A message of the majority with scientific evidence encourages young people to show their prosocial nature in COVID-19 vaccination

Abstract

The most promising way to prevent the explosive spread of COVID-19 infection is to achieve herd immunity through vaccination. It is therefore important to motivate those who are less willing to be vaccinated. To address this issue, we conducted an online survey of 6232 Japanese people to investigate age- and gender-dependent differences in attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccination and the underlying psychological processes. We asked participants to read one of nine different messages about COVID-19 vaccination and rate their willingness to be vaccinated. We also collected their 17 social personality trait scores and demographic information. We found that males 10–20 years old were least willing to be vaccinated. We also found that prosocial traits are the driving force for young people, but the motivation in older people also depends on risk aversion and self-interest. Furthermore, an analysis of 9 different messages demonstrated that for young people (particularly males), the message emphasizing the majority’s intention to vaccinate and scientific evidence for the safety of the vaccination had the strongest positive effect on the willingness to be vaccinated, suggesting that the “majority + scientific evidence” message nudges young people to show their prosocial nature in action.

Vaccination nudges: A study of pre-booked COVID-19 vaccinations in Sweden

“…Further, Sasaki et al (2022) conducted an online experiment testing the effect of different messages on COVID-19 vaccination intentions, finding great importance in subtle word choices. Similar results are found in Tanaka et al (2021). In sum, there is limited empirical evidence on the effect of nudges on COVID-19 vaccination and the conditions under which a nudge will be successful.…”

Perspectives on COVID-19 Vaccination and Vaccine Passports in a Diverse Urban Adolescent Population: A Youth Participatory Mixed Methods Study

“…Having a prosocial attitude about vaccination (e.g., agreeing that getting vaccinated helps protect the health of others) was predictive of vaccine uptake among adolescent survey participants, which is consistent with other vaccine research among youth [ 12 , 31 , 34 ]. This was confirmed in our interviews with unvaccinated adolescents, which illustrated a largely individualistic approach to making vaccine-related decisions.…”

“…This may reflect a lack of understanding about the social benefits of vaccination or the evolving messages around herd immunity and break-through infections among the vaccinated. Some research suggests that communication strategies that emphasize the prosocial benefits of vaccination may resonate with youth and encourage vaccine acceptance [ 34 ]. It may also be effective to appeal to adolescents’ individualistic tendencies by encouraging vaccination to “get back to normal” (e.g., resume extracurricular activities, maintain in-person schooling, end vaccine and mask mandates).…”

Examining an Altruism-Eliciting Video Intervention to Increase COVID-19 Vaccine Intentions in Younger Adults: A Qualitative Assessment Using the Realistic Evaluation Framework

“…In addition to our RCT study, an experimental study by Rieger [ 54 ] concluded that altruistic messaging was most effective in increasing COVID-19 vaccine intentions. Specifically regarding younger adults, our research team had previously found that a higher preference for altruistic motives predicted vaccine acceptance [ 55 ], while another Japan-based study identified prosocial traits as a major influence on vaccine acceptance [ 56 ]. Contrasting altruism, participants also cited individualistic reasons to get vaccinated.…”