Relationship between attitudes toward the effectiveness of vaccine, concerns about adverse reactions, and proactively taking SARS-Cov-2 vaccine for family among medical workers in Taizhou, China

ABSTRACT

Objectives

Concerns about the safety of the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine have been a stumbling block in the promotion of vaccination uptake. Although many studies have focused on the investigation of people’s intention to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, little attention has been paid to the underlying mechanism. This study explored whether concerns about the adverse reactions to the vaccine mediated the relationship between attitudes toward the effectiveness of the vaccine and proactively taking the vaccine for family.

Methods

Questionnaires were completed by 1,673 (39.9%, 1673/4191) healthcare workers at Taizhou Hospital, Taizhou, Zhejiang, China. Among these, 1,397 (83.5%) have received two doses of the SARS-Cov-2 vaccine. Mediation analysis approach was applied in this research.

Results

Attitudes toward the effectiveness of vaccines were positively correlated with proactively taking the COVID-19 vaccine for family. Additionally, concerns about the side effects to the SARS-Cov-2 vaccine mediated the relationship between attitudes toward the effectiveness of vaccines and proactively taking vaccines for family.

Conclusion

The findings imply inextricable relationships among attitudes toward the effectiveness of the SARS-Cov-2 vaccine, fears about side effects to vaccines, and taking vaccines for family. It further suggested that the importance of highlighting the safety of vaccine in promotion of vaccination uptake.

KEYWORDS:

• Effectiveness of the SARS-Cov-2 vaccine
• adverse reaction
• proactively taking for family
• COVID-19
• mediation analysis

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank participants for their cooperation and support.

Declaration of interest

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

Reviewer disclosures

Peer reviewers on this manuscript have received an honorarium for their review work. No relevant financial or other relationships to disclose.

Author contributions

CW Luo and TH Tung conceived the idea, implemented the method, and drafted the manuscript. CW Luo was responsible for the coding of the analyses. MX Zhang and TH Tung designed the questionnaire. GF Shi and HX Chen collected the data. All authors edited and approved the final manuscript.

Additional information

Funding

This paper was not funded.