Barriers and facilitators of willingness to vaccinate against COVID-19: Role of prosociality, authoritarianism and conspiracy mentality. A four-wave longitudinal study

Abstract

Aim We investigated longitudinal relations between individual willingness to undergo vaccination against COVID-19 and three social factors: conspiracy mentality, prosociality, and authoritarianism. Method This longitudinal study comprised four measurement points. The first wave sample included 1130 responses and was representative of the Polish population in terms of gender, age, and place of residence. Analyses were performed using random intercept cross-lagged panel models. Results We observed bidirectional positive cross-lagged relationships between prosociality and willingness to undergo vaccination in the first three waves of measurement. Authoritarianism and conspiracy mentality translated into a lower willingness to vaccinate between the third and fourth points of measurement when the vaccination became a near-term possibility. Conclusions Eliciting prosocial motivation to vaccinate can be paramount in overcoming vaccine hesitancy. Because conspiracy thinking may be a crucial barrier to willingness to be vaccinated, it is critical to focus on planning interventions and campaigns undermining conspiracy theories about COVID-19.

Acculturation, trust to health care system, and attitudes to COVID-19 vaccination: A comparative study between Polish immigrants in Norway, Polish in Poland, and Norwegians in Norway

“… Kachurka et al (2021) found that nearly 45% of the Polish respondents were unwilling to be vaccinated, and none of the popular messages we used was effective in reducing this hesitancy ( Kachurka, Krawczyk, & Rachubik, 2021 ). Some studies have demonstrated that anti-vaccine attitudes are related to anti-establishment attitudes and reflect the political polarization in Poland ( Oleksy, et al, 2022 ). Moreover, believe in conspiracy theories seem to be common among Polish and, thus, one of the most important factors reducing willingness to undergo vaccination ( Sowa, et al, 2021 ).The high vaccination hesitancy observed in Poland might be reflected in the attitudes among those Polish immigrants in Norway who mostly follow Polish media.…”

Sociodemographic and Psychological Variables and Concerns Related to COVID-19 Vaccination among Polish Citizens

“…Older people are concerned about inadequate vaccination of the population and the resulting lack of herd immunity. Other Polish studies show that age is an important variable when it comes to vaccination willingness e.g., Babicki and Mastalerz-Migas [ 16 ], Raciborski and co. [ 17 ] and Oleksy and co. [ 25 ]. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the media have been reporting new cases worldwide, with an emphasis on the severity of disease symptoms and high mortality rates in the elderly.…”

“…It is also worth emphasizing that changes in the level of acceptance of vaccines have been observed over time. A study by Oleksy and co. [ 25 ] shows that willingness to be vaccinated against COVID-19 continued to decrease with each successive wave of the pandemic: the highest willingness to get vaccinated was declared by respondents during the first wave and the lowest during the fourth wave.…”

“…Thus, the belief that COVID-19 is a biological weapon results in increased health-related activities, whereas the opposite effect can be observed in the case of pandemic denial or the belief that the pandemic is a means of restricting citizens’ rights and freedoms. Another study by Oleksy and co. [ 25 ] shows that the belief in conspiracy theories appears to be a considerable barrier preventing people from getting vaccinated.…”

Politics of COVID-19 vaccine mandates: Left/right-wing authoritarianism, social dominance orientation, and libertarianism

“…The mixed findings also extend to attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccination. Across different contexts, RWA has been shown to have positive ( Bilewicz & Soral, 2021 ), negative ( Oleksy et al, 2022 ), or mixed ( Murphy et al, 2021 ) relationships with COVID-19 vaccine acceptance. Some research has also shown that RWA predicts skepticism toward vaccination in general ( Kempthorne & Terrizzi, 2021 ).…”