Improved parental attitudes and beliefs through stepwise perinatal vaccination education

ABSTRACT

This study examined the effects of providing vaccination education during the perinatal period on Japanese parents' knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs about childhood vaccination. A cluster-randomized controlled-trial method was used on a sample of 160 pregnant women recruited from 9 obstetrical sites in Niigata, Japan. The treatment group received a stepwise interactive education intervention, while the control group received a general vaccination leaflet. Changes in parental attitudes toward and beliefs about infant vaccination were assessed on the child's one-month and 6-month birthdays using paper questionnaires. Of the initial 188 participants, 160 (90.4%) completed the final post-survey questionnaire. Scores on injunctive social norms (a morally neutral perception of the behavior of the majority) and descriptive social norms (a moral perception of what individuals should do) significantly increased in the treatment group (p = .02 and p = .01, respectively). There was a significant difference between the 2 groups over time in terms of perceived benefit (efficacy of available preventive actions) (p = .03), but no significant differences in perceived severity (seriousness of a disease outcome), perceived susceptibility (likelihood of getting a disease), perceived benefits, perceived behavioral control, or descriptive social norms between the groups at any time point or in the patterns of change over time (p > .31). Thus, stepwise perinatal vaccination education was found to positively influence maternal attitudes and beliefs about infant vaccination. This study suggests the importance of vaccination education during the perinatal period.

KEYWORDS:

• Cluster-randomized controlled trial
• infant vaccination status
• maternal attitudes and beliefs
• perinatal vaccination education

Disclosure of potential conflicts of interest

No potential conflicts of interest were disclosed.

Acknowledgments

We are grateful to all of the study participants. We are also grateful to Toshio Yagimoto at Yagimoto Pediatric Clinic, Takeshi Hirohashi at Hirohashi Obstetric Clinic, Akiteru Tokunaga at Tokunaga Jyo-sei Clinic, Masato Arakawa at Arakawa Ladies' clinic, Akira Honda at Honda Ladies' clinic, Isao Takeyama at Takeyama Hospital, Takumi Kurabayashi and Yoshihisa Nagayama at Niigata City Hospital, Isao Hasegawa at Saiseikai-Niigata-Daini Hospital, Shinya Watanabe at Kameda-Daiichi Hospital, and Koichi Takakuwa and Takayuki Enomoto at Niigata University Hospital for recruiting the study participants. We also thank Fukiko Sato and Setsuko Mitome at Niigata University Hospital, Fuyuko Watanabe at Niigata City Hospital, Yoko Oda at Takeyama Hospital, and Chikako Shimizu at Saiseikai-Niigata-Daini Hospital for their valuable assistance. Finally, we thank David Kipler for editing the manuscript.

Funding source

This study was supported by a grant from St. Luke's Life Science Institute.

Financial disclosure

None of the authors has a financial or personal relationship to disclose that could inappropriately influence this study.