Meaning:
Translated from the English term “social distancing,” it refers to the practice of maintaining a greater than usual physical distance from other people or avoiding direct contact with people or objects in public places during the outbreak of a contagious disease in order to minimize exposure and reduce the transmission of infection.
Example:
A: 我发现有些国家防止新冠病毒的措施是强调保持社交距离，而不是让大家戴口罩。
Wǒ fāxiàn yǒuxiē guójiā fángzhǐ xīnguān bìngdú de cuòshī shì qiángdiào bǎochí shèjiāo jùlí，ér búshì ràng dàjiā dài kǒuzhào。
I’ve noticed that in some countries, the authorities underscore the importance of social distancing instead of wearing masks.
B: 这可能源于他们的认知，他们普遍认为戴口罩是为了防止病毒细菌传染给别人，因此戴口罩表示你生病了。
Zhè kěnéng yuányú tāmen de rènzhī，tāmen pǔbiàn rènwéi dài kǒuzhào shì wèile fángzhǐ bìngdú xìjūn chuánrǎn gěi biérén，yīncǐ dài kǒuzhào biǎoshì nǐ shēngbìng le。
This is probably because they generally accept that wearing masks is to stop the spread of viruses and bacteria and prevent further infection, which is a flag that the mask-wearer is sick.