Risk Perception and Impacts of Nonconventional Medicine on COVID-19 in Four West African Countries: A Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM)

Abstract

This study used a structural equation modeling (SEM) approach to assess the effect of sociodemographic factors and nonconventional medicine use on COVID-19 risk perception in four West African countries. A quantitative survey was conducted in Benin, Togo, Ghana, and the Ivory Coast. Nominal polychotomous logistic regression, binary logistic regression, and partial least squares were used for analysis. The results showed that younger participants used less non-conventional medicine, whereas less-educated respondents perceived a higher risk and used it more frequently. Overall, non-conventional medicine use was positively associated with COVID-19 risk perception, highlighting its relevance for epidemic management