Motivations to Vaccinate Among Hesitant Adopters of the COVID-19 Vaccine

Abstract

Vaccination is a critical means for mitigating the worst effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States (US). However, the initial high demand for COVID-19 vaccines has not persisted, and the rate of vaccination slowed significantly in the summer of 2021. This study seeks to understand the motivations to receive the COVID-19 vaccine among hesitant adopters. Hesitant adopters are individuals who express some level of hesitancy about the vaccine but have also received at least one dose of the vaccine. Using a qualitative descriptive design, three loci for motivation emerged during analysis: extrinsic motivators, intrinsic motivators, and structural motivators. Extrinsic motivations, such as protecting one’s community, family, and friends, were reported as driving vaccination behavior. Among intrinsic motivators, the desire to protect themselves from COVID-19 was the most frequently reported. Structural motivators were also identified, indicating that vaccine mandates also serve to motivate hesitant adopters of the COVID-19 vaccine. These findings have important implications in ongoing efforts to increase COVID-19 vaccine uptake in the US and highlight the multi-dimensional motivations for vaccination among hesitant adopters. Additionally, we provide recommendations for practice based on our findings.

COVID-19 Vaccine–Related Attitudes and Beliefs in Canada: National Cross-sectional Survey and Cluster Analysis

“…Vaccine hesitancy among Canadians has decreased since the time our survey was administered, which is likely multifactorial. A recent qualitative study in the United States found that vaccine uptake among individuals who were initially vaccine hesitant is related to 3 factors: (1) intrinsic factors (eg, protecting oneself from COVID-19), (2) extrinsic factors (eg, protecting family or friends), and (3) structural factors (eg, vaccine mandates) [ 25 ].…”

Factors associated with COVID-19 vaccination intent in Singapore, Australia and Hong Kong

“…Singaporeans avoiding public transport and keeping their children out of school, and Australians working from home when not feeling well were all significantly associated with high vaccine intent. Moore et al, recently concluded that intrinsic factors like returning to normalcy was one of the key factors to drive vaccination behaviour [37] . While there haven’t been many studies looking at daily practices as risk factors for high vaccine intent, this study assessed and identified behaviours or practices that were seen amongst those with high intention to vaccinate against SARS-CoV-2.…”

Parents’ and Guardians’ Intentions to Vaccinate Children against COVID-19

“…To measure COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy, respondents were asked, “Thinking specifically about the COVID-19 vaccines, how hesitant were/are you about getting vaccinated?” Response options included “not at all hesitant,” “a little hesitant,” “somewhat hesitant,” and “very hesitant.” This question was asked regardless of whether they had been vaccinated already or not, as receipt of the COVID-19 vaccine should not be conflated with the absence of hesitancy [ 22 ].…”