Week 1: Building Foundations

Hi again, everyone!

This week was a fascinating dive into the scientific literature on attitudes towards vaccines. I started out by reading three research papers that opened my eyes to how many different factors contribute to vaccine acceptance.

One study discussed parental and social acceptance of school-based vaccination programs and concluded that public settings can significantly increase vaccine coverage. Though it was written about adolescents, its conclusions regarding convenience and trust are highly relevant. Another study investigated low rates of influenza vaccine use among college students and identified behavioral barriers including complacency and lack of need.

While wrapping up my literature review, I read a study on COVID-19 vaccine uptake among older adults and individuals with chronic diseases in China, which uncovered how trust in healthcare professionals and fear of safety are hindrances to vaccine uptake. All of these studies have provided useful context in which to contrast how youth and older adults view the cold/flu vaccine in a pre- and post-pandemic time.

Beyond past literature review, I continued my preparation for data collection with a video lecture on research ethics and survey design. The lecture included advice on how to formulate concise, unprejudiced questions and shared methods for eliminating sampling and response biases. These are the same tips that I need to ensure that my survey gets authentic responses from seniors as well as youth.

After all of this learning, I spent a decent chunk of time crafting my survey. I employed both Likert scale items and open-ended questions to gauge perceptions of vaccine safety, necessity, and overall trust prior to and post-pandemic. My survey does include demographic questions as well to place the results in context. I even sent the draft out to some prospective participants for early stage feedback on clarity and usability.

I am truly excited about entering pilot testing now, where I will be perfecting the survey based on feedback from friends, family or whoever I can convince to take the initial draft of the survey. Incorporating rigorous literature review, expert views, and real survey design has allowed me to establish strong bases for this project, and I strongly feel that I can go on with the following steps successfully. Thanks for following along on this journey, I look forward to sharing more progress soon!

Sources:

Balog-Way, Dominic H. P., et al. “Pharmaceutical Benefit-Risk Perception and Age Differences in the USA and Germany.” Drug Safety, vol. 43, no. 11, 1 Nov. 2020, pp. 1141–1156, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32705447/#:~:text=Results%3A%20Clear%20age%20differences%20were%20found%20that%20strongly, https://doi.org/10.1007/s40264-020-00977-6. Accessed 25 Feb. 2025.

Bednarczyk, Robert A., et al. “Low Uptake of Influenza Vaccine among University Students: Evaluating Predictors beyond Cost and Safety Concerns.” Vaccine, vol. 33, no. 14, Mar. 2015, pp. 1659–1663, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2015.02.033. Accessed 25 Feb. 2025.

Marshall, Helen S., et al. “Parental and Societal Support for Adolescent Immunization through School Based Immunization Programs.” Vaccine, vol. 31, no. 30, June 2013, pp. 3059–3064, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2013.04.064. Accessed 25 Feb. 2025.

SocialNeuro. “Surveys and Research Ethics in Psychology.” YouTube, 23 Feb. 2023, www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eni-cS4Ms6w. Accessed 26 Feb. 2025.

Wang, Jiahao, et al. “Willingness to Accept COVID-19 Vaccine among the Elderly and the Chronic Disease Population in China.” Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics, vol. 17, no. 12, 2 Dec. 2021, pp. 4873–4888, https://doi.org/10.1080/21645515.2021.2009290. Accessed 26 Feb. 2025.