TY - JOUR AU - Rübsamen, Nicole AU - Castell, Stefanie AU - Horn, Johannes AU - Karch, André AU - Ott, Jördis AU - Raupach-Rosin, Heike AU - Zoch, Beate AU - Krause, Gérard AU - Mikolajczyk, Rafael T1 - Ebola Risk Perception in Germany, 2014 T2 - Emerging Infectious Disease journal PY - 2015 VL - 21 IS - 6 SP - 1012 SN - 1080-6059 AB - Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreaks have occurred during the past 5 decades, but none has affected European countries like the 2014 epidemic in West Africa. We used an online questionnaire to investigate risk perceptions in Germany during this epidemic peak. Our questionnaire covered risk perceptions, knowledge about transmission routes, media use, reactions to the outbreak, attitudes toward measures to prevent the spread of EVD and vaccination against EVD, and willingness to volunteer for aid missions. Of 974 participants, 29% indicated that they worried about EVD, 4% correctly stated virus transmission routes, and 75% incorrectly rated airborne transmission and transmission by asymptomatic patients as possible. Many indicated that if a patient were flown to Germany for treatment in a nearby hospital, they would adapt preventive behavior. Although most participants were not worried about EVD at the current stage of the epidemic, misperceptions regarding transmission were common and could trigger inappropriate behavior changes. KW - behavior KW - hemorrhagic fever KW - Ebola KW - risk KW - perception KW - transmission KW - viruses KW - Germany KW - Ebola virus KW - Ebola virus disease KW - EVD DO - 10.3201/eid2106.150013 UR - https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/21/6/15-0013_article ER - End of Reference