Information about herd immunity through vaccination and empathy promote COVID-19 vaccination intentions
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Information about herd immunity through vaccination and empathy promote COVID-19 vaccination intentions. / Pfattheicher, Stefan; Petersen, Michael Bang; Böhm, Robert.
I: Health Psychology, Bind 41, Nr. 2, 2022, s. 85-93.Publikation: Bidrag til tidsskrift › Tidsskriftartikel › Forskning › fagfællebedømt
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Information about herd immunity through vaccination and empathy promote COVID-19 vaccination intentions
AU - Pfattheicher, Stefan
AU - Petersen, Michael Bang
AU - Böhm, Robert
PY - 2022
Y1 - 2022
N2 - Objective: An effective vaccine against COVID-19 is a desired solution to curb the spread of the disease. However, vaccine hesitancy might hinder high uptake rates and thus undermine efforts to eliminate COVID-19 once an effective vaccine became available. The present contribution addresses this issue by examining two ways of increasing the intention to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Method: Two preregistered online studies were conducted (N = 2,315 participants from the United Kingdom) in which knowledge about and beliefs in herd immunity through vaccination, as well as empathy for those most vulnerable to the virus, were either measured (Study 1) or manipulated (Study 2). As a dependent variable, individuals’ self-reported vaccination intention once a vaccine against COVID-19 became available was assessed. Results: In Study 1 (N = 310), the intention to get vaccinated against COVID-19 was correlated with knowledge about and belief in herd immunity through vaccination (r = .58, p < .001), as well as with empathy for those most vulnerable to the virus (r = .26, p < .001). In Study 2 (N = 2,005), information about herd immunity through vaccination (Cohen’s d = .13, p = .003) and empathy (Cohen’s d = .22, p < .001) independently promoted vaccination intention. Conclusions: The motivation to get vaccinated against COVID-19 was related to and could be causally promoted by both mere information about herd immunity through vaccination and by empathy. As such, the present research provides a better understanding of the intention to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
AB - Objective: An effective vaccine against COVID-19 is a desired solution to curb the spread of the disease. However, vaccine hesitancy might hinder high uptake rates and thus undermine efforts to eliminate COVID-19 once an effective vaccine became available. The present contribution addresses this issue by examining two ways of increasing the intention to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Method: Two preregistered online studies were conducted (N = 2,315 participants from the United Kingdom) in which knowledge about and beliefs in herd immunity through vaccination, as well as empathy for those most vulnerable to the virus, were either measured (Study 1) or manipulated (Study 2). As a dependent variable, individuals’ self-reported vaccination intention once a vaccine against COVID-19 became available was assessed. Results: In Study 1 (N = 310), the intention to get vaccinated against COVID-19 was correlated with knowledge about and belief in herd immunity through vaccination (r = .58, p < .001), as well as with empathy for those most vulnerable to the virus (r = .26, p < .001). In Study 2 (N = 2,005), information about herd immunity through vaccination (Cohen’s d = .13, p = .003) and empathy (Cohen’s d = .22, p < .001) independently promoted vaccination intention. Conclusions: The motivation to get vaccinated against COVID-19 was related to and could be causally promoted by both mere information about herd immunity through vaccination and by empathy. As such, the present research provides a better understanding of the intention to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
U2 - 10.1037/hea0001096
DO - 10.1037/hea0001096
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 34570535
VL - 41
SP - 85
EP - 93
JO - Health Psychology
JF - Health Psychology
SN - 0278-6133
IS - 2
ER -
ID: 262762299