German Federal Ministry for Education and Research (Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung; Grant number 01Kl20510), which had no role in the project design; in the collection, analysis, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the article; or in the decision to submit the manuscript for publication.

PY - 2021/2

Y1 - 2021/2

N2 - Background: The main German-speaking countries (Germany, Austria, and Switzerland) have implemented digital contact tracing apps to assist the authorities with COVID-19 containment strategies. Low user rates for these apps can affect contact tracing and, thus, its usefulness in controlling the spread of the novel coronavirus. Objective: This study aimed to assess the early perceptions of people living in the German-speaking countries and compare them with the frames portrayed in the newspapers during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: We conducted qualitative interviews with 159 participants of the SolPan project. Of those, 110 participants discussed contact tracing apps and were included in this study. We analyzed articles regarding contact tracing apps from 12 newspapers in the German-speaking countries. Results: Study participants perceived and newspaper coverage in all German-speaking countries framed contact tracing apps as governmental surveillance tools and embedded them in a broader context of technological surveillance. Participants identified trust in authorities, respect of individual privacy, voluntariness, and temporary use of contact tracing apps as prerequisites for democratic compatibility. Newspapers commonly referenced the use of such apps in Asian countries, emphasizing the differences in privacy regulation among these countries. Conclusions: The uptake of digital contact tracing apps in German-speaking countries may be undermined due to privacy risks that are not compensated by potential benefits and are rooted in a deeper skepticism towards digital tools. When authorities plan to implement new digital tools and practices in the future, they should be very transparent and proactive in communicating their objectives and the role of the technology—and how it differs from other, possibly similar, tools. It is also important to publicly address ethical, legal, and social issues related to such technologies prior to their launch.

AB - Background: The main German-speaking countries (Germany, Austria, and Switzerland) have implemented digital contact tracing apps to assist the authorities with COVID-19 containment strategies. Low user rates for these apps can affect contact tracing and, thus, its usefulness in controlling the spread of the novel coronavirus. Objective: This study aimed to assess the early perceptions of people living in the German-speaking countries and compare them with the frames portrayed in the newspapers during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: We conducted qualitative interviews with 159 participants of the SolPan project. Of those, 110 participants discussed contact tracing apps and were included in this study. We analyzed articles regarding contact tracing apps from 12 newspapers in the German-speaking countries. Results: Study participants perceived and newspaper coverage in all German-speaking countries framed contact tracing apps as governmental surveillance tools and embedded them in a broader context of technological surveillance. Participants identified trust in authorities, respect of individual privacy, voluntariness, and temporary use of contact tracing apps as prerequisites for democratic compatibility. Newspapers commonly referenced the use of such apps in Asian countries, emphasizing the differences in privacy regulation among these countries. Conclusions: The uptake of digital contact tracing apps in German-speaking countries may be undermined due to privacy risks that are not compensated by potential benefits and are rooted in a deeper skepticism towards digital tools. When authorities plan to implement new digital tools and practices in the future, they should be very transparent and proactive in communicating their objectives and the role of the technology—and how it differs from other, possibly similar, tools. It is also important to publicly address ethical, legal, and social issues related to such technologies prior to their launch.

KW - App

KW - Contact tracing

KW - Content analysis

KW - COVID-19

KW - Digital surveillance

KW - Interview

KW - Interview study

KW - Newspaper content analysis

KW - Privacy

KW - Privacy paradox

KW - Surveillance

KW - Trust

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85100998962&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.2196/25525

DO - 10.2196/25525

M3 - Article

C2 - 33503000

AN - SCOPUS:85100998962

VL - 23

JO - Journal of Medical Internet Research

JF - Journal of Medical Internet Research

SN - 1439-4456

IS - 2

M1 - e25525

ER -