Role of Vaccine Hesitancy, eHealth Literacy, and Vaccine Literacy in Young Adults’ COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake Intention in a Lower-Middle-Income Country

Abstract

Various control measures, including vaccination, have been taken to flatten the COVID-19 epidemic curve across the globe. However, in Bangladesh, many young adults, considered the asymptomatic transmitter of the disease, are waiting to get their first shot. Therefore, the potential predictors of the young adults’ vaccine uptake intention are significant to ensure their maximum vaccination when available to them. This study examined how vaccine hesitancy, eHealth literacy, and vaccine literacy are associated with young adults’ COVID-19 vaccine uptake intention in a lower-middle-income country. A total of 343 young adults participated in the study. Using ordinary least square and probit estimation, we examined the effect of the explanatory variables of interest on vaccine uptake intention. Vaccine hesitancy emerged as the strongest predictor of vaccine uptake intention. eHealth literacy shared a positive association with vaccine uptake intention, while vaccine literacy had no significant association. To make young adults feel more confident about the vaccine, transmitting the latest vaccine safety updates through authentic channels is essential. The government can aim to enhance the eHealth literacy of young adults as an increased level of eHealth literacy will enable young adults to extract reliable health-related information more efficiently than ever.

Assessing COVID-19 Booster Hesitancy and Its Correlates: An Early Evidence from India

“…Next, the vaccine non-hesitant participants in our sample had significantly higher scores of functional, communicative, and critical literacies as opposed to hesitant participants. This finding is consistent with one study which was performed in Bangladesh, in which individuals with higher vaccine literacy had the greater vaccine acceptability [ 40 ]. This can be explained by the premise that individuals with high vaccine literacy will be able more efficient in distinguishing false from accurate information.…”

“…Previous studies suggested that rural area residents have less general vaccine confidence and a few opportunities to gain access to health literacy regarding COVID-19 and vaccination [ 37 , 38 ]. Being culturally conservative and less educated, rural residents are more likely than urban residents to accept misinformation and conspiracy theories [ 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 ]. Additionally, the healthcare access in rural areas may not be adequate to provide large scale care to COVID-19 patients.…”

The effect of health literacy on COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among community population in China: The moderating role of stress

“…First, future studies are warranted to explore the mechanisms underlying the effects of health literacy on vaccination. A recent study has found that both vaccine literacy and ehealth literacy were associated with greater vaccine uptake intention among younger adults in a lower-middle-income country [70] , suggesting different types of health literacy should also be investigated in undrestanding people’s vaccine-related attitude and behaviors. Given the important role of contextual factors, it is still inconclusive whether our findings could be transferred to people in different cultures.…”

Influence of Internet Celebrity Medical Experts on COVID-19 Vaccination Intention of Young Adults: An Empirical Study From China

“…Even party elite can help to increase the vaccination intention, through the way of cues ( 15 ). There is also a study which took the opinion leader as a control variable, and found that they are significantly and positively correlated with COVID-19 vaccine uptake intention ( 16 ). In the research conducted by Shmueli, he found that opinion leaders on social media expressing support can benefit the vaccination intention ( 17 ).…”