Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Feb;44(1):130-139.
doi: 10.1177/10755470211056990. Epub 2021 Nov 14.

Factors That Influence Risk Perceptions and Successful COVID-19 Vaccination Communication Campaigns With American Indians

Amanda D Boyd  1   2 , Dedra Buchwald  2
Affiliations

Factors That Influence Risk Perceptions and Successful COVID-19 Vaccination Communication Campaigns With American Indians

Amanda D Boyd et al. Sci Commun. 2022 Feb.

Abstract

COVID-19 vaccinations are the primary tool to end the pandemic. However, vaccine hesitancy continues to be a barrier to herd-immunity in the United States. American Indians (AI) often have higher levels of distrust in western medicine and lower levels of satisfaction with health care when compared to non-Hispanic Whites. Yet AIs have high COVID-19 vaccination rates. We discuss factors that influence AI risk perceptions of COVID-19 vaccinations including the impact of COVID-19 on AI Elders, community, and culture. We conclude with future research needs on vaccination communication and how culturally congruent communication campaigns may have contributed to high COVID-19 vaccination rates.

Keywords: COVID-19; disease; elders; indigenous; pandemic; vaccine.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Conflicting Interests The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

References

    1. Arrazola J, Masiello MM, Joshi S, Dominguez AE, Poel A, Wilkie CM, Bressler JM, McLaughlin J, Kraszewski J, Komatsu KK, Pompa XP, Jespersen M, Richardson G, Lehnertz N, LeMaster P, Rust B, Metobo AK, Doman B, Casey D, … Landen M (2020). COVID-19 mortality among American Indian and Alaska Native persons—14 States, January-June 2020. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 69(49), 1853–1856. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bowen DJ, Weiner D, Samos M, & Canales MK (2014). Exploration of New England Native American women’s views on human papillomavirus (HPV), testing, and vaccination. Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities, 1(1), 45–51.
    1. Boyd AD, & Furgal CM (2019). Communicating environmental health risks with Indigenous populations: A systematic literature review of current research and recommendations for future studies. Health Communication, 34(13), 1564–1574. - PubMed
    1. Boyd AD, Song X, & Furgal CM (2021). A systematic literature review of cancer communication with Indigenous populations in Canada and the United States. Journal of Cancer Education, 36(2), 310–324. - PubMed
    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021). COVID-19 guidance for older elders. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/need-extra-precautions/older-a...

LinkOut - more resources