Knowledge, beliefs, and practice regarding human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination among American college students: Application of the health belief model

Abstract

Objective: To identify facilitators and barriers to human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination among college students.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey with college students (N = 306) between the ages of 18 and 26 was conducted using a computer-delivered survey via iPad. A survey was designed to assess HPV/HPV vaccine-related knowledge, beliefs, and vaccination practices.

Results: Low completion rates for the HPV vaccination series (females: 28.9%; males: 11.5%) were observed among college students. The compliance was lower among students who were black American and did not speak English at home. In contrast, the compliance was higher among those who had received any recommendation for HPV vaccination, those with higher knowledge about HPV and HPV vaccine, and higher perceived benefits of vaccination.

Conclusions: Increasing knowledge of HPV infection, including the benefits of HPV vaccination and health care providers recommending the HPV vaccine, may increase HPV vaccination among college students and reduce the incidence of the disease.

Keywords:

• College students
• health belief model
• human papillomavirus
• vaccine

Conflict of interest disclosure

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements, of United States of America and received approval from the Institutional Review Board of George Mason University.

Additional information

Funding

No funding was used to support this research and/or the preparation of the manuscript.