The associations of geographic location and perceived risk of infection with the intentions to get vaccinated against COVID-19 in China

ABSTRACT

Background

Vaccines are a critical tool against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, yet little is known regarding the associations of geographic location and perceived risk with the intentions to get vaccinated against COVID-19 in China.

Methods

An on-site survey of adults aged 18 or older (n = 7261) was conducted from November to December, 2020 in China, and this survey selected six provinces based on the geographic location.

Results

In the total sample, 82.5% reported that they would intend to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Compared with Hubei province, respondents’ intentions to get vaccinated decreased by 70% in Zhejiang, 61% in Guangdong, 87% in Gansu, and 71% in Jilin, respectively. However, within Hubei province, compared with Wuhan city, respondents’ intentions to get vaccinated in other cities were not significantly different. Respondents with higher perceived risk of infection were associated with increased odds of intentions to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

Conclusion

Our study identified priority geographic regions that need to pay attention on the vaccination campaign and help design effective immunization strategies to increase the vaccine uptake against COVID-19. More attention should be paid to adults residing farther from the epicenter of the outbreak and having lower perceived risk of infection.

KEYWORDS:

• Covid-19
• vaccine
• perceived risk of infection
• geographic location
• China

Supplemental Material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed here

Acknowledgments

We thank CDC staff members from six provinces who participated in this survey.

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 no relevant financial or other relationships to disclose.

Author contributions

RZ Jing and H Fang designed this study; L Li, YF Song, SF Guo, J Wang, HJ Zhang, XZ Lai, and Y Lyu collected data; RZ Jing, L Li, and J Guo finished the analysis; RZ Jing., WZ Yu, H Zhu, and H Fang interpreted the findings; and RZ Jing wrote the draft.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

This paper was not funded.