Vax attacks: How conspiracy theory belief undermines vaccine support

Farhart, Christina E.; Douglas-Durham, E.; Trujillo, Krissy Lunz; Vitriol, Joseph A.

doi:10.1016/bs.pmbts.2021.11.001

Cited by 39 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 82 publications

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“…Studies with the highest levels of evidence validated these patterns in consequential settings, often with medium effect sizes, largely indicating that greater division in messaging and lack of social cohesion were associated with lower effectiveness of public health messaging 66,87,[89][90][91][92][93][94][95][96][97][98][99][100] . Encouragingly, inoculating against manipulation techniques 101 and prompting users to consider accuracy before sharing news 102 have shown some positive effects.…”

Section: Misinformation Polarization Social Cohesion (Claims 9-12-13-14)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating expectations from social and behavioral science about COVID-19 and lessons for the next pandemic

Ruggeri¹,

Stock²,

Haslam³

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Social and behavioral science research proliferated during the COVID-19 pandemic, reflecting the substantial increase in influence of behavioral science in public health and public policy more broadly. This review presents a comprehensive assessment of 742 scientific articles on human behavior during COVID-19. Two independent teams evaluated 19 substantive policy recommendations (“claims”) on potentially critical aspects of behaviors during the pandemic drawn from the most widely cited behavioral science papers on COVID-19. Teams were made up of original authors and an independent team, all of whom were blinded to other team member reviews throughout. Both teams found evidence in support of 16 of the claims; for two claims, teams found only null evidence; and for no claims did the teams find evidence of effects in the opposite direction. One claim had no evidence available to assess. Seemingly due to the risks of the pandemic, most studies were limited to surveys, highlighting a need for more investment in field research and behavioral validation studies. The strongest findings indicate interventions that combat misinformation and polarization, and to utilize effective forms of messaging that engage trusted leaders and emphasize positive social norms.

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Section: Misinformation Polarization Social Cohesion (Claims 9-12-13-14)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating expectations from social and behavioral science about COVID-19 and lessons for the next pandemic

Ruggeri¹,

Stock²,

Haslam³

et al. 2022

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Several reasons for this association have been explored. A first set of reasons include differential conspiracy theory beliefs and anti-intellectualism among Republican voters 44 . Libertarianism was also found to predict lower support for vaccine mandates in the United States 45 .…”

Section: Context and Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

Partisanship and Covid-19 vaccination in the UK

Klymak

Vlandas

2022

Sci Rep

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This article examines the association between partisanship and vaccination in the UK. The lower vaccination rates among Republicans in the US have been linked to ideology and President Trump’s anti-vaccination rhetoric. By contrast, both ruling and opposition parties in the UK promoted the national vaccination program. Using two datasets at constituency and individual levels, we analyse whether there are partisan differences in uptake when vaccination garners cross-party support. Our findings contrast in important ways from the US case. First, the correlation between partisanship and vaccination is the opposite to that of the US: both Conservative constituencies and individuals are associated with higher vaccination rates than Labour across almost all age groups. Thus, right-leaning individuals do not necessarily vaccinate less, at least when their political party is in power and supportive of vaccination. Second, partisanship alone accounts for a large share of variation in vaccination rates, but this association appears largely driven by socio-economic and demographic differences: older and economically better off individuals and constituencies tend to be more vaccinated. Once these controls are included, the correlation between Conservative partisanship and vaccination shrinks substantially. Hence, the ideological source of the partisan gap in vaccination rates appears smaller than in the US.

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“…Such theories, once limited to fringe audiences, have now become commonplace in mass media, the internet, and social media [ 13 ]. Conspiracy theory creation thrives in both information voids and complex information ecosystems as audiences attempt to find explanations for missing, confusing, contradictory, or an overabundance of information they are experiencing [ 14 , 15 ]. This confusion is sometimes attributed to low scientific literacy but is also related to the contradictory messages released by government officials and scientists, which are likely to reduce the trust in those authorities [ 16 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the Association between Misinformation Endorsement, Opinions on the Government Response, Risk Perception, and COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy in the US, Canada, and Italy

et al. 2022

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The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the adverse consequences created by an infodemic, specifically bringing attention to compliance with public health guidance and vaccine uptake. COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy is a complex construct that is related to health beliefs, misinformation exposure, and perceptions of governmental institutions. This study draws on theoretical models and current data on the COVID-19 infodemic to explore the association between the perceived risk of COVID-19, level of misinformation endorsement, and opinions about the government response on vaccine uptake. We surveyed a sample of 2697 respondents from the US, Canada, and Italy using a mobile platform between 21–28 May 2021. Using multivariate regression, we found that country of residence, risk perception of contracting and spreading COVID-19, perception of government response and transparency, and misinformation endorsement were associated with the odds of vaccine hesitancy. Higher perceived risk was associated with lower odds of hesitancy, while lower perceptions of government response and higher misinformation endorsement were associated with higher hesitancy.

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Vax attacks: How conspiracy theory belief undermines vaccine support

Cited by 39 publications

References 82 publications

Evaluating expectations from social and behavioral science about COVID-19 and lessons for the next pandemic

Evaluating expectations from social and behavioral science about COVID-19 and lessons for the next pandemic

Partisanship and Covid-19 vaccination in the UK

Exploring the Association between Misinformation Endorsement, Opinions on the Government Response, Risk Perception, and COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy in the US, Canada, and Italy

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