Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40631055›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in psychology2025

Factors associated with the mask-wearing behavior of university students in Japan: a cross-sectional study of the post-mask-mandate period.

Yuko O Hirano, Rin Iwashita, Yuina Muta, Minori Ishida

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in psychology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Yuko O HiranoNagasaki University Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki, Japan.
Rin IwashitaNagasaki University School of Health Sciences, Nagasaki, Japan.
Yuina MutaNagasaki University School of Health Sciences, Nagasaki, Japan.
Minori IshidaNagasaki University School of Health Sciences, Nagasaki, Japan.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has required people to adapt to a new lifestyle, which includes wearing masks. In Japan, mask-wearing mandates were prolonged for nearly 3 years, leading to the habitual use of masks by many people. This habit persisted even after the relaxation of the mandates. Excessive mask wearing, such as wearing masks in low-risk settings, can lead to dehydration, especially during the summer. However, studies on Japanese people's mask-wearing behavior in the post-mask-mandate period are lacking. Therefore, the reasons that people excessively wear masks should be investigated. This study aimed to identify factors, including perceptions of mask wearing, that influence the frequency and habit of wearing masks in the post-mandate period. An online questionnaire was distributed to 471 university students in Japan between June 12 and 24, 2023. The results indicated that the frequency of mask wearing exhibited a dichotomous trend. According to the multiple regression analysis, the strongest predictor of both the frequency and habit of mask wearing was a sense of unease from not wearing a mask rather than anxiety related to COVID-19. This study provides the government with basic data to develop guidelines for the proper wearing of masks to prevent heatstroke.

Indexed as

COVID-19habithealth behaviorJapanmaskuniversity students

Identifiers

PMID40631055
PMCPMC12234564

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.