Parents’ Intentions to Vaccinate Their Children Against COVID-19

Abstract

Introduction With the COVID-19 vaccine rollout is well underway now beginning in children ages 12 and over, it is unknown what percent of parents plan to vaccinate their children against COVID-19. Method The purpose of this descriptive correlational study was to examine parents’ attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors in administering a COVID-19 vaccine. Results Only 21.93% of the subjects reported overall VH. Half of parents (49.45%) say they want the COVID vaccine for their child, and 44.17% plan to vaccinate against COVID once the vaccine becomes available to them. Concern for vaccine side effects (61.5%) and vaccine safety (48.96%) were significant factors that increased VH. In addition, there was a significant correlation between parents who were planning to vaccinate their child against the flu and being less VH about a COVID-19 vaccine for their child. Discussion This is the first known study to describe parental perceptions’ of COVID-19 VH and identify factors that increase VH for parents.

Predictors of parents’ intention to vaccinate their children against the COVID-19 in Greece: a cross-sectional study

“…Regarding the factors that influence parents’ intention to vaccinate their children, we found that parents who had a higher level of knowledge and fewer concerns about COVID-19 vaccines were more likely to vaccinate their children. This finding is confirmed by the literature since confidence in COVID-19 vaccine safety and effectiveness is one of the strongest predictors of vaccine acceptance (Ruggiero et al, 2021; Skjefte et al, 2021; Yilmaz and Sahin, 2021; Zhang et al, 2020). Moreover, confidence in COVID-19 vaccine safety and effectiveness shows a great variation among countries affecting vaccine acceptance (Skjefte et al, 2021).…”

“…An important parental willingness of vaccination in our study was positive influenza vaccination history in the last season. This finding echoes the results of research which show that COVID-19 vaccine acceptance is higher both among parents who are vaccinated for influenza (Goldman et al, 2020; Kelly et al, 2021) and among parents who vaccinate their children for influenza (Ruggiero et al, 2021). Influenza vaccination shows parents’ positive attitude towards vaccination, which is extremely important as there is a positive relationship between past and future behavior (Ouellette and Wood, 1998).…”

“…According to a meta-analysis (Galanis et al, 2021), parents’ intention to vaccinate their children against the COVID-19 ranges from 29% to 72.7%, while the overall proportion of parents that intend to vaccinate their children is 56.8%. Parents’ willingness to vaccinate their children against COVID-19 is affected by several factors such as gender (Goldman et al, 2020; Kelly et al, 2021; Montalti et al, 2021; Yigit et al, 2021), age of parents and children (Goldman et al, 2020; Kelly et al, 2021; Montalti et al, 2021; Skjefte et al, 2021; Szilagyi et al, 2021), socio-economic status (Brandstetter et al, 2021; Hetherington et al, 2021; Kelly et al, 2021; Montalti et al, 2021; Skjefte et al, 2021; Szilagyi et al, 2021; Wang et al, 2021; Yigit et al, 2021), race (Bell et al, 2020; Kelly et al, 2021; Scherer et al, 2021; Teasdale et al, 2021), attitudes toward vaccination (Goldman et al, 2020; Kelly et al, 2021; Ruggiero et al, 2021; Skjefte et al, 2021; Yilmaz and Sahin, 2021; Zhang et al, 2020), and information about the COVID-19 (Brandstetter et al, 2021; Montalti et al, 2021; Zhang et al, 2020).…”

Caregiver Willingness to Vaccinate Their Children against COVID-19 after Adult Vaccine Approval

“…Those findings are in contrast to a widening gap in attitudes between fathers and mothers found in the U.S. where a quarter of mothers said they are “extremely unlikely” to vaccinate their children [ 29 ]. If concerns about safety of the vaccine [ 24 ] affect caregiver decision making, potential association of one COVID-19 vaccine to myocarditis in adolescents [ 30 ] may have further broadened this gap and public health organizations should find channels of communication directly to alleviate concerns expressed by caregivers. These may include advertising on social media channels to subgroups of the population, or through particular school systems in regions with a known high rate of vaccine hesitancy.…”

“…Vaccine hesitancy (9.9%) was higher among caregivers who were mothers of children aged 6-10 years, younger than 29 years old, had lower educational level, relied on information found on the web/social media, and disliked mandatory vaccination policies [23]. In a recent online survey in the U.S. with 427 participants, 44% planned to vaccinate children against COVID-19 once the vaccine becomes available to them [24], reflecting similar findings as in our cohort after the vaccine was approved in adults. However, 75% of children were reported to have chronic conditions, a much higher rate than in the general population, or the cohort of families completing our international study.…”