Modeling the Coupling Propagation of Information, Behavior, and Disease in Multilayer Heterogeneous Networks

With the development of internet, transportation network, and other technologies, the transmission of information and disease presents complex and diverse new modes, which are mainly manifested as the coupling transmission of information and disease in the cyber–physical–social space. Inspired by this phenomenon, this article proposes a multilayer network-based information–behavior–disease coupling (IBDN) transmission model for the process of information diffusion–behavior change–disease transmission. The IBDN model considers various factors such as psychological drivers of information dissemination, the impact of herd mentality on behavioral transmission, the disease transmission dynamics of the current COVID-19 Omicron mutant strain and relevant countermeasures, and the interconnections between information, behavior, and disease transmission. Furthermore, within the framework of the COVID-19 Omicron mutant strain pandemic, the proposed IBDN model was leveraged to assess the effects of the propagation parameters of each layer and the interlayer coupling parameters on the magnitude of the COVID-19 outbreak and the strain on medical resources. A sensitivity analysis was carried out to determine the variability of the basic reproductive number of the Omicron mutant strains across various nations. Finally, the findings of the experiment were subjected to a thorough examination of policy implications to furnish valuable perspectives for the formulation of effective epidemic prevention strategies in the face of severe COVID-19 situation.