A PSYCHOLOGICAL MODEL FOR EVOCATION OF INDIVIDUAL'S ANXIETY RELATED TO SOCIAL AFFAIRS : THE CASE OF HIGHLY PATHOGENIC AVIAN INFLUENZA

Abstract

This study examined the structure of anxiety factors and proposed an anxiety model which focuses on the relationship between collecting information behavior and anxiety for Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, which is an emerging infectious disease. The factors of anxiety were grouped into five categories, “harmfulness”, “cost of food”, “collecting information”, “coping” and “other (situation-specific)”. This anxiety model is a looping model composed of four stages, “input of information”, “cognitive evaluation”, “arousal of anxiety” and “coping”. The central route and peripheral route are set in the model as coping processes. The former route includes the behavior of seeking reliable information and thinking by oneself, while the latter route includes the behavior of seeking a reliable person and inferring the meaning of the situation from his/her behavior.