Relationships between social media usage, attitudes toward information on social media, and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy

Q1 Social Sciences Global Transitions Pub Date : 2024-01-01 DOI:10.1016/j.glt.2024.05.003
Araz Ramazan Ahmad , Ahmed Omar Bali
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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background

A low COVID-19 vaccination rate has been observed in some countries. Misinformation regarding COVID-19 vaccines is commonly available on social media. This study aims to conduct an empirical, in-depth analysis of the digital space, particularly misinformation regarding COVID-19 vaccines across social media, including socio-demographic factors on COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. This provides opportunities to set policies to properly utilize social media in public health and vaccination.

Methods

A web-based questionnaire was administered to elicit responses from social media users ages 15 years and older. Data regarding the level of social media usage, attitudes toward information on social media, and COVID-19 vaccines were collected.

Results

A total of 2231 people completed the questionnaire. The majority of the participants were concerned about the negative consequences of taking COVID-19 vaccines, but they had more confidence in the aspects of vaccine safety, importance, and effectiveness. Social media is not considered a credible channel to disseminate information about COVID-19, its vaccination, and its consequences, with females expressing a higher level of distrust. People who are spending more time using social media tend not to believe in vaccination in terms of safety and importance.

Conclusions

Social media has played a negative role and led to vaccine hesitancy among the public, especially young people. Public health institutions should establish health education initiatives using both traditional and social media platforms to immunize the public against misinformation.

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社交媒体使用情况、对社交媒体信息的态度与 COVID-19 疫苗犹豫不决之间的关系
背景一些国家的 COVID-19 疫苗接种率较低。有关 COVID-19 疫苗的错误信息在社交媒体上很常见。本研究旨在对数字空间,尤其是社交媒体上有关 COVID-19 疫苗的错误信息,包括 COVID-19 疫苗犹豫不决的社会人口因素进行实证性的深入分析。这为在公共卫生和疫苗接种中制定正确利用社交媒体的政策提供了机会。方法通过网络问卷调查的形式,向 15 岁及以上的社交媒体用户征集答案。结果 共有 2231 人填写了问卷。大多数参与者担心接种 COVID-19 疫苗会带来负面影响,但他们对疫苗的安全性、重要性和有效性更有信心。社交媒体被认为不是传播有关 COVID-19、疫苗接种及其后果信息的可信渠道,其中女性表示的不信任程度更高。使用社交媒体时间较长的人往往不相信疫苗接种的安全性和重要性。公共卫生机构应利用传统和社交媒体平台开展健康教育活动,使公众免受错误信息的影响。
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来源期刊
Global Transitions
Global Transitions Social Sciences-Development
CiteScore
18.90
自引率
0.00%
发文量
1
审稿时长
20 weeks
期刊最新文献
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