The COVID-19 Outbreak Public Evaluation (COPE) Initiative: Assessment of Attitudes and Behaviours about Mitigation of SARS-CoV-2 Transmission and of Mental and Behavioural Health During the Great Pandemic of Coronavirus Disease 2019

To contain the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, nonpharmaceutical interventions (e.g., lockdowns, masks) were applied worldwide on a scale unseen in a century. This thesis presents findings from The COPE Initiative, a public health surveillance activity among adults in the US and Australia. We assessed public attitudes, behaviours, and beliefs about COVID-19 and prevention measures, along with mental health. Our findings of widespread initial support for nonpharmaceutical interventions, along with persistently elevated levels of adverse mental health symptoms—especially among young adults and unpaid caregivers—informed public health policies, support, services, and interventions to contain COVID-19 and mitigate its adverse effects.