EXPLORING THE EFFECTS OF SOCIODEMOGRAPHICS, SELF-ASSESSED MENTAL HEALTH OUTLOOK, ATTITUDES, SUBJECTIVE NORMS, AND PERCEIVED BEHAVIORAL CONTROL ON INTENTION TO RECEIVE THE COVID-19 VACCINE.

Abstract

Individuals getting vaccinated with COVID-19 vaccines is one of the critical public health interventions to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic. The research and development (R&D) activity to develop a vaccine against the disease has been intense across the globe since the release of the genetic sequence of SARS-CoV-2 in January 2020. Besides the COVID-19 vaccine being available and accessible, vaccine hesitancy is a critical challenge to public health programming about getting vaccinated. Therefore, increasing COVID-19 vaccine uptake among a broader cross-section of the population is an important public health priority. This study explored the impact of sociodemographic variables, self-assessed mental health outlook, and theory of planned behavior (TPB) constructs on intention to receive the COVID-19 vaccine among participants at the Nova Southeastern University (NSU) vaccination site. The theory of planned behavior (TPB) has been widely used to understand COVID-19 vaccination intention. A cross-sectional study design was used to explore the effects of sociodemographic variables, self-assessed mental health outlook, attitudes, subjective norms, and PBC as independent variables on the dependent variable, intention to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Univariate and multivariate hierarchical logistic regression, and chi-square test. Approximately 74.8% of the participants in this study indicated that they intended to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Therefore, understanding vaccination intentions is essential for developing promotional and educational strategies for national COVID-19 vaccination programs. The results revealed that older age, gender, feeling down, depressed, or hopeless, little interest or pleasure in doing things, not being able to stop or control worrying, normally receive vaccines, agreeing the COVID-19 vaccine should be mandatory, anybody help you make your decision to get the vaccine and try some other location before getting the vaccine was significantly associated with the intention to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. This study contributes to a better understanding of the reasons why some groups exhibit COVID-19 vaccination hesitancy. Moreover, the findings of this study can be translated into educational messages targeting groups that report lower vaccination intention. To optimize vaccine uptake, public health professionals should focus key messages on addressing factors that decrease vaccination intention.