Higher Collective Responsibility, Higher COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake, and Interaction with Vaccine Attitude: Results from Propensity Score Matching

Abstract

Providing both personal and social benefits, vaccination may be motivated by collective responsibility (CR). Some previous studies have indicated the relationship between CR and vaccination but could not exclude confounding bias and had little knowledge about the boundary conditions. This study aimed to examine the association between CR and COVID-19 vaccine uptake and its boundary conditions in an extended version of the theory of planned behavior. A cross-sectional survey with 608 participants from six tourism satellite industries in Macao was conducted from 28 July 2021 to 20 August of 2021. Respondentss in CR-lower and CR-higher groups were 1:1 paired using propensity score matching (PSM) to control the potential confounding factors. Results showed participants in the CR-higher group reported significantly higher COVID-19 vaccine uptake than those in the CR-lower group (64.7% vs. 49.7%, p = 0.005). Multivariate logistic regression results indicated a positive association between CR and COVID-19 vaccine uptake (p = 0.012, OR = 2.070, 95% CI= 1.174 to 3.650) and its interaction effect with COVID-19 vaccine attitude (p = 0.019, OR = 0.922, 95% CI = 0.861 to 0.987). Spotlight analysis further illustrated that CR was more effective among individuals with a more negative COVID-19 vaccine attitude. These findings may help promote understanding of vaccine hesitancy, and hence optimize vaccination communication strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Anxiety Levels among Healthcare Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic and Attitudes towards COVID-19 Vaccines

“…These arguments seem to be justified, because, as shown by Johnson et al's research, the risk of illness and severe symptoms is almost four times higher in unvaccinated people [22]. Cosby noticed that being motivated by collective responsibility is more common among medical workers with a rather negative attitude towards vaccinations [23]. A slightly different approach was observed in a hospital in Munich, where surveyed healthcare workers stated that their motivation was mainly to avoid receiving medication in the treatment of infection or that the overall benefits outweighed the risks associated with vaccination [24].…”

Discovery of interconnected causal drivers of COVID-19 vaccination intentions in the US using a causal Bayesian network

“…While there is evidence of success from governments that have stressed the importance of getting vaccinated as a social responsibility and civic duty 40 , 41 , and several studies have shown the positive association between social responsibility and vaccine intent and uptake 42 – 44 , the 49-fold magnitude of the impact of social responsibility relative to other strategies such as addressing vaccine safety concerns 45 and leveraging descriptive social norms 46 , 47 is notable. Several factors in turn have significant effects on social responsibility: the expected chance of getting COVID-19 without vaccines, the level of worry about catching COVID-19, and the belief that COVID-19 is dangerous to one’s community.…”