The demographics of vaccine hesitancy in Shanghai, China.
BACKGROUND:Vaccine hesitancy has been little studied in low- and middle-income countries but is a potential concern because vaccine refusal may increase the burden of infectious diseases and impede control efforts. The aim of this study was to compare vaccine hesitancy between locals, long-time city...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2018-01-01
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| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0209117 |
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| author | Jia Ren Abram L Wagner Anna Zheng Xiaodong Sun Matthew L Boulton Zhuoying Huang Brian J Zikmund-Fisher |
| author_facet | Jia Ren Abram L Wagner Anna Zheng Xiaodong Sun Matthew L Boulton Zhuoying Huang Brian J Zikmund-Fisher |
| author_sort | Jia Ren |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | BACKGROUND:Vaccine hesitancy has been little studied in low- and middle-income countries but is a potential concern because vaccine refusal may increase the burden of infectious diseases and impede control efforts. The aim of this study was to compare vaccine hesitancy between locals, long-time city residents, and non-locals, who have more recently moved to the city from either other urban or rural areas, in Shanghai, China. METHODS:Parents of infants ≤3 months of age were surveyed at immunization clinics in Shanghai, China. Participants completed a paper questionnaire utilizing the 10-item Vaccine Hesitancy Scale, which was developed by the World Health Organization Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization. Items were grouped based on internal consistency, and regressed onto demographic variables using a negative binomial model. RESULTS:In total, 1,188 (92.5%) individuals participated. For most items on the scale, parents expressed positive beliefs about vaccines. However, about half of parents somewhat or strongly agreed that new vaccines carried more risks than older vaccines, and 71.6% somewhat or strongly agreed that they were concerned about serious adverse effects. Seven items from the Vaccine Hesitancy Scale were highly correlated and mapped onto "lack of confidence"; the other three items were analysed separately. Compared to mothers, fathers had less lack of confidence (β: -0.06, 95% CI: -0.12, -0.01), and individuals living in the outer suburbs (β: 0.13, 95% CI: 0.01, 0.25) and rural non-locals (β: 0.10, 95% CI: 0.02, 0.18) had greater lack of confidence in vaccines compared to their urban or local counterparts, respectively. DISCUSSION:Shanghai parents professed confidence in certain vaccine benefits, but vaccine messaging could focus on addressing misconceptions about vaccines for diseases no longer common, newer vaccines, and adverse effects associated with vaccination. These messages may need to be separately tailored to locals and non-locals, who have differing concerns. |
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| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-17T09:05:30Z |
| publishDate | 2018-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj.art-52017f321f974d50a550262a2acd35f92022-12-21T21:55:30ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032018-01-011312e020911710.1371/journal.pone.0209117The demographics of vaccine hesitancy in Shanghai, China.Jia RenAbram L WagnerAnna ZhengXiaodong SunMatthew L BoultonZhuoying HuangBrian J Zikmund-FisherBACKGROUND:Vaccine hesitancy has been little studied in low- and middle-income countries but is a potential concern because vaccine refusal may increase the burden of infectious diseases and impede control efforts. The aim of this study was to compare vaccine hesitancy between locals, long-time city residents, and non-locals, who have more recently moved to the city from either other urban or rural areas, in Shanghai, China. METHODS:Parents of infants ≤3 months of age were surveyed at immunization clinics in Shanghai, China. Participants completed a paper questionnaire utilizing the 10-item Vaccine Hesitancy Scale, which was developed by the World Health Organization Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization. Items were grouped based on internal consistency, and regressed onto demographic variables using a negative binomial model. RESULTS:In total, 1,188 (92.5%) individuals participated. For most items on the scale, parents expressed positive beliefs about vaccines. However, about half of parents somewhat or strongly agreed that new vaccines carried more risks than older vaccines, and 71.6% somewhat or strongly agreed that they were concerned about serious adverse effects. Seven items from the Vaccine Hesitancy Scale were highly correlated and mapped onto "lack of confidence"; the other three items were analysed separately. Compared to mothers, fathers had less lack of confidence (β: -0.06, 95% CI: -0.12, -0.01), and individuals living in the outer suburbs (β: 0.13, 95% CI: 0.01, 0.25) and rural non-locals (β: 0.10, 95% CI: 0.02, 0.18) had greater lack of confidence in vaccines compared to their urban or local counterparts, respectively. DISCUSSION:Shanghai parents professed confidence in certain vaccine benefits, but vaccine messaging could focus on addressing misconceptions about vaccines for diseases no longer common, newer vaccines, and adverse effects associated with vaccination. These messages may need to be separately tailored to locals and non-locals, who have differing concerns.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0209117 |
| spellingShingle | Jia Ren Abram L Wagner Anna Zheng Xiaodong Sun Matthew L Boulton Zhuoying Huang Brian J Zikmund-Fisher The demographics of vaccine hesitancy in Shanghai, China. PLoS ONE |
| title | The demographics of vaccine hesitancy in Shanghai, China. |
| title_full | The demographics of vaccine hesitancy in Shanghai, China. |
| title_fullStr | The demographics of vaccine hesitancy in Shanghai, China. |
| title_full_unstemmed | The demographics of vaccine hesitancy in Shanghai, China. |
| title_short | The demographics of vaccine hesitancy in Shanghai, China. |
| title_sort | demographics of vaccine hesitancy in shanghai china |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0209117 |
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