Journal article

Authors list: Broda, Maximilian D; Borovska, Petra; Kollenda, Diana; Linka, Marcel; de Haas, Naomi; de Haas, Samuel; de Haas, Benjamin

Publication year: 2024

Journal: PNAS Nexus

Volume number: 3

Issue number: 7

eISSN: 2752-6542

Open access status: Gold

DOI Link: https://doi.org/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgae283

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Abstract: 
The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has highlighted the importance of contact tracing for epidemiological mitigation. Contact tracing interviews (CTIs) typically rely on episodic memory, which is prone to decline over time. Here, we provide a quantitative estimate of reporting decline for age- and gender-representative samples from the United Kingdom and Germany, emulating >15,000 CTIs. We find that the number of reported contacts declines as a power function of recall delay and is significantly higher for younger subjects and for those who used memory aids, such as a scheduler. We further find that these factors interact with delay: Older subjects and those who made no use of memory aids have steeper decline functions. These findings can inform epidemiological modeling and policies in the context of infectious diseases.

Harvard Citation style: Broda, M., Borovska, P., Kollenda, D., Linka, M., de Haas, N., de Haas, S., et al. (2024) Estimating the human bottleneck for contact tracing, PNAS Nexus, 3(7), Article pgae283. https://doi.org/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgae283

APA Citation style: Broda, M., Borovska, P., Kollenda, D., Linka, M., de Haas, N., de Haas, S., & de Haas, B. (2024). Estimating the human bottleneck for contact tracing. PNAS Nexus. 3(7), Article pgae283. https://doi.org/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgae283