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Smith D, Zhu DT, Hawken S, Bota AB, Mithani SS, Marcon A, Pennycook G, Greyson D, Caulfield T, Graves F, Smith J, Wilson K. The influence of sociodemographic factors on COVID-19 vaccine certificate acceptance: A cross-sectional study. Hum Vaccin Immunother 2023; 19:2220628. [PMID: 37291793 PMCID: PMC10259333 DOI: 10.1080/21645515.2023.2220628] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2023] [Accepted: 05/28/2023] [Indexed: 06/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Vaccine certificates have been implemented worldwide, aiming to promote vaccination rates and to reduce the spread of COVID-19. However, their use during the COVID-19 pandemic was controversial and has been criticized for infringing upon medical autonomy and individual rights. We administered a national online survey exploring social and demographic factors predicting the degree of public approval of vaccine certificates in Canada. We conducted a multivariate linear regression which revealed which factors were predictive of vaccine certificate acceptance in Canada. Self-reported minority status (p < .001), rurality (p < .001), political ideology (p < .001), age (p < .001), having children under 18 in the household (p < .001), education (p = .014), and income status (p = .034) were significant predictors of attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccine certificates. We observed the lowest vaccine-certificate approval among participants who: self-identify as a visible minority; live in rural areas; are politically conservative; are 18-34 years of age; have children under age 18 living in the household; have completed an apprenticeship or trades education; and those with an annual income between $100,000-$159,999. The present findings are valuable for their ability to inform the implementation of vaccine certificates during future pandemic scenarios which may require targeted communication between public health agencies and under-vaccinated populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Smith
- Clinical Epidemiology Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Canada
| | - David T. Zhu
- Clinical Epidemiology Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Canada
- Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Steven Hawken
- Clinical Epidemiology Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Canada
- School of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada
| | - A. Brianne Bota
- Clinical Epidemiology Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Canada
| | - Salima S. Mithani
- Clinical Epidemiology Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Canada
| | - Alessandro Marcon
- Faculty of Law and School of Public Health, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| | - Gordon Pennycook
- Hill/Levene Schools of Business, Department of Psychology, University of Regina, Regina, Canada
| | - Devon Greyson
- School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Timothy Caulfield
- Faculty of Law and School of Public Health, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| | - Frank Graves
- Public Opinion Research, EKOS Research Associates Inc, Ottawa, Canada
| | - Jeff Smith
- Public Opinion Research, EKOS Research Associates Inc, Ottawa, Canada
| | - Kumanan Wilson
- Clinical Epidemiology Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Canada
- School of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada
- Department of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada
- Bruyère Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
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