Expert Report for the UK Covid-19 Public Inquiry Module 7: Test, Trace and Isolate: An analysis of adherence to behaviours associated with the Test, Trace, and Isolate (TTI) system

This report comprises three chapters. In chapter 1 we describe theoretical frameworks from health psychology and behavioural science of relevance to understanding adherence to behaviours associated with test, trace and isolate. We also explore what learnings could have been gained from previous pandemics. Finally,wedescribesomeframeworks,developedfromtheoryandevidence,of best practice for effective public health communications related to adherence to test, trace and isolate behaviours. In chapter 2 we explore the policies associated with test, trace and isolate across the four nations of the UK over the course of the Covid-19 pandemic. We explore the research data on the extent to which people were adhering to test, trace and isolate behaviours and evidence on the factors that influenced their adherence, alongside recommendations for policies that could have better promoted adherence. In the final section,, we evaluate a number of public health communication messages in relation to their likely effectiveness in promoting adherence to test, trace and isolate behaviours, and explore how campaigns might have been improved, making recommendations for how such communications should be used in future pandemics. In chapter 3, we draw together the learnings from our analyses, making a series of recommendations for how behavioural science could be better utilised in a public health response to a future pandemic.