Trust and vaccine hesitancy during the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-national analysis

Jennings, Will; Valgarðsson, Viktor Orri; McKay, Lawrence; Stoker, Gerry; Mello, Eduardo; Baniamin, Hasan Muhammad

doi:10.1016/j.jvacx.2023.100299

Cited by 27 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Additionally, for alters in networks where egos access both online and traditional media, the effect on vaccination status was not statistically significant. Our results are in line with previous studies that suggest social media use lowers COVID-19 vaccine acceptance [13,19]. The results of the mixed multilevel logistic regression are also supported by general linear models using robust standard errors.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Online media use and COVID-19 vaccination in real-world personal networks

Oană,

Hâncean,

Perc

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Background: Most studies assessing the impact of online and social media usage on COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy predominantly rely on survey data, which often fails to capture the clustering of health opinions and behaviors within real-world networks. In contrast, research employing social network analysis aims to uncover the diverse communities and discourse themes related to vaccine support and hesitancy within social media platforms. Despite these advancements, there is a gap in the literature on how a person's social circle, which combines online and offline interactions, affects vaccine acceptance. Objective: We examined how online media consumption influences vaccination decisions within real-world social networks by analyzing unique quantitative network data collected from Romania, an Eastern European Union (EU) member state. Methods: We conducted 83 face-to-face interviews with participants from a living lab in Leresti, a small rural community in Romania, employing a Personal Network Analysis (PNA) framework. This approach involved gathering data on both the respondents and individuals within their social circles (referred to as social alters). After excluding cases with missing data, our analysis proceeded with 61 complete personal networks. To examine the hierarchical structure of alters nested within ego networks, we utilized a mixed multilevel logistic regression model with random intercepts. The model aimed to predict vaccination status among alters, with the focal independent variable being the ego's preferred source of health and prevention information. This variable was categorized into three types: traditional media, online media (including social media), and a combination of both, with traditional media serving as the reference category. Results: In this study, we analyzed 61 personal networks, encompassing between 15 and 25 alters each, totaling 1280 alters with valid data across all variables of interest. Our primary findings indicate that alters within personal networks, whose respondents rely solely on online media for health information, exhibit lower vaccination rates (odds ratio [OR] 0.37, 95% CI 0.15-0.92; P=.03). Conversely, the transition from exclusive traditional media use to a combination of both traditional and online media does not significantly impact vaccination odds (OR 0.75, 95% CI 0.32-1.78; P=.52). Additionally, our analysis reveals that alters in personal networks with vaccinated egos are more likely to be vaccinated themselves (OR 3.75, 95% CI 1.79-7.85; P<.001). Conclusion: Real-world networks combine offline and online human interactions with consequences on health opinions and behaviors. As individuals' vaccination status is influenced by how their social alters use online media and vaccination behavior, further insights are needed to create tailored communication campaigns and interventions regarding vaccination in areas with low levels of digital health literacy and vaccination rates, as Romania exposes.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Online media use and COVID-19 vaccination in real-world personal networks

Oană,

Hâncean,

Perc

et al. 2024

Preprint

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“…Moreover, our paper suggested that mistrust was mostly directed toward governments and pharmaceutical companies. These findings are echoed in a study looking at survey data from 100 countries and the roles of different forms of trust in predicting vaccine hesitancy [ 49 ]. Trust in political institutions was a consistent predictor of vaccine hesitancy [ 49 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These findings are echoed in a study looking at survey data from 100 countries and the roles of different forms of trust in predicting vaccine hesitancy [ 49 ]. Trust in political institutions was a consistent predictor of vaccine hesitancy [ 49 ]. The impact of a lack of trust in governments in vaccination attempts is exemplified in Romania’s COVID-19 vaccination strategies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Snapshot of COVID-19 Vaccine Discourse Related to Ethnic Minority Communities in the United Kingdom Between January and April 2022: Mixed Methods Analysis

Ullah,

Martin,

Poduval

2024

JMIR Form Res

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Background Existing literature highlights the role of social media as a key source of information for the public during the COVID-19 pandemic and its influence on vaccination attempts. Yet there is little research exploring its role in the public discourse specifically among ethnic minority communities, who have the highest rates of vaccine hesitancy (delay or refusal of vaccination despite availability of services). Objective This study aims to understand the discourse related to minority communities on social media platforms Twitter and YouTube. Methods Social media data from the United Kingdom was extracted from Twitter and YouTube using the software Netlytics and YouTube Data Tools to provide a “snapshot” of the discourse between January and April 2022. A mixed method approach was used where qualitative data were contextualized into codes. Network analysis was applied to provide insight into the most frequent and weighted keywords and topics of conversations. Results A total of 260 tweets and 156 comments from 4 YouTube videos were included in our analysis. Our data suggests that the most popular topics of conversation during the period sampled were related to communication strategies adopted during the booster vaccine rollout. These were noted to be divisive in nature and linked to wider conversations around racism and historical mistrust toward institutions. Conclusions Our study suggests a shift in narrative from concerns about the COVID-19 vaccine itself, toward the strategies used in vaccination implementation, in particular the targeting of ethnic minority groups through vaccination campaigns. The implications for public health communication during crisis management in a pandemic context include acknowledging wider experiences of discrimination when addressing ethnic minority communities.

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“…At the end of this work, the following discussions can be listed: those who voted for the current Brazilian president in the 2018 elections 17 and those who positioned themselves politically further to the right 16 , 18 , 19 are more reluctant to take the COVID-19 vaccine, 9 , 10 have less confidence in the Sputinik5 (Russia), Sinopharm (China), and Sinovac/Butantan (China) vaccines, and indeed, consider that the country of origin of the vaccine development strongly affects their decision the characteristics that most influence the decision to take the vaccine are the lack of information about the production, testing, and efficacy (immunization percentage). 16 , 18 …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The COVID-19 pandemic and its high mortality rate 1 brought back to the public health and modern society debate the factors that could influence the willingness of an individual to take or not the vaccine shot. 2–4 Different research over all the world have been developed to understand this phenomenon: a) low- and middle-income countries with high level of confidence in the COVID-19 vaccines, 5–7 and higher than USA and Russia; 8 ; b) social media, political engagement and trust in the institutions being significative to explain vaccine hesitancy, 9 , 10 and c) sociodemographic characteristics and political polarization influence the vaccine’s confidence. 11 , 12 …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Politics and confidence toward the COVID-19 vaccination: A Brazilian cross-sectional study

Paschoalotto,

Cima,

Costa

et al. 2024

Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics

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This study has the aim of assessing the Brazilian perceptions, influencing factors and political positioning on the confidence concerning COVID-19 vaccination. To achieve the objective, the methods rely on a cross-sectional survey of Brazilian citizens, distributed through different social networks. The sample is composed of 1,670 valid responses, collected from almost all Brazilian states and state capitals. To analyze the data and give a clear view of the variables’ relationship, the study used bivariate and comparative graphs. Results show a higher level of confidence in vaccines from Pfizer and AstraZeneca, while the lower level of confidence is associated with vaccines from Sinopharm and Sputinik5. Vaccine efficacy is the most significant influencing factor that helps in the decision to get vaccinated. Also, individuals are less willing to get vaccinated if their political preferences are related to the right-wing. The results led to three main health and social implications: i) the vaccination strategy campaigns should take in count vaccine efficacy and political aspects; ii) the vaccination process should be adapted to regions with different political positions; and iii) a reinforcement in the educational policies of the vaccine’s importance to the public health, to avoid the politization of a health issue.

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Trust and vaccine hesitancy during the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-national analysis

Cited by 27 publications

References 22 publications

Online media use and COVID-19 vaccination in real-world personal networks

Online media use and COVID-19 vaccination in real-world personal networks

A Snapshot of COVID-19 Vaccine Discourse Related to Ethnic Minority Communities in the United Kingdom Between January and April 2022: Mixed Methods Analysis

Politics and confidence toward the COVID-19 vaccination: A Brazilian cross-sectional study

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