COVID-19 Morbidity and Mortality in Social Networks: Does It Influence Vaccine Hesitancy?

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

Fern J. Webb¹  Jagdish Khubchandani²  Sushil Sharma³  Michael J. Wiblishauser⁴  James H. Price⁵ 

[1] Department of Community Health and Family Medicine, University of Florida, Jacksonville, FL 32209, USA;Department of Public Health Sciences, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM 88003, USA;Miller College of Business, Ball State University, Muncie, IN 47306, USA;School of Education, Health Professions & Human Development, University of Houston, Victoria, TX 77901, USA;School of Population Health, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH 43606, USA;

关键词: COVID-19;    Coronavirus;    vaccine;    hesitancy;    denial;    behavior;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ijerph18189448

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

The impact of COVID-19 morbidity and mortality among family and friends on vaccination preferences is not well explored. A valid and reliable questionnaire was deployed online via mTurk to recruit a national random sample of adult Americans to understand COVID-19 vaccination preferences and its relationship with COVID-19 infection in social networks. A total of 1602 individuals participated in the study where the majority had taken at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine (79%) and almost a tenth were planning to do so (10%) or did not want to take the vaccine (11%). Compared to those who knew family members or friends affected by COVID-19, those who did not know anyone infected with (AOR = 3.20), hospitalized for (AOR = 3.60), or died of COVID-19 (AOR = 2.97) had statistically significantly higher odds of refusing the vaccines. Most strategies for reducing COVID-19 vaccination hesitancy focus on highlighting the benefits of COVID-19 vaccines. We suggest that the dangers of not getting the vaccine should also be emphasized as many people who do not know someone who was affected with COVID-19 are also hesitant towards vaccination. These individuals may not fully appreciate the morbidity and mortality impact of COVID-19 infections and the messaging can be tailored to highlight the risk of not having vaccines.

【 授权许可】

Unknown