Covid-19 Vaccine Perceptions and Differences by Sex, Age, and Education: Findings From a Cross-Sectional Assessment of 1367 Community Adults in Ontario

Abstract

BackgroundCOVID-19 is a global pandemic and vaccination efforts may be impeded by vaccine hesitancy. The present study examined willingness to receive COVID-19 vaccine, the associated reasons for willingness/unwillingness, and vaccine safety perceptions in a cross-sectional assessment of community adults in Ontario.Methods1367 individuals (60.3% female, M age = 38.6) completed an online assessment between January 15, 2021 and February 15, 2021. Perceptions were investigated in general and by age, sex and education.ResultsOverall, 82.8% sample reported they were willing to receive a COVID-19 vaccine and 17.2% reported they were unwilling. The three most common reasons for unwillingness were long-term side effects (65.5%), immediate side effects (60.5%), and lack of trust in the vaccine (55.2%). Vaccine willingness significantly differed by sex and education level, with female participants and those with less than a bachelor’s degree being more likely to report unwillingness. Perception of COVID-19 vaccine safety was significantly lower (−10.7%) than vaccines in general and differed by age, sex and education, with females, older adults, and individuals with less than a bachelor’s degree reporting lower perceived COVID-19 vaccine safety.ConclusionIn this sample of community adults, under one in five individuals was unwilling to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, but with higher rates in population subgroups. Targeting public health messaging to females and individuals with less than Bachelor’s degree, and addressing concerns about long-term and immediate side effects may increase vaccine uptake.

Acceptability and perception of COVID-19 vaccines among foreign medical students in China: A cross-sectional study

“…These findings also support the findings in another current study conducted in Egypt, where they found that many health workers did not get the vaccine because of the fear of side effects and other reasons such as inaccurate information which the media and other sources were using (17,20). Much as it is found like this, the findings of this study disagree with another study that involved the vaccination of maternity care consumers and providers in Australia, where it was found that the majority of the medical practitioners did not recommend these groups to take vaccination (8,17,20). This can result from the fear of side effects for maternity care consumers, which can be associated with.…”

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“…It is essential to relieve peoples' anxiety and improve their confidence through health education (19). Furthermore, studies suggest that gender (male) with higher educational status, urban housing, and using television or radio have COVID-19 information sources that are strongly associated with research participants' knowledge levels (20). The activities of the government, particularly through social distance measures, have favorably increased the feelings of safety and security among overseas students (21).…”

Pathogenesis of Breakthrough Infections with SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Syrian Hamsters

“…While we evaluated the effect of sex on different variants, there are other factors that can influence SARS-CoV-2 infection. Age has been shown to significantly affect disease outcomes in people (49)(50)(51) and in hamsters (10,52). An additional limitation of our study is its duration; longer studies are needed to investigate effects of long COVID and the longevity of the protection from reinfection.…”

Acceptance of COVID-19 Vaccination at Different Hypothetical Efficacy and Safety Levels in Nigeria: A Cross-Sectional Web-based Survey

“…However, vaccination reluctance caused by worries about the effectiveness and safety can seriously delay immunization roll-out. A typical Nigerian who is worried about the immunization expresses fears about its side effects, probable mutations, disruptions of daily routine, and dread of mortality, among other things [15,31]. This Willingness to accept the vaccine does not vary by age; however, perceptions of vaccine safety did in line with our findings and in contrast to the submission of Olanipekun et al [32], who claimed that older age (>50 years) was associated with a higher vaccination rate.…”