Understanding hesitancy with revealed preferences across COVID-19 vaccine types

Abstract

Many countries have secured larger quantities of COVID-19 vaccines than their population is willing to take. The abundance and the large variety of vaccines created not only an unprecedented intensity of vaccine related public discourse, but also a historical moment to understand vaccine hesitancy better. Yet, the heterogeneity of hesitancy by vaccine types has been neglected in the existing literature so far. We address this problem by analysing the acceptance and the assessment of five vaccine types. We use information collected with a nationally representative survey at the end of the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Hungary. During the vaccination campaign, individuals could reject the assigned vaccine to wait for a more preferred alternative that enables us to quantify revealed preferences across vaccine types. We find that hesitancy is heterogenous by vaccine types and is driven by individuals’ trusted source of information. Believers of conspiracy theories are more likely to evaluate the mRNA vaccines (Pfizer and Moderna) unacceptable. Those who follow the advice of politicians are more likely to evaluate vector-based (AstraZeneca and Sputnik) or whole-virus vaccines (Sinopharm) acceptable. We argue that the greater selection of available vaccine types and the free choice of the individual are desirable conditions to increase the vaccination rate in societies.

Coverage of primary and booster vaccination against COVID-19 by socioeconomic level: A nationwide cross-sectional registry study

“…Rapid vaccine development and the use of novel mRNA vaccine technology are factors that may be associated with COVID-19 vaccine acceptance. 31 , 32 More generally, factors that may influence decisions regarding vaccination include trust in the effectiveness/safety of vaccines and/or in the system that delivers them, perception of disease risk, structural and psychological factors related to access and pragmatics, proneness to extensive information searching, and willingness to protect others. 33 Our study does not address the root causes of coverage inequalities, and we thus do not know the relative importance of these potential determinants for the coverage differences we observe.…”

UK ethnic minority healthcare workers’ perspectives on COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in the UK ethnic minority community: A qualitative study

“…In line with convenience, self-determination theory (Ryan and Deci, 2000) underscores the importance of autonomous motivation in health behavior such as vaccination (Fall et al, 2018). Ideally, individuals should have the prerogative of choosing among alternative treatments (Hughes et al, 2021) 2021) and a survey of a nationally representative Hungarian sample (Kutasi et al, 2022) suggest different preferences for COVID-19 vaccines. Indeed, COVID-19 vaccine characteristics, particularly their level of efficacy, are critical to their acceptance in the UK (McPhedran and Toombs, 2021).…”

Changes in Attitudes toward COVID-19 Vaccination and Vaccine Uptake during Pandemic

“…Few countries in Europe have been able to offer their citizens a choice of one of several available vaccines based on different manufacturing technology. For example, five types of COVID-19 vaccines were offered to the population in Hungary [ 33 ]. Usually, two or three COVID-19 vaccines are available in many countries [ 34 , 35 ].…”