Myths and conspiracy theories on vaccines and COVID-19: Potential effect on global vaccine refusals

Development and validation of the COVID-19 Impact Scale in Australia

OBJECTIVE

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted and continues to impact the health and well-being of Australian adults. However, there has been no instrument validated to comprehensively measure how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted adults in Australia across several domains (e.g. fear of COVID-19, attitudes towards vaccination, psychosocial impact of lockdowns).The current study conducted a rigorous psychometric process to develop and validate an instrument to measure the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia, the COVID-19 Impact Scale (CIS).

METHOD

Data was obtained from the Australian population. Participants (N = 563) aged between 19 and 91 years (M = 54.50, SD = 16.16) provided online responses between June, 2021 and May, 2022. The majority of participants were female (60.9%), employed either full-time (37.7%) or part-time (22.0%), and had completed an undergraduate degree or higher (70.1%). An initial pool of 30 items was developed based on a review of the literature and input from a panel of experts including psychologists, epidemiologists, and public health experts, among others. The study used network psychometrics to examine the psychometric properties of: (1) item score distributions; (2) item redundancy; (3) dimensionality; (4) model fit; (5) measurement invariance; (6) reliability; and (7) criterion validity.

RESULTS

Following an evaluation of items for ceiling/floor effects and redundancy, the final CIS network model included eighteen nodes and displayed a three-dimensional structure. The three communities of "Fear" (consisting of three nodes; ω = 0.82), "Attitudes" (consisting of ten nodes; ω = 0.89), and "Ill-being" (consisting of five nodes; ω = 0.79) displayed adequate reliability. The evaluation of model fit indicated a good fit of the network model (RMSEA = 0.047; CFI =0.98).

CONCLUSION

The instrument is available to be used by Australian researchers and implemented to evaluate public policies, adapted for future pandemics, or used internationally.

Identifying factors influencing COVID-19 vaccine uptake in Finland - a qualitative study using social media data

Introduction

Vaccine demand creation requires understanding what is driving the uptake of the vaccine. 24 Qualitative research methods are paramount to gaining a localized understanding of behavioral 25 drivers and barriers to vaccine uptake, but they are often underutilized.

Methods

This is a qualitative study that 26 used public comments on the Facebook and Twitter posts of the Finnish Institute for Health and 27 Welfare (THL) as data sources to identify behavioral drivers for COVID-19 vaccine uptake in 28 Finland. The participatory data analysis utilized thematic analysis and the Theoretical Domains 29 Framework (TDF). NVIVO was used to assist in the coding process.

Results

The greatest number of FB and 30 Twitter comments were linked with six TDF domains: knowledge, environmental context and 31 resources, beliefs in consequences, beliefs in capabilities, social and professional role, and social 32 influences. The domains included 15 themes that were interlinked. The knowledge domain 33 overlapped with all other domains.

Discussion

By using public discourse on Facebook and Twitter, and rapid 34 qualitative data analysis methods within a behavioral insight framework, this study adds to the 35 emerging knowledge about behavioral drivers of COVID-19 vaccines that can be used by public 36 health experts to enhance the uptake of vaccines during future pandemics and epidemics.

Demographic Factors, Conspiracy Theories, and Beliefs Associated With COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy Among Pakistani Population: A Cross-Sectional Study

Introduction The coverage of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) immunization uptake has been impacted by the acceptance of regular vaccine uptake and, like many other vaccination attempts in the past, it also faces issues of vaccine hesitancy. Through this study, we hoped to assess the conspiracy theories and beliefs attached to the COVID-19 vaccination efforts in Pakistan Methods This study was conducted among the general population of Pakistan, aged 16 and above, from April 29 to May 29, 2021. The data was collected through English and Urdu questionnaires by a method of convenient sampling. A total of 600 participants were asked to fill in 34 questions pertaining to vaccine hesitancy and conspiracies. We used the Modified Kuppuswamy Socioeconomic Scale, Kuppuswamy Socioeconomic Scale, Conspiracy Mentality Questionnaire (CMQ), and Vaccine Conspiracy Belief Scale (VCBS) as our questions. Results A total of 591 participants responded to our questionnaire. The majority were females (56.7%), had an undergraduate degree (41.5%), and belonged to the upper middle socioeconomic class (40%). Factors like occupation (p=0.001), education (p=0.001), socioeconomic status (p<0.001), any family member who contracted coronavirus (p=0.016), source of knowledge (p=0.002), and total monthly income (p<0.001) were found to be statistically significant. Conclusion The findings of this study suggest that conspiracy theories and misinformation about vaccinations are prevalent in our region. They are influenced by propaganda and negative cultural values among the population To combat and restrict the spread of this problem, our study can provide useful data to develop more appropriate policy measures.

COVID-19 Related Stresses, Conspiracy Beliefs, Uncertainty, and Non-adherence to Safety Guidelines

INTRODUCTION

Inconsistent use of protective preventive measures and nonadherence of the guidelines set by the World Health Organization regarding the coronavirus are associated with increased morbidity and mortality, as well as increased health care costs.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to examine the role of COVID-19 related worries, conspiracy beliefs, and uncertainty in adherence to preventative measures in Iran.

METHOD

In a large survey with data collected online from a volunteer sample of 599 individuals, assessments were made of the distress associated with the anticipated potential consequences associated with the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown, extent of agreement with conspiracy beliefs, level of situation-specific uncertainty, and self-reports of compliance with preventive measures. Data were analyzed to explore paths leading to nonadherence to safety guidelines proposed by the medical authorities.

RESULTS

A large majority of individuals report significant distress and worry associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Results indicate that increasing levels of situation-specific uncertainty intolerance, as well as conspiracy beliefs regarding the coronavirus, are associated with non-compliance with the advised protocols. Specifically, the results show that worries related to the COVID-19 pandemic are linked to non-compliance with preventive measures through conspiracy beliefs and feelings of uncertainty associated with the COVID-19 situation even after gender, education, and perceived socioeconomic status were controlled.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings imply that emotional exhaustion is likely to have set in and become counterproductive as people choose to violate safety guidelines. The authors discuss the theoretical and practical implications of these results.

A Shot of Faith-Analyzing Vaccine Hesitancy in Certain Religious Communities in the United States

Vaccine hesitancy in the United States continues to hamper ongoing coronavirus vaccination efforts. One set of populations with higher-than-average initial rates of vaccine hesitancy are certain religious groups, such as white evangelicals, African-American Protestants, and Hispanic Catholics. This article discusses the reasons underlying vaccine hesitancy in these populations, focusing on new trends in religious, political, and ideological beliefs that may influence vaccine acceptance. By using recent data and empirical case studies, this article describes how these trends could hinder the effectiveness of certain vaccine promotion strategies while also improving the potential efficacy of other forms of vaccine promotion, such as faith-based outreach. (100).