Social Media Use and Misinformation Among Asian Americans During COVID-19

Social media has been crucial for seeking and communicating COVID-19 information. However, social media has also promulgated misinformation, which is particularly concerning among Asian Americans who may rely on in-language information and utilize social media platforms to connect to Asia-based networks. There is limited literature examining social media use for COVID-19 information and the subsequent impact of misinformation on health behaviors among Asian Americans. This perspective reviews recent research, news, and gray literature to examine the dissemination of COVID-19 misinformation on social media platforms to Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, and South Asian Americans. We discuss the linkage of COVID-19 misinformation to health behaviors, with emphasis on COVID-19 vaccine misinformation and vaccine decision-making in Asian American communities. We then discuss community- and research-driven responses to investigate misinformation during the pandemic. Lastly, we propose recommendations to mitigate misinformation and address the COVID-19 infodemic among Asian Americans.

‘I don’t know anybody who said, “oh great, let’s get measles”’: a qualitative study of responses to childhood vaccinations (MMRV) among Orthodox Jews in Jerusalem following the 2018-19 measles outbreaks

Measles outbreaks have emerged among religious minorities in the global north, which cross regional and national boundaries and raise implications for measles elimination targets. Yet, studies are ambiguous about the reasons that underlie non-vaccination in religious populations, and whether and how religious “beliefs” influence vaccine decision-making among populations with suboptimal vaccination coverage. In 2018-19, Israel experienced the largest measles outbreaks in a quarter century – the burden of which disproportionately affected Orthodox Jewish neighbourhoods in Jerusalem. The objective of this study was to explore how Orthodox Jewish households in Jerusalem responded to the measles outbreaks in their neighbourhoods and how they viewed childhood vaccination (MMRV) during a public health emergency.Research methods primarily consisted of 25 in-depth semi-structured interviews conducted with 23 household heads, and 2 public health professionals involved in planning and implementation of vaccination services. Thematic analysis generated five key themes, i) where the issue of sub-optimal vaccination uptake was perceived to be located; ii) how responsive people and services were to the measles outbreaks; iii) the sources of information used in vaccine decisions by religious parents; vi) whether vaccination was deemed a religious issue; and v) how vaccination influenced social relations within religious neighbourhoods.Results demonstrate parental investment in protecting child health, with decisions around vaccination reflecting vaccine efficacy and safety, and the risk of measles transmission. Household heads across all Orthodox Jewish backgrounds were not apathetic towards measles transmission. No religious “beliefs” were identified for non-vaccination among the household heads in this cohort. Rather than relegating suboptimal vaccination uptake among religious minorities and populations as an issue of religious “beliefs,” quality social science research should examine – and clearly convey – how religion influences vaccine decision-making. Such clarity can help to avoid stigmatizing religious minorities and populations, and to plan for appropriate vaccination programmes and promotion campaigns.

Issues and Challenges of, Factors that Affect, and the Primary Influences of Parents’ Decisions to Vaccinate their Adolescents: A Case of a Local National High School in Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines

Vaccines are considered to be the center of the prevention and management of viral diseases. Even with the wide acceptance that vaccines are safe, vaccine hesitancy is still rampant in various parts of the world. Several historical, social, religious, and moral factors were identified and observed to have influence parent’s vaccine acceptance or hesitance. Parent’s vaccine hesitance or acceptance is crucial since adolescents constitute the ideal group for immunization. This study aims to uncover the issues and challenges of parents on vaccination, the factors that affect their decision to vaccinate their children, and parents' primary influences to vaccinate their children. A descriptive-survey research design utilizing a questionnaire floated to parents of adolescents in a local high school. It was found out that the level of education and type of occupation was significantly associated with parent's decision to vaccinate their children. The major issue and challenge of parents toward vaccination is that they don't find vaccines important and have a high level of distrust towards the government's health agency and medical professionals. The primary factor affecting their decision-making is the negative news on vaccination and vaccine safety. Respondents also reported that even they distrust the government's health agency, they still consider it influential towards their vaccine decision-making. With this, it is recommended that efforts be strengthened in restoring the public's trust towards the government health agency to address vaccine hesitancy.

A Global Study of COVID-19 Vaccination Intentions: The Role of Personal Experiences and Risk Perceptions

Background The COVID-19 pandemic presents an opportunity to assess the impact of personal experiences on vaccine decision-making. The aim of this study was to examine the associations between experiences with COVID-19 and intention to vaccinate against COVID-19. Methods We administered 28 repeated cross-sectional, online surveys between June 2020 and June 2021 in the US and Asia. The main exposures were three types of experiences: COVID-19 diagnosis, knowing a friend/family member with COVID-19, and exposures to media containing COVID-19 patients. A series of logistic regression models estimated the association between each experience and acceptance of a hypothetical COVID-19 vaccine. We also explored perceived susceptibility as a potential mediator. Results Intent to vaccinate was lowest in the US and Taiwan, and highest in India, Indonesia, and China. Personal diagnosis with COVID-19 had the greatest impact on intentions to vaccinate across country sites compared to those who experienced a friend or family member diagnosed with COVID-19 or exposures to personal stories reported through media. In India participants that reported a personal diagnosis with COVID-19 had 12.95 times the odds (95% CI: 4.89, 34.28) of accepting a COVID-19 vaccine compared to those with no diagnosis. Higher risk perceptions were associated with higher intention to vaccinate against COVID-19. Conclusions Proximity and seriousness of experiences are influential factors for intention to vaccinate against COVID-19. This study highlights the numerous ways in which pandemic experiences may influence intention to vaccinate against COVID-19 across geographies and cultures, where the course of the pandemic differed.

Adolescent/Young Adult (AYA) Hematology/Oncology Patient and Parent Attitudes toward AYA COVID-19 Vaccination

Background: Adolescent/young adult (AYA) patients with hematologic and oncologic conditions are at increased risk for complications of COVID-19 and thus are important targets for vaccine outreach. AYA patients are transitioning from relying upon parental vaccine decision-making to independently making their own decisions. AYA with sickle cell disease (SCD) are of particular concern because a high proportion are African American and experience structural racism in addition to their illness. Further, AYA patients with chronic conditions may consider their past and present illness in their decision-making process. Methods: As part of a larger IRB-approved study, we recruited vaccine decision-makers for AYA patients aged 9-21 years attending SCD and oncology survivor clinics, including AYA patients 18-21 years old and parents of AYA patients 9-21 years old. After informed consent, participants completed a short demographic survey and a semi-structured interview regarding their vaccine decision-making process. Questions about the COVID-19 vaccine were incorporated given the ongoing pandemic. Results: Forty-nine parents and 21 AYA patients were recruited. The primary barriers reported regarding vaccination were concerns about its short-term side effects (57% AYAs; 37% parents) and potential to have unknown, long-term effects (10% AYAs; 14% parents). There were also concerns voiced about how rapidly the vaccine was developed (14% AYAs; 27% parents) and misconceptions about the vaccine (19% AYAs; 10% parents). Parents and AYA patients described the benefits of vaccination as lowering personal risk (62% AYAs; 35% parents) and several also mentioned the community benefits of preventing the spread of COVID-19 (19% AYAs; 8% parents) and a possible return to “normal” (14% AYAs; 10% parents). Potential Impact: The data from this study will further the understanding of how parents and young adults with chronic hematologic and oncologic conditions make decisions about COVID-19 vaccination, a vital tool for protecting medically and socially vulnerable populations during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nothing about us without us: Canadian vaccine decision making must involve disabled people

Across Canada, national and provincial Covid-19 vaccine prioritization guidance and strategies have failed to appropriately include people with disabilities. Since the early goal of vaccination was to reduce severity, those at higher risk of severe disease if infected were meant to be prioritized early in vaccination campaigns, directly reducing their chance of death due to Covid-19. Older adults and some other higher-risk groups were therefore accorded high priority. However, younger disabled people were not prioritized for vaccines at levels commensurate with their risk of severe Covid-19 outcomes. Consequently, Canadian national policy recommendations have been incongruent with peer countries’ vaccine prioritization, scientific evidence, and priorities expressed by Canadians regarding how we should allocate Covid-19 vaccines. To avoid repeating these mistakes, current and future pandemic planning must include disabled people as full members of decision-making committees, in keeping with the longstanding demand of disabled people: “Nothing about us without us.” (1)

“Until I Know It’s Safe for Me”: The Role of Timing in COVID-19 Vaccine Decision-Making and Vaccine Hesitancy

Managing the COVID-19 pandemic—and other communicable diseases—involves broad societal uptake of vaccines. As has been demonstrated, however, vaccine uptake is often uneven and incomplete across populations. This is a substantial challenge that must be addressed by public health efforts. To this point, significant research has focused on demographic and attitudinal correlates with vaccine hesitancy to understand uptake patterns. In this study, however, we advance understandings of individual decision-making processes involved in vaccine uptake through a mixed-methods investigation of the role of timing in COVID-19 vaccine choices. In the first step, a survey experiment, we find the timing of vaccine rollout (i.e., when a vaccine becomes available to the respondent) has a significant impact on public decision-making. Not only is there a higher level of acceptance when the vaccine becomes available at a later time, but delayed availability is correlated with both lower levels of ‘desire to wait’ and ‘total rejection’ of the vaccine. In a second step, we explore associated qualitative data, finding that temporal expressions (i.e., professing a desire to wait) can serve as a proxy for underlying non-temporal rationales, like concerns around safety, efficacy, personal situations, or altruism. By identifying these patterns, as well as the complexities of underlying factors, through a mixed-methods investigation, we can inform better vaccine-related policy and public messaging, as well as enhance our understanding of how individuals make decisions about vaccines in the context of COVID-19.

Changes in COVID-19 risk perceptions: methods of an internet survey conducted in six countries

Objectives This study assessed changes in behaviors/attitudes related to the COVID-19. With the understanding that behaviors and vaccine decision-making could contribute to global spread of infectious diseases, this study collected several waves of internet-based surveys from individuals in the United States, mainland China, Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia, and India. The aims of this study were to (1) characterize the relationship between the epidemiology of disease and changes over time in risk perceptions, knowledge, and attitudes towards hygienic behaviors; (2) examine if risk perceptions affect acceptance of less-than-ideal vaccines; and (3) contrast adherence to public health recommendations across countries which have had different governmental responses to the outbreak. Data description We conducted cross-sectional online surveys in six countries from March 2020 to April 2021. By the end of June 2021, there will be six waves of surveys for the United States and China, and four waves for the rest of countries. There are common sets of questions for all countries, however, some questions were adapted to reflect local situations and some questions were designed intentionally for specific countries to capture different COVID-19 mitigation actions. Participants were asked about their adherence towards countermeasures, risk perceptions, and acceptance of a hypothetical vaccine for COVID-19.

The acceptability of COVID-19 vaccination during spring crisis in Myanmar

Background: During the spring crisis, the coup and COVID-19 have led to a weakening vaccination program and Myanmar’s coronavirus prevention measures have been collapsed. The objective of this study was to determine the COVID-19 vaccine acceptance and assess its associated factors among the general adult population in Myanmar.Methods: A cross-sectional, web-based survey was conducted with a total of 301 participants. The association between vaccine acceptability and its determinants was assessed by binary logistic regression analysis.Results: The majority (90.4%) responded that they would like to accept vaccination if it is successfully developed and approved for listing in the future. Among the respondents, two-fifths (40.5%) had already received 1st dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, and 86.4% of the respondents thought that doctor’s recommendation is a crucial factor in vaccination decision-making, while 70.4% responded that vaccine price is an essential factor. If the younger age of participants who possessed lower monthly household income and agreed that the doctor’s recommendation is an important factor in vaccine decision making, the probability of accepting vaccine was more chance than those of older age participants.Conclusions: The study highlighted that majority of the respondents wanted to accept the vaccine although they were concerned about the side effects and political unrest. It is the recommended to develop a strategy successfully to strengthen vaccine convenience.