Online Public Opinion about COVID-19 Vaccines: A Content Analysis of Vaccine Discussions on Twitter (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huang Huang ◽  
Yuanbo Qiu
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
English Language ◽  
Early Period ◽  
Negative Attitude ◽  
Vaccine Safety ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
Analysis Tool ◽  
Health Providers ◽  
Vaccine Acceptance

BACKGROUND To combat the COVID-19 pandemic, various vaccines have been developed and their rollout is under way. However, the uptake rate is hindered by vaccine hesitancy influenced by the conversations on social media. It is necessary to trace public opinion toward COVID-vaccines on social media. OBJECTIVE The objective of this study is to examine the sentiments and topics of English-language twitter discussion regarding COVID-19 vaccination. Further this study also aims to explore the temporal trend of sentiments and topics over one month in the early period of vaccine roll-out. METHODS Following existing studies of vaccine acceptance and social media, we collected Tweet posts from Twitter data base using Twitter API from December 2020 to January 2021, which reflected actual public discussions toward COVID vaccination after the beginning of the rollout. After data cleansing and selection, 656,102 vaccine-related tweets were identified from 329,441 unique users. We leveraged VADER (Valence Aware Dictionary and sEntiment Reasoner) sentiment analysis tool to explore sentiment scores and Natural Language Toolkit (NLTK) to confirm relevant topics. We also depicted daily changes of sentiments and topics in COVID-vaccine-related tweets across one month period. RESULTS Forty-two percentage of tweets expressed pro-vaccine sentiments while 21% held negative attitudes. The trend of sentiment kept positive and consistent overtime, but a sudden surge of negative tweets occurred around the New Year, which was caused by some unexpected adverse incidents. The Six main topics associated with vaccines were identified: Advocation of vaccination (42,459, 6.47%), Official information releases (29,847, 4.55%), Vaccine distribution (12,946, 1.97%), Vaccine safety concerns (11,236, 1.71%), Personal vaccination experience (5,594, 0.85%) and Conspiracy theory (2,962, 0.45%). Among popular tweets that have been reposted frequently, adverse incidents reported by reliable source have triggered intense discussions about vaccine safety issues, usually in a negative attitude. CONCLUSIONS : Most tweets expressed non-negative sentiments toward vaccination. However, vaccination-related adverse incidents have triggered intense discussions in a negative attitude. Our findings can help policymakers and health providers view the whole picture of the influence of social media and develop better communicative strategies for improving vaccine acceptance.

scholarly journals Among sheeples and antivaxxers: Social media responses to COVID-19 vaccine news posted by Canadian news organizations, and recommendations to counter vaccine hesitancy

2021 ◽  
Vol 47 (12) ◽  
pp. 524-533
Author(s):  
Lisa Tang ◽  
Sabrina Douglas ◽  
Amar Laila
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Risk Perceptions ◽  
Vaccine Safety ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
Vaccine Acceptance ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
Public Health Initiative ◽  
News Organizations ◽  
Subjective Risk

Background: To create a successful public health initiative that counters vaccine hesitancy and promotes vaccine acceptance, it is essential to gain a strong understanding of the beliefs, attitudes and subjective risk perceptions of the population. Methods: A qualitative analysis of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine discourse from 3,731 social media posts on the Twitter and Facebook accounts of six Canadian news organizations was used to identify the perceptions, attitudes, beliefs and intentions of Canadian news organizations’ social media commenters toward taking a COVID-19 vaccine. Results: Four main themes were identified: 1) COVID-19 vaccine safety and efficacy concerns; 2) conspiracy theories stemming from mistrust in government and other organizations; 3) a COVID-19 vaccine is unnecessary because the virus is not dangerous; and 4) trust in COVID-19 vaccines as a safe solution. Based on themes and subthemes, several key communication recommendations were developed for promotion of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance, including infographics championed by Public Health that highlight the benefits of the vaccine for those who have received it, public education about the contents and safety of the vaccine and eliciting an emotional connection through personal stories of those impacted by COVID-19. Conclusion: Specific considerations, such as leveraging the public’s trust in healthcare professionals to act as a liaison between Public Health and the Canadian public to communicate the benefits of the vaccine against COVID-19 and its variants, may help reduce COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy.

scholarly journals Faster than warp speed: early attention to COVD-19 by anti-vaccine groups on Facebook

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seth C Kalichman ◽  
Lisa A Eaton ◽  
Valerie A Earnshaw ◽  
Natalie Brousseau
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Vaccine Development ◽  
Rapid Development ◽  
Development Program ◽  
Vaccine Safety ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
The Us ◽  
Us Government ◽  
Vaccine Information

Abstract Background The unprecedented rapid development of COVID-19 vaccines has faced SARS-CoV- (COVID-19) vaccine hesitancy, which is partially fueled by the misinformation and conspiracy theories propagated by anti-vaccine groups on social media. Research is needed to better understand the early COVID-19 anti-vaccine activities on social media. Methods This study chronicles the social media posts concerning COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccines by leading anti-vaccine groups (Dr Tenpenny on Vaccines, the National Vaccine Information Center [NVIC] the Vaccination Information Network [VINE]) and Vaccine Machine in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic (February–May 2020). Results Analysis of 2060 Facebook posts showed that anti-vaccine groups were discussing COVID-19 in the first week of February 2020 and were specifically discussing COVID-19 vaccines by mid-February 2020. COVID-19 posts by NVIC were more widely disseminated and showed greater influence than non-COVID-19 posts. Early COVID-19 posts concerned mistrust of vaccine safety and conspiracy theories. Conclusion Major anti-vaccine groups were sowing seeds of doubt on Facebook weeks before the US government launched its vaccine development program ‘Operation Warp Speed’. Early anti-vaccine misinformation campaigns outpaced public health messaging and hampered the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines.

scholarly journals Real-World Acceptance of COVID-19 Vaccines among Healthcare Workers in Perinatal Medicine in China

Vaccines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (7) ◽  
pp. 704
Author(s):  
Biyun Xu ◽  
Xuelian Gao ◽  
Xinyue Zhang ◽  
Yali Hu ◽  
Huixia Yang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
General Population ◽  
Real World ◽  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Vaccine Safety ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
Present Survey ◽  
Perinatal Medicine ◽  
Vaccine Acceptance ◽  
Questionnaire Online ◽  
Convincing Data

Surveys showed that vaccine hesitancy may influence the acceptance of COVID-19 vaccines in healthcare workers (HCWs) and the general population. Currently, the actual acceptance of COVID-19 vaccination in HCWs has rarely been reported. In the present survey, we investigated the real-world acceptance of COVID-19 vaccination in HCWs in perinatal medicine during the first three-month period of vaccination in China and to identify the main reason for the decline of vaccination. HCWs (1087) who participated in a Chinese national symposium on perinatal medicine during 16–18 April 2021 were invited to answer a 27-question questionnaire online. A total of 1051 HCWs completed the questionnaire. Of them, 86.2% (906/1051) accepted the COVID-19 vaccination and 13.8% (145/1051) declined the vaccination. Because of the vaccine hesitancy, one-fourth of the vaccinated participants did not accept the vaccination until consulted with others or requested by employers. The main reason for the decline of vaccination in 145 unvaccinated HCWs was the concern about vaccine safety. The results indicate that vaccination request by employers may promote vaccine acceptance. More convincing data on the safety of COVID-19 vaccines appears to be important to increase the acceptance of vaccination.

scholarly journals Vaccine hesitancy: evidence from an adverse events following immunization database, and the role of cognitive biases

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hossein Azarpanah ◽  
Mohsen Farhadloo ◽  
Rustam Vahidov ◽  
Louise Pilote
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Adverse Events ◽  
Cognitive Biases ◽  
Vaccine Safety ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Vaccine Acceptance ◽  
Vaccination Decision ◽  
Vaccine Information

Abstract Background Vaccine hesitancy has been a growing challenge for public health in recent decades. Among factors contributing to vaccine hesitancy, concerns regarding vaccine safety and Adverse Events (AEs) play the leading role. Moreover, cognitive biases are critical in connecting such concerns to vaccine hesitancy behaviors, but their role has not been comprehensively studied. In this study, our first objective is to address concerns regarding vaccine AEs to increase vaccine acceptance. Our second objective is to identify the potential cognitive biases connecting vaccine hesitancy concerns to vaccine-hesitant behaviors and identify the mechanism they get triggered in the vaccine decision-making process. Methods First, to mitigate concerns regarding AEs, we quantitatively analyzed the U.S. Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) from 2011 to 2018 and provided evidence regarding the non-severity of the AEs that can be used as a communicable summary to increase vaccine acceptance. Second, we focused on the vaccination decision-making process. We reviewed cognitive biases and vaccine hesitancy literature to identify the most potential cognitive biases that affect vaccine hesitancy and categorized them adopting the Precaution Adoption Process Model (PAPM). Results Our results show that the top frequent AEs are expected mild reactions like injection site erythema (4.29%), pyrexia (3.66%), and injection site swelling (3.21%). 94.5% of the reports are not serious and the average population-based serious reporting rate over the 8 years was 25.3 reports per 1 million population. We also identified 15 potential cognitive biases that might affect people’s vaccination decision-making and nudge them toward vaccine hesitancy. We categorized these biases based on the factors that trigger them and discussed how they contribute to vaccine hesitancy. Conclusions This paper provided an evidence-based communicable summary of VAERS. As the most trusted sources of vaccine information, health practitioners can use this summary to provide evidence-based vaccine information to vaccine decision-makers (patients/parents) and mitigate concerns over vaccine safety and AEs. In addition, we identified 15 potential cognitive biases that might affect the vaccination decision-making process and nudge people toward vaccine hesitancy. Any plan, intervention, and message to increase vaccination uptake should be modified to decrease the effect of these potential cognitive biases.

scholarly journals Network Analysis of COVID-19 Vaccine Misinformation on Social Media

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chad Melton ◽  
Olufunto A. Olusanya ◽  
Arash Shaban-Nejad
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Network Analysis ◽  
Semantic Network ◽  
Vaccine Safety ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
World Population ◽  
Semantic Network Analysis ◽  
Online Social Media ◽  
Social Media Platforms ◽  
Media Platform

Almost half of the world population has received at least one dose of vaccine against the COVID-19 virus. However, vaccine hesitancy amongst certain populations is driving new waves of infections at alarming rates. The popularity of online social media platforms attracts supporters of the anti-vaccination movement who spread misinformation about vaccine safety and effectiveness. We conducted a semantic network analysis to explore and analyze COVID-19 vaccine misinformation on the Reddit social media platform.

scholarly journals Capturing the Trajectory of Psychological Status and Analyzing Online Public Reactions During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic Through Weibo Posts in China

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi-Chen Chiang ◽  
Meijie Chu ◽  
Shengnan Lin ◽  
Xinlan Cai ◽  
Qing Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
High Frequency ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Early Period ◽  
Psychological Status ◽  
Internet Users ◽  
External Stimuli ◽  
High Frequency Words

When a major, sudden infectious disease occurs, people tend to react emotionally and display reactions such as tension, anxiety, fear, depression, and somatization symptoms. Social media played a substantial awareness role in developing countries during the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This study aimed to analyze public opinion regarding COVID-19 and to explore the trajectory of psychological status and online public reactions to the COVID-19 pandemic by examining online content from Weibo in China. This study consisted of three steps: first, Weibo posts created during the pandemic were collected and preprocessed on a large scale; second, public sentiment orientation was classified as “optimistic/pessimistic/neutral” orientation via natural language processing and manual determination procedures; and third, qualitative and quantitative analyses were conducted to reveal the trajectory of public psychological status and online public reactions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Public psychological status differed in different periods of the pandemic (from December 2019 to May 2020). The newly confirmed cases had an almost 1-month lagged effect on public psychological status. Among the 15 events with high impact indexes or related to government decisions, there were 10 optimism orientation > pessimism orientation (OP) events (2/3) and 5 pessimism orientation > optimism orientation (PO) events (1/3). Among the top two OP events, the high-frequency words were “race against time” and “support,” while in the top two PO events, the high-frequency words were “irrationally purchase” and “pass away.” We proposed a hypothesis that people developed negative self-perception when they received PO events, but their cognition was developed by how these external stimuli were processed and evaluated. These results offer implications for public health policymakers on understanding public psychological status from social media. This study demonstrates the benefits of promoting psychological healthcare and hygiene activity in the early period and improving risk perception for the public based on public opinion and the coping abilities of people. Health managers should focus on disseminating socially oriented strategies to improve the policy literacy of Internet users, thereby facilitating the disease prevention work for the COVID-19 pandemic and other major public events.

scholarly journals Public Willingness and Determinants of COVID-19 Vaccination at the Initial Stage of Mass Vaccination in China

Vaccines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 1172
Author(s):  
Yi-Miao Zhao ◽  
Lin Liu ◽  
Jie Sun ◽  
Wei Yan ◽  
Kai Yuan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Multinomial Logistic Regression ◽  
Vaccine Safety ◽  
High Income ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
Depression Symptoms ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
The Government ◽  
Vaccine Information

The present study assessed the willingness of the general population to receive COVID-19 vaccines and identified factors that influence vaccine hesitancy and resistance. A national online survey was conducted from 29 January 2021 to 26 April 2021 in China. Multinomial logistic regression analyses were conducted to identify factors that influence vaccine hesitancy and resistance. Of the 34,041 participants surveyed, 18,810 (55.3%) were willing to get vaccinated, 13,736 (40.3%) were hesitant, and 1495 (4.4%) were resistant. Rates of vaccine acceptance increased over time, with geographical discrepancies in vaccine hesitancy and resistance between provinces in China. Vaccine safety was the greatest concern expressed by most participants (24,461 [71.9%]), and the major reason for participants’ refusing vaccination (974 [65.2%]). Government agencies (23,131 [68.0%]) and social media (20,967 [61.6%]) were the main sources of COVID-19 vaccine information. Compared with vaccination acceptance, female, young and middle-aged, high income, and perceived low-risk of infection were associated with vaccine hesitancy. Histories of allergic reactions to other vaccines and depression symptoms were related to vaccine resistance. Common factors that influenced vaccine hesitancy and resistance were residing in cities and perceiving less protection with vaccines than with other protective measures. The results indicate that the rate of vaccine resistance is relatively low, but vaccine hesitancy is common. Individuals who are female, young and middle-aged, with a high income, and residing in cities are more likely to be hesitant for vaccination and should be the target populations for vaccination campaigns. Specific vaccine messaging from the government and social media could alleviate public concerns about vaccine safety and efficacy.

scholarly journals Confidence, Acceptance and Willingness to Pay for the COVID-19 Vaccine among Migrants in Shanghai, China: A Cross-Sectional Study

Vaccines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 443
Author(s):  
Kaiyi Han ◽  
Mark R. Francis ◽  
Ruiyun Zhang ◽  
Qian Wang ◽  
Aichen Xia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Willingness To Pay ◽  
Migrant Workers ◽  
Vaccine Safety ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Vaccine Acceptance ◽  
Vaccine Information ◽  
Socio Demographic Factors

Understanding the public’s attitude towards COVID-19 vaccination and their acceptance could help facilitate the COVID-19 rollout. This study aimed to assess the acceptance and willingness to pay (WTP) for the COVID-19 vaccine among migrants in Shanghai, China. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 2126 migrants in Shanghai for the period 1–20 November 2020. Convenience sampling was used to recruit respondents in workplaces with large numbers of migrant workers. Multivariable (ordered) logistic regressions were used to examine factors associated with acceptance and WTP of the COVID-19 vaccine. Most (89.1%) migrants would accept COVID-19 vaccination. Over 90.0% perceived the COVID-19 vaccine as important, while only 75.0% and 77.7% perceived vaccines safe and effective. Socio-demographic factors were not significantly associated with vaccine acceptance, but confidence in the importance (OR 8.71, 95% CI 5.89–12.89), safety (OR 1.80, 95% CI 1.24–2.61) and effectiveness (OR 2.66, 95% CI 1.83–3.87) of COVID-19 vaccine was significantly positively associated with vaccine acceptance. The top reasons for vaccine hesitancy were lack of vaccine information and confidence. The proportion of those definitely willing to get the COVID-19 vaccine was 20% lower if paid by themselves than free vaccination. Migrants were willing to pay a median amount of USD 46 for the COVID-19 vaccine. Results show that a high acceptance of the COVID-19 vaccine was universal among migrants in Shanghai. Concerns about vaccine safety, effectiveness and high costs of the COVID-19 vaccine may hinder their uptake. Effective health communication to build confidence in the COVID-19 vaccine and subsidies toward the costs of these vaccines are needed to improve uptake.

scholarly journals Sensitivity to COVID-19 Vaccine Effectiveness and Safety in Shanghai, China

Vaccines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 472
Author(s):  
Jia Lu ◽  
Xiaosa Wen ◽  
Qi Guo ◽  
Mengdi Ji ◽  
Felicia Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Side Effect ◽  
Relative Income ◽  
Vaccine Safety ◽  
Vaccine Effectiveness ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Vaccine Acceptance ◽  
Vaccine Candidates ◽  
Elderly Parent

Several COVID-19 vaccines have been on the market since early 2021 and may vary in their effectiveness and safety. This study characterizes hesitancy about accepting COVID-19 vaccines among parents in Shanghai, China, and identifies how sensitive they are to changes in vaccine safety and effectiveness profiles. Schools in each township of Minhang District, Shanghai, were sampled, and parents in the WeChat group of each school were asked to participate in this cross-sectional Internet-based survey. Parents responded to questions about hesitancy and were given information about five different COVID-19 vaccine candidates, the effectiveness of which varied between 50 and 95% and which had a risk of fever as a side effect between 5 and 20%. Overall, 3673 parents responded to the survey. Almost 90% would accept a vaccine for themselves (89.7%), for their child (87.5%) or for an elderly parent (88.5%) with the most ideal attributes (95% effectiveness with 5% risk of fever). But with the least ideal attributes (50% effectiveness and a 20% risk of fever) these numbers dropped to 33.5%, 31.3%, and 31.8%, respectively. Vaccine hesitancy, age at first child’s birth, and relative income were all significantly related to sensitivity to vaccine safety and effectiveness. Parents showed a substantial shift in attitudes towards a vaccine based on its safety and effectiveness profile. These findings indicate that COVID-19 vaccine acceptance may be heavily influenced by how effective the vaccine actually is and could be impeded or enhanced based on vaccines already on the market.

scholarly journals Vaccine hesitancy among healthcare providers during COVID-19 pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 31 (Supplement_3) ◽  
Author(s):  
F Algabbani ◽  
A Algabbani
Keyword(s):  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Vaccine Safety ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Vaccine Acceptance ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Global Health Issue ◽  
Vaccine Confidence ◽  
And Control

Abstract   Public trust in vaccines is a major global health issue. This study aims to assess the vaccine acceptance among healthcare workers and their confidence and hesitancy of the COVID19 vaccine. This was a multicenter cross-sectional survey conducted among healthcare providers in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. Data collection was carried out between October and November of 2020 through a web-based survey. COVID19 vaccine hesitancy was assessed using eight structured items adapted from the 5Cs. About 34.6% (95% CI: 27.6%-42.4%) of participants were willing to vaccinate against COVID-19 and 44% (95% CI: 36.5%-51.9%) will recommend the vaccine to their patients. About 45% of participants were neutral regarding vaccine safety and 40% were neutral regarding vaccine effectiveness. Almost 70% believe that the duration of clinical studies of the COVID-19 vaccines affects their confidence in the efficacy and safety of the vaccine. Those who never hesitated or delayed taking any of the recommended vaccination were more likely to be willing to vaccinate COVID-19 (OR 5.46, 95% CI: 2.49-11.98). Assessing the level of vaccine confidence in the population and associated factors will help implement an effective national vaccine program to enhance vaccination uptake and control COVID19 spread during this pandemic. Key messages Vaccine hesitancy is challenging vaccination goals at the national and global level. Hesitancy from the population toward vaccine and concerns regarding its safety and efficacy was observed with the development of a novel vaccine for COVID19 a newly emerged infection.

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