UP-04 Knowledge and Identity Antecedents of COVID-19 vaccine status: A Study of South Carolina Residents
Abstract
COVID-19, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, has brought about much suffering, with over a million deaths in the United States alone. To reduce deaths and severe disease, COVID-19 vaccines were developed and approved in 2021; however as of January 2023, only 53.9% of eligible South Carolinians are vaccinated.
Vaccine hesitancy has impeded efforts to reach herd immunity. Previous work has shown knowledge about COVID-19 as well as various demographic factors contribute to decisions about the practice of preventative measures like mask wearing or social distancing. The present study’s aim was to investigate various socio/political, demographic, and knowledge variables which might explain South Carolina’s low vaccination rate.
In this study, we collected data from 1765 individuals from all counties in South Carolina using a Qualtrics survey that asked about their vaccine status (received a vaccine, plan to, don’t plan to, and unsure), their political affiliation, and other demographics. Individuals also completed knowledge tests to produce knowledge scores about COVID-19, COVID-19 vaccines, and vaccines in general.
Our findings suggest that gender, age, political affiliation, and education are all statistically significant predictors of vaccination acceptance. Compared to those that said “yes” to having received a vaccine, those that were vaccine hesitant were younger, more likely to be female, less educated, and more likely to be republican. Being nonwhite was also a significant predictor of individuals being undecided about vaccination. Interestingly, COVID-19 knowledge was not a determinant of vaccination acceptance, however COVID-19 vaccine knowledge and general vaccine knowledge were both predictive of vaccination acceptance.
These results suggest personalized interventions towards increasing the public’s knowledge of vaccines in general, and COVID-19 vaccines in particular, might aid efforts towards reaching herd immunity.
Understanding determinants of COVID-19 vaccination acceptance can aid public health officials when reaching the public. Using this information, public health educational campaigns can be better tailored to the community.
Keywords: COVID-19, vaccination, public health
UP-04 Knowledge and Identity Antecedents of COVID-19 vaccine status: A Study of South Carolina Residents
COVID-19, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, has brought about much suffering, with over a million deaths in the United States alone. To reduce deaths and severe disease, COVID-19 vaccines were developed and approved in 2021; however as of January 2023, only 53.9% of eligible South Carolinians are vaccinated.
Vaccine hesitancy has impeded efforts to reach herd immunity. Previous work has shown knowledge about COVID-19 as well as various demographic factors contribute to decisions about the practice of preventative measures like mask wearing or social distancing. The present study’s aim was to investigate various socio/political, demographic, and knowledge variables which might explain South Carolina’s low vaccination rate.
In this study, we collected data from 1765 individuals from all counties in South Carolina using a Qualtrics survey that asked about their vaccine status (received a vaccine, plan to, don’t plan to, and unsure), their political affiliation, and other demographics. Individuals also completed knowledge tests to produce knowledge scores about COVID-19, COVID-19 vaccines, and vaccines in general.
Our findings suggest that gender, age, political affiliation, and education are all statistically significant predictors of vaccination acceptance. Compared to those that said “yes” to having received a vaccine, those that were vaccine hesitant were younger, more likely to be female, less educated, and more likely to be republican. Being nonwhite was also a significant predictor of individuals being undecided about vaccination. Interestingly, COVID-19 knowledge was not a determinant of vaccination acceptance, however COVID-19 vaccine knowledge and general vaccine knowledge were both predictive of vaccination acceptance.
These results suggest personalized interventions towards increasing the public’s knowledge of vaccines in general, and COVID-19 vaccines in particular, might aid efforts towards reaching herd immunity.
Understanding determinants of COVID-19 vaccination acceptance can aid public health officials when reaching the public. Using this information, public health educational campaigns can be better tailored to the community.
Keywords: COVID-19, vaccination, public health