Gender differences in the determinants of willingness to get the COVID-19 vaccine among the working-age population in Japan

Abstract

Many factors are related to vaccination intentions. However, gender differences in the determinants of intention to get the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine have not been fully investigated. This study examined gender differences in the determinants of willingness to get the COVID-19 vaccine among the working-age population in Japan. We conducted a cross-sectional study of Japanese citizens aged 20-65 years using an online self-administered questionnaire in December 2020. Logistic regression analysis was performed. Among 27,036 participants (13,814 men and 13,222 women), the percentage who were willing to get the COVID-19 vaccine was lower among women than among men (33.0% vs. 41.8%). Age and education level showed a gender gap regarding the association with willingness to get the COVID-19 vaccine: men who were older or had a higher level of education were more willing to get the vaccine, whereas women aged 30-49 years and those with a higher level of education showed a relatively low willingness to get the vaccine. For both men and women, marriage, higher annual household income, underlying disease, current smoking, vaccination for influenza during the current season, and fear of COVID-19 transmission were linked to a higher likelihood of being willing to get the COVID-19 vaccine. These findings give important insight into identifying target groups in need of intervention regarding COVID-19 vaccination, especially among women. Providing education about COVID-19 and influenza vaccination in the workplace may be an effective strategy to increase COVID-19 vaccine uptake.

COVID‐19 vaccine acceptability among healthcare workers in Ethiopia: Do we practice what we preach?

“…These findings are similar to those from other studies [13,19,21,22,[28][29][30]. The higher vaccine non-acceptance in females and younger age is consistently reported in other studies and attributed to their low-risk perception of COVID-19 and additionally the higher vaccine safety concern especially in females [13,19,21,28,29,31,32]. The low-risk perception in some of HCWs in our study may be related to the relatively high recovery and low mortality rates observed in most Ethiopian hospitals.…”

“…We identified several groups with higher vaccine non‐acceptance: HCWs who were female, younger, non‐physicians, unconcerned about COVID‐19 and the risk of getting infected at work. These findings are similar to those from other studies [ 13 , 19 , 21 , 22 , 28 , 29 , 30 ]. The higher vaccine non‐acceptance in females and younger age is consistently reported in other studies and attributed to their low‐risk perception of COVID‐19 and additionally the higher vaccine safety concern especially in females [ 13 , 19 , 21 , 28 , 29 , 31 , 32 ].…”

Does the Integration of Migrants in the Host Society Raise COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance? Evidence From a Nationwide Survey in Japan

“…As of October 4, 2021, the proportion of the population who had received the first and second doses was 67.2% and 58.2%, respectively [29]. Many studies have been conducted to explore the determinate of vaccine intention among Japanese: women, young people, single people, urbanites, people with low socioeconomic status, and those with severe psychological distress were more likely to be hesitant to accept the COVID-19 vaccine [30][31][32][33][34]. However, little is known about the attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccination among migrants in Japan, despite a growing foreign population.…”

COVID-19 vaccination coverage by company size and the effects of socioeconomic factors and workplace vaccination in Japan: a cohort study

“…In Japan, the majority of the population had some level of initial vaccine hesitancy to receive a COVID-19 vaccine [9,10]. Nevertheless, by the end of December 2021, approximately 80% of the population had received two vaccine doses [11].…”