Adolescents’ motivation and behavior to maintain social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic: The mediating role of empathy

Objectives: This study investigated the social distancing behavior of Taiwanese adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic. It examined the influence of adolescents’ motivation and empathy on their social distancing behavior and the mediating role of empathy. Methods: The participants were 889 adolescent students recruited from four public schools in northern, southern, and eastern Taiwan (boys: 37%, senior-high-school students: 77%). The study used structural equation modeling to test the hypothesis that empathy mediates the relationship between motivation (intrinsic and extrinsic) and social distancing. Results: During the COVID-19 pandemic, nearly 80% of Taiwanese adolescents followed the guidelines of maintaining social distancing in their daily lives. A significant mediating path between adolescents’ intrinsic motivation and their social distancing behavior through their empathy was observed (β = .04, p < .01, 95% confidence interval CI = [ .034, .169]). However, no significant association between adolescents’ extrinsic motivation and their social distancing behavior was observed (β = −.01, p = .42, 95% CI = [−.051, .016]). Conclusions: Adolescents who exhibit intrinsic motivation and high empathy are more likely to engage in social distancing. These findings suggest that prevention strategies relying on students’ intrinsic motivation and empathetic concern can help to increase their practice of social distancing during the pandemic.