The Impact of China's 2003 SARS Epidemic on Behavior and Knowledge

William M. Mason, University of California, Los Angeles
Yao Lu, University of California, Los Angeles
Yi Pan, University of California, Los Angeles
Yaqiang Qi, University of California, Los Angeles

Using data from a 2003-2004 survey conducted in four provinces of China, we examine knowledge of and responses to the SARS epidemic of 2003. Our general interest is in whether and to what extent knowledge of and responses to the epidemic were universal and invariant, or whether knowledge and responses varied over individuals as a function sociodemographically defined position, and varied over places as a function of SARS prevalence and migrant population concentration. We study the following questions: 1) To what extent did SARS alter travel? 2) To what extent did SARS affect employment? 3) Were knowledge and beliefs sociodemographically distributed? 4) Did experience with SARS alter hygiene practices? 5) Was the response to SARS contextually driven? We answer these questions using a series of regression functions, allowing for clustering of observations where needed. Results for travel and work stoppages are based on extensive histories provided by respondents.