Study of Community Behavior in West Java and East Java Provinces in Complying with Health Protocols during a Pandemic using Cluster Analysis
Sonny H. B. Harmadi, Udjianna S. Pasaribu*, Nur F. Sa^idah, A. Sonhaji

Development Studies Department, Faculty of Creative Design and Digital Business, Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember, Indonesia
Statistics Research Group, Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Science, Institut Teknologi Bandung, Indonesia
Doctoral Program in Department of Industrial Engineering and Management, Faculty of Industrial Engineering, Institut Teknologi Bandung, Indonesia
Doctoral Program in Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Science, Institut Teknologi Bandung, Indonesia
*corresponding author: udjianna[at]math.itb.ic.id

Abstract

Since the Covid-19 pandemic, the 3M health protocol (wearing a mask, washing hands with soap, and keeping distance) has been the basis for people^s behavior. The aim of this protocol is to break the chain of transmission and reduce the spread rate. Thus, a survey was conducted to monitor public awareness and compliance with 3M in November 2020. As the biggest contributors to the Covid-19 case, the provinces of West Java and East Java were chosen to be the objects in this study. Six questions (random variables) related to the level of compliance were analyzed using the Agglomerative Hierarchical Cluster Analysis. The analysis classifies city/district through the single linkage method. The result shows that 23 out of 27 cities/regencies in West Java were grouped into seven (7) clusters. There are four clusters with one member each. Areas bordering other provinces such as Depok, Bogor, Karawang and Kuningan districts, as well as cities in the central part of the province tend to have the same compliance characteristics. On the other hand, 37 out of 38 cities/regencies in East Java formed 11 clusters. Eight of the clusters only consist of one (1) member. More than 65% of cities in the province are in the same cluster, namely the northern and southern parts of East Java. The average compliance level for each city/district in this cluster is more than 0.86. In other words, almost all health protocols are complied with. The similarity in the grouping results in West Java and East Java is that clusters consisting of one member are cities/regencies with less than four respondents. In these areas, it is necessary to study further through other data so that the grouping is more representative. The results can be used as a reference for policy makers to understand community behavior in setting policies, regardless of pandemic conditions.

Keywords: Hierarchical Cluster Analysis, Covid-19, behavior change, health protocol

Topic: MATHEMATICS AND STATISTICS