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Soveri A, Karlsson LC, Antfolk J, Mäki O, Karlsson L, Karlsson H, Nolvi S, Karukivi M, Lindfelt M, Lewandowsky S. Spillover effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on attitudes to influenza and childhood vaccines. BMC Public Health 2023; 23:764. [PMID: 37098527 PMCID: PMC10126550 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-023-15653-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2023] [Accepted: 04/11/2023] [Indexed: 04/27/2023] Open
Abstract
The current study sought to determine whether public perceptions of other vaccines and diseases than COVID-19 have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. We longitudinally examined whether there had been a change from before the COVID-19 pandemic to during the pandemic in: (a) influenza vaccination behaviour and intentions; (b) the perceived benefit of childhood vaccines and influenza vaccines; (c) the perceived safety of childhood vaccines and influenza vaccines; (d) the perceived severity of measles and influenza; and (e) trust in healthcare professionals in two samples of Finnish adults (N = 205 in Study 1 and N = 197 in Study 2). The findings showed that during the pandemic, more people than before had received or wanted to receive the influenza vaccine. The respondents also believed that influenza was more dangerous during the pandemic and that vaccinations were safer and more beneficial. On the other hand, for childhood vaccines only perceived safety increased. Finally, in one of the studies, people had more confidence in medical professionals during the pandemic than they had before. Together, these findings imply a spillover of the COVID-19 pandemic on how people view other vaccines and illnesses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Soveri
- FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Turku, Turun Yliopisto, 20014, Finland.
| | - Linda C Karlsson
- FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Turku, Turun Yliopisto, 20014, Finland
| | - Jan Antfolk
- Department of Psychology, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Otto Mäki
- Department of Psychology and Speech-Language Pathology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Linnea Karlsson
- FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Turku, Turun Yliopisto, 20014, Finland
- Centre for Population Health Research, University of Turku and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
- Department of Child Psychiatry, Turku University Hospital and University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Hasse Karlsson
- FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Turku, Turun Yliopisto, 20014, Finland
- Centre for Population Health Research, University of Turku and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
- Department of Psychiatry, Turku University Hospital and University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Saara Nolvi
- FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Turku, Turun Yliopisto, 20014, Finland
- Department of Psychology and Speech-Language Pathology, Turku Institute for Advanced Studies, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Max Karukivi
- FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Turku, Turun Yliopisto, 20014, Finland
- Department of Adolescent Psychiatry, Turku University Hospital and University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Mikael Lindfelt
- Department of Theological Ethics, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Stephan Lewandowsky
- School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
- School of Psychological Science, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
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