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
. 2023 Mar 31:11:1072740.
doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1072740. eCollection 2023.

Vaccine hesitancy and post-vaccination adherence to safety measures: A mixed-method study

Ayesha Inam  1 , Asia Mushtaq  2 , Sahira Zaman  3 , Samia Wasif  1 , Mah Noor  1 , Hania Asghar Khan  1
Affiliations

Vaccine hesitancy and post-vaccination adherence to safety measures: A mixed-method study

Ayesha Inam et al. Front Public Health. .

Abstract

Background: Despite being recognized as one of the most successful public health measures, vaccination is still considered to be unnecessary and unreliable in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The current study utilized a two-pronged approach in analyzing vaccine hesitancy and health behaviors after vaccination by employing a mixed-method design. Phase 1 was aimed at identifying predictors of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and acceptance among the Pakistani population using protection motivation theory (PMT), whereas Phase 2 was aimed at exploring the factors related to the vaccination of COVID-19.

Method: A convenient sample of 1,736 individuals from the vaccine-eligible population (12 years and above) was selected to collect data on vaccine hesitancy and acceptance (Phase 1). Phase 2 of the study explored post-vaccination health behaviors, especially adherence to safety measures for COVID-19, through 23 in-depth interviews with the vaccinated population.

Results: Multiple regression analyses showed that response cost is a major predictor of vaccine hesitancy (in Phase 1). In terms of the role of demographic variables, the results showed that being male (for severity: B = -0.481; threat appraisal: B = -0.737), old age (B = -0.044), not vaccinated, and not infected with COVID-19 (themselves and family members) are strongly associated with vaccination hesitancy. Results of thematic analysis in Phase 2 revealed that perceived individual experience and insensitivity toward the severity of the disease are strongly associated with a lack of adherence to safety measures of COVID-19. Faith and religious beliefs and reliance on traditional remedies are also key predictors of people's general non-compliance to health behaviors. One interesting aspect that was revealed in the analysis was the general financially and socially destabilized situation in the context of developing countries that contributed to general apathy in the pandemic situation.

Conclusion: The findings of the current study may help in devising a health model for the public from the developing world to deal with future pandemic situations.

Keywords: COVID-19; Pakistan; protection motivation theory; safety measures; vaccination behavior; vaccine hesitancy.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. MacDonald NE. Vaccine hesitancy: definition, scope and determinants. Vaccine. (2015) 33:4161–4. 10.1016/j.vaccine.04036 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Opel DJ, Mangione-Smith R, Taylor JA, Korfiatis C, Wiese C, Catz S, et al. . Development of a survey to identify vaccine-hesitant parents. Hum Vaccin. (2011) 7:419–25. 10.4161/hv.7.4.14120 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Danis K, Georgakopoulou T, Stavrou T, Laggas D, Panagiotopoulos T. Socioeconomic factors play a more important role in childhood vaccination coverage than parental perceptions: a cross-sectional study in Greece. Vaccine. (2009) 28:1861–1869. 10.1016/j.vaccine.11078 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Larson HJ, Jarrett C, Eckersberger E, Smith DMD, Paterson P. Understanding vaccine hesitancy around vaccines and vaccination from a global perspective: a systematic review of published literature, 2007–2012. Vaccine. (2014) 32:2150–9. 10.1016/j.vaccine.01081 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Dubé E, Gagnon D, Nickels E, Jeram S, Schuster, M. Mapping vaccine hesitancy—Country-specific characteristics of a global phenomenon. Vaccine. (2014) 32:6649–54. 10.1016/j.vaccine.09039 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Substances