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App-based Epidemic Game to Model Belief-Behavior Mapping and Cost Incentives in Voluntary Quarantine: A Randomized Controlled Trial

2026-01-16 epidemiology Title + abstract only
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BackgroundUnderstanding the drivers of protective behavior during infectious disease outbreaks is critical for public health policy. App-based experimental epidemic games (epigames) offer a novel method to study these behaviors empirically, but their external validity--how well in-game choices reflect real-life beliefs--still needs to be rigorously tested. MethodsWe conducted a two-week randomized controlled trial (N=567) using the Epigames smartphone app at the American University of Iraq - Ba...

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