Barriers and facilitators to the future uptake of regular COVID-19 booster vaccinations among young adults in the UK

Figures & data

Table 1. Sociodemographic and vaccine uptake variables for the sample.

Variable	N	%
Age (mean years, SD)	M = 22.8	SD = 8.6
Gender
Male	64	15.1
Female	352	83.2
Transgender Male	1	0.2
Transgender Female	1	0.2
Gender variant/non-conforming	3	0.7
Prefer not to say	2	0.5
Ethnicity
White	404	95.5
Ethnic minority	19	4.5
Annual household income
<£16,000	93	22.1
£16,000–£29,999	109	26
£30,000–£59,999	134	31.9
£60,000	84	20
COVID-19 vaccine primary doses uptake
Both doses	383	90.8
One dose	19	4.5
None	20	4.7
COVID-19 booster uptake
Accepting	361	85.3
Hesitant	62	14.7
COVID-19 regular booster intention
Accepting	241	57.2
Hesitant	180	42.8

Table 2. COVID-19 vaccine side effects reported by the sample.

Side Effect	N	%	Severity Mean	Severity SD
Sore arm	353	83.5	1.62	.86
Fatigue	237	56.0	1.20	1.14
Muscle aches	217	51.3	.96	1.00
Headache	204	48.2	.95	1.01
Flu-like symptoms	159	37.6	.71	1.02
Chills	127	30.0	.66	1.00
Feeling or being sick	123	29.1	.55	.89
Fever	117	27.7	.58	.96
Decreased appetite	97	22.9	.38	.79
Dizziness	87	20.6	.42	.85
Enlarged lymph nodes	60	14.2	.11	.47
Itchy skin or rash	33	7.8
Abdominal pain	32	7.6
Other	25	5.9

Table 3. Univariate and multivariate analysis of factors associated with intention to receive a regular COVID-19 booster.

Variable	p-value	Comparison	Coefficient	95% CI	p-value
Univariate Analysis
Age	.169	-	1.02	.99–1.04	-
Gender	.104	Female vs Male	1.56	.91–2.68	-
Household income	.006	£16,000–£29,999 vs. <£16,000	1.01	.58–1.76	.969
		£30,000–£59,999 vs. <£16,000	1.80	1.05–3.08	.034
		£60,000+ vs. <£16,000	2.38	1.28–4.43	.006
Previous COVID-19	.98	Yes vs. No	1.00	.67–1.48
Confidence	<.001	-	1.95	1.67–2.27	-
Complacency	<.001	-	1.81	1.59–2.05	-
Constraints	<.001	-	1.93	1.69–2.21	-
Calculation	.014	-	1.15	1.03–1.28	-
Collective responsibility	<.001	-	1.77	1.53–2.05	-
Compliance	<.001	-	1.72	1.50–1.97	-
Conspiracy	<.001	-	1.45	1.27–1.65	-
Number of side effects	.581	-	1.02	.96–1.08	-
Severity of side effects	.024	-	.972	.95–1.00	-
Multivariate Analysis
Household income	.141	£16,000–£29,999 vs. <£16,000	1.62	.76–3.39	.199
		£30,000–£59,999 vs. <£16,000	2.22	1.08–4.56	.030
		£60,000+ vs. <£16,000	2.12	.96–4.68	.062
Confidence	.049	-	1.22	1.00–1.49	-
Complacency	.011	-	1.27	1.06–1.53	-
Constraints	.004	-	1.32	1.09–1.60	-
Calculation	.004	-	1.28	1.09–1.52	-
Collective responsibility	.247	-	1.14	.91–1.44	-
Compliance	.004	-	1.27	1.08–1.49	-
Conspiracy	.081	-	1.17	.98–1.40	-
Severity of side effects	.032	-	.965	.93–1.00	-

For the multivariate logistic regression, we entered those variables that were significant in the univariate analysis (p < .05).

Table 4. Key barriers and facilitators to regular booster vaccinations against COVID-19.

Theme (frequency and percentage of responses)	Key Subtheme (frequency and percentage of responses)	Barrier or Facilitator	Exemplar Quotes
Personal Factors(n = 123; 34.9%)	Previous vaccine side effects (n = 26; 21.1%)	Barrier	“ … I was really sick with the booster and that’s off-putting for another vaccine”
	Protect personal health (n = 23; 18.7%)	Facilitator	“Regular top-up of protection for my health”
	Perceived low personal risk (n = 19;15.5%)	Barrier	“Dont think its necessary considering already having 2 jabs”
			“Young so not so worried about health”
	Extra protection from COVID-19 (n = 8; 6.5%)	Facilitator	“As it prevents you being as unwell with covid”
Environmental Factors(n = 97; 27.5%)	Return to normal (n = 22; 22.7%)	Facilitator	“If it was essential go back to typical way of living without masks … ”
			“I want to enjoy my life and if getting a booster every now and then would help then I would”
	Attending activities (e.g., work, social events, holidays; n = 20; 20.6%)	Facilitator	“Continue to attend teaching in-person and physically go to work”
			“If I needed them to go on holiday”
	Inaccessibility of vaccination services (n = 18; 18.6%)	Barrier	“Waiting in long lines, having to take time off work … ”
			“I have to travel far to receive my vaccines which is difficult with my small income and travel abilities”
	Vaccine mandates (work-related and general; n = 14; 14.4%)	Facilitator	“its important for me to have the booster because of my job”
			“If there were lawful consequences to not doing it, I would”
	Inconvenient (n = 9; 9.3%)	Barrier	“Too much hassle”
			“It is an inconvenience”
	Cost (n = 7; 7.2%)	Barrier	“If it remains free”
		Facilitator	“If we had to pay for it or if it was free”
Vaccine or Virus Concerns (n = 77; 21.9%)	Too many doses (n = 18; 23.3%)	Barrier	“It’s getting a bit much now the amount of jags they want the public to get”
			“doesn’t seem right that we would need to receive a vaccine so often”
			“Time between doses, feel as though every 6 months for example is very frequent”
	Potential long-term vaccine effects (n = 13; 16.9%)	Barrier	“Lack of knowledge regarding long term effects”
			“I still feel uncertain about long-term effects such as fertility, I received two doses as it seemed essential but unsure if I would engage in a regular booster”
	Uncertainty of effectiveness of vaccines (n = 11; 14.2%)	Barrier	“Not sure it works”
			“Do they really work?”
	Changes in COVID-19 virus or cases (n = 10; 12.9%)	Facilitator	“If there was a new strain of the virus that was potentially more harmful to health”
			“To keep covid levels down”
Social Factors (n = 55; 15.6%)	Protect health of family and friends (n = 40; 72.7%)	Facilitator	“Ensuring the health of family and friends”
			“My mum is high risk”
	Protect health of others (community members, vulnerable groups; n = 15; 27.3%)	Facilitator	“[if it] keeps the people around me safe then I’m not bothered to take it”
			“Health of those around me who cannot get vaccine”