To Vaccinate or Not to Vaccinate-Reasons of Willingness and Reluctance of Students against SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination-An International Experience

Abstract

Despite the vaccine against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) being reported to be safe and effective, the unwillingness to vaccinate and doubts are still common. The aim of this international study was to assess the major reasons for the unwillingness to vaccinate in a group of students from Poland (n = 1202), Bangladesh (n = 1586), India (n = 484), Mexico (n = 234), Egypt (n = 566), Philippines (n = 2076), Pakistan (n = 506), Vietnam (n = 98) and China (n = 503). We conducted an online cross-sectional study that aimed to assess (1) the percentage of vaccinated and unvaccinated students and (2) the reasons associated with willingness/unwillingness to the vaccine. The study included 7255 respondents from 9 countries with a mean age of 21.85 ± 3.66 years. Only 22.11% (n = 1604) of students were vaccinated. However, the majority (69.25%, n = 5025) expressed a willingness to be vaccinated. More willing to vaccinate were students in informal relationships who worked mentally, used psychological/psychiatric services before the pandemic, and studied medicine. There are cultural differences regarding the reasons associated with the unwillingness to vaccinate, but some 'universal' might be distinguished that apply to the whole group.

Keywords: COVID-19; COVID-19 vaccine; SARS-CoV-2; influenza; pandemic; psychological and psychiatric support; students; supplements.

Figure 1

Pandemic point in each country participating in the study. Study start date for individual countries in chronological order: Poland—12 April 2021, China—16 April 2021, Vietnam—26 April 2021, Bangladesh—28 April 2021, India—9 May 2021, Philippines—20 May 2021, Egypt—30 May 2021, Pakistan—1 June 2021, and Mexico—1 July 2021.

Figure 2

Percentage of students who expressed willingness to vaccinate against COVID-19 concerning only statistically significant results.