Post by Nadica (She/Her) on Jul 26, 2024 13:35:45 GMT
Pandemic disbelief identified as key factor in vaccine hesitancy - Published July 25, 2024
A new study among Hispanic people in the United States suggests that an initial disbelief in the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to vaccine hesitancy among that population, especially among parents making vaccine decisions for their children. The study is published in PLOS One.
Vaccine hesitancy is usually linked to safety concerns, but this study proposes that those concerns are not the total picture and that more research needs to be undertaken on Latino attitudes towards vaccination.
"The Hispanic/Latino/Latinx community makes up 19% of the United States population yet accounted for 24.5% of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) cases, second highest only to non-Hispanic Whites," the authors said. "Although 84% of Latinx adults over 18 years had completed the primary series of COVID-19 vaccines by March 2023, this community has been impacted by systemic inequities that have resulted in disproportionate health outcomes."
The study was based on an online survey completed by 290 Latino parent and adolescent dyads from a Southwestern metropolitan area of the United States. The survey was given twice, initially between August 2020 and March 2021 and 1 year later.
Youth disbelief played role in parents' vaccines hesitancy
Among other questions, parents were asked to rate their agreement with the statement, "The COVID-19 pandemic is a conspiracy," and youth rated their agreement with the statement, "The COVID-19 pandemic is fake or not real."
Overall, there was high vaccine uptake in the sample, with 88% of parents and 80% of youth receiving at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Most notable, however, was the role of youth pandemic disbelief (belief the pandemic was a conspiracy or not real) in vaccine hesitancy: In addition to youths' pandemic disbelief predicting their own vaccine hesitancy, the authors wrote, it also predicted their parents’ vaccine hesitancy.
"Parents are often thought of as the key decision maker for children under the age of 18, and although the final decision may rest with them, our findings suggest that their child’s perspective, particularly around disbelief, may be part of this decision-making process," the authors concluded.
A new study among Hispanic people in the United States suggests that an initial disbelief in the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to vaccine hesitancy among that population, especially among parents making vaccine decisions for their children. The study is published in PLOS One.
Vaccine hesitancy is usually linked to safety concerns, but this study proposes that those concerns are not the total picture and that more research needs to be undertaken on Latino attitudes towards vaccination.
"The Hispanic/Latino/Latinx community makes up 19% of the United States population yet accounted for 24.5% of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) cases, second highest only to non-Hispanic Whites," the authors said. "Although 84% of Latinx adults over 18 years had completed the primary series of COVID-19 vaccines by March 2023, this community has been impacted by systemic inequities that have resulted in disproportionate health outcomes."
The study was based on an online survey completed by 290 Latino parent and adolescent dyads from a Southwestern metropolitan area of the United States. The survey was given twice, initially between August 2020 and March 2021 and 1 year later.
Youth disbelief played role in parents' vaccines hesitancy
Among other questions, parents were asked to rate their agreement with the statement, "The COVID-19 pandemic is a conspiracy," and youth rated their agreement with the statement, "The COVID-19 pandemic is fake or not real."
Overall, there was high vaccine uptake in the sample, with 88% of parents and 80% of youth receiving at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Most notable, however, was the role of youth pandemic disbelief (belief the pandemic was a conspiracy or not real) in vaccine hesitancy: In addition to youths' pandemic disbelief predicting their own vaccine hesitancy, the authors wrote, it also predicted their parents’ vaccine hesitancy.
"Parents are often thought of as the key decision maker for children under the age of 18, and although the final decision may rest with them, our findings suggest that their child’s perspective, particularly around disbelief, may be part of this decision-making process," the authors concluded.