Is disgust proneness prospectively associated with influenza vaccine hesitancy and uptake?

Broad perspectives in understanding vaccine hesitancy and vaccine confidence: an introduction to the special issue

“…However, among individuals with lower tolerance for risk and ambiguity, perceptions of uncertainty about COVID-19 were associated with lower trust in COVID-19 information. Shook et al ( 2023 ) report retrospective and prospective findings that individuals with higher levels of disgust proneness are more likely to receive a seasonal flu vaccine. Understanding which individuals are more likely to vaccinate and under what combination of beliefs is the likelihood of vaccination greater has important implications for communication about disease prevention and identifying for whom certain intervention approaches might be most effective.…”

A longitudinal assessment of variability in COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and psychosocial correlates in a national United States sample

“…Furthermore, germ aversion and disgust sensitivity were the most consistent and strongest predictors of concern about COVID-19 and preventive health behaviors (e.g., social distancing, handwashing) in a U.S. national sample, more so than demographic, social, and personality factors [44] . Greater disgust sensitivity has also been associated with greater influenza vaccine uptake and lower influenza vaccine hesitancy [26] , [42] . Theoretical models of disease avoidance are inherently a within-person process—a person may be more inclined to receive the vaccine when they experience greater disgust or germ aversion—yet studies examining disease avoidance often use methods that only allow the test of between-person differences [49] .…”

COVID-19 vaccination and the behavioral immune system: The newcomer and the old friend get along in preventing infection

“…In accord with our findings, a retrospective study utilizing a national sample of U.S. adults found that those higher in disgust proneness were more likely to have received an influenza vaccine during the previous influenza season ( Luz et al, 2019 ). Shook et al (2022) found that, in two large national U.S. samples, greater disgust proneness was associated with greater likelihood of previous influenza vaccine uptake, lower influenza vaccine hesitancy, and greater likelihood of future influenza vaccine uptake. Data on COVID-19 vaccine are less consistent.…”

“…These findings are valuable in identifying populations to be targeted and psychological barriers that may need to be overcome in appeals to reduce vaccine hesitancy. However, it is also important to identify psychological factors that encourage vaccine uptake, which can be utilized to shape possible messaging campaigns and interventions to lower vaccine hesitancy and increase vaccination uptake ( Wang et al, 2021 ; Shook et al, 2022 ).…”