Taking the Covid-19 vaccine or not? Understanding vaccine hesitancy using institutional trust

Governments worldwide are currently focusing on the development of a COVID-19 vaccine to end the coronavirus pandemic and the resulting crisis. Although the scientific progress in the development of a vaccine appears to be promising, policymakers are facing an extra hurdle as increasingly more people appear to be hesitant in their intention to take such a vaccine. This paper aims to explain the intention to get vaccinated by linking it to trust in government and experts, while also taking into account risk perceptions and prosocialness of individuals. Trust in government’s capacity to deal with the coronavirus crisis and trust in experts’ advice provides legitimacy to policymakers’ actions and is, therefore, expected to play a pivotal role in the vaccination decision. The link between trust in government and experts and the intention to get vaccinated is examined using a large Corona survey conducted in Flanders, a region within Belgium. We find that trust in government has a positive, but a rather small effect on the intention to get vaccinated. Trust in experts has a more pronounced influence on vaccination intention. Also, individuals who believe the COVID-19 disease is likely to have serious consequences, and who have underlying medical conditions making them more vulnerable have a stronger intention to get vaccinated, as well as individuals with stronger prosocial attitudes. Furthermore, men, older people and people with higher education are more likely to accept a new COVID-19 vaccine. Given the important consequences of vaccine uptake for the success of a COVID-19 vaccine, we hope these results lead to a better understanding of this important issue.

Jaar van publicatie:2020

Trefwoorden:P3 Proceeding

Toegankelijkheid:Closed