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Trial Title Can theories of social identity help increase uptake of a COVID-19 vaccine? Can targeted messages reduce COVID-19 vaccination hesitancy? A randomized trial
Abstract To end the COVID-19 pandemic without millions of deaths, the United States needs very high uptake of a vaccine. We hypothesize that we can apply theories of social identity to design effective, targeted messaging to reduce vaccine hesitancy among sub-populations where vaccine resistance is high (e.g., African Americans, political conservatives) or vaccine importance is high (e.g., the elderly). We will test if intent to take a hypothetical vaccine is higher if each segment receives customized messages about risks of COVID-19 to oneself, risks to others, endorsement of the vaccine, and benefits of the vaccine. Widespread vaccination is certainly a critical element in successfully fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. We apply theories of social identity to design targeted messaging to reduce vaccine hesitancy among groups with low vaccine uptake, such as African Americans and political conservatives. We conducted an online experiment from April 7 to 27, 2021, that oversampled Black, Latinx, conservative, and religious U.S. residents. We first solicited the vaccination status of over 10,000 individuals. Of the 4,609 individuals who reported being unvaccinated, 4,190 enrolled in our covariate-adaptive randomized trial. We provided participants messages that presented the health risks of COVID-19 to oneself and others; they also received messages about the benefits of a COVID-19 vaccine and an endorsement by a celebrity. Messages were randomly tailored to each participant’s identities—Black, Latinx, conservative, religious, or being a parent. Respondents reported their intent to obtain the vaccine for oneself and, if a parent, for one’s child. We report results for the 2,621 unvaccinated respondents who passed an incentivized manipulation check. We find no support for the hypothesis that customized messages or endorsers reduce vaccine hesitancy among our segments. A post hoc analysis finds evidence that a vaccine endorsement from Dr. Fauci reduces stated intent to vaccinate among conservatives. We find no evidence that tailoring public-health communication regarding COVID-19 vaccination for broad demographic groups would increase its effectiveness. We recommend further research on communicators and endorsers, as well as incentives.
Last Published September 10, 2021 01:30 AM August 11, 2024 05:42 PM
Public Data URL https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/C8DVM
Is there a restricted access data set available on request? No
Program Files Yes
Program Files URL https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/C8DVM
Is data available for public use? Yes
Additional Keyword(s) COVID-19, vaccine, vaccination, hesitancy, messaging, marketing, health, attitudes, uptake, public policy, public health, SARS-CoV-2 COVID-19, vaccine hesitancy, vaccination, public health, preventive health behavior, behavioral public policy
Secondary Identifying Number(s) NIH 2P30AG012839
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Papers

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Paper Abstract Widespread vaccination is certainly a critical element in successfully fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. We apply theories of social identity to design targeted messaging to reduce vaccine hesitancy among groups with low vaccine uptake, such as African Americans and political conservatives. We conducted an online experiment from April 7 to 27, 2021, that oversampled Black, Latinx, conservative, and religious U.S. residents. We first solicited the vaccination status of over 10,000 individuals. Of the 4,609 individuals who reported being unvaccinated, 4,190 enrolled in our covariate-adaptive randomized trial. We provided participants messages that presented the health risks of COVID-19 to oneself and others; they also received messages about the benefits of a COVID-19 vaccine and an endorsement by a celebrity. Messages were randomly tailored to each participant’s identities—Black, Latinx, conservative, religious, or being a parent. Respondents reported their intent to obtain the vaccine for oneself and, if a parent, for one’s child. We report results for the 2,621 unvaccinated respondents who passed an incentivized manipulation check. We find no support for the hypothesis that customized messages or endorsers reduce vaccine hesitancy among our segments. A post hoc analysis finds evidence that a vaccine endorsement from Dr. Fauci reduces stated intent to vaccinate among conservatives. We find no evidence that tailoring public-health communication regarding COVID-19 vaccination for broad demographic groups would increase its effectiveness. We recommend further research on communicators and endorsers, as well as incentives.
Paper Citation Reddinger, J. L., David Levine, and Gary Charness. 2022. "Can theories of social identity help increase uptake of a COVID-19 vaccine? A randomized trial". Preventive Medicine Reports 29 (October) 101903.
Paper URL https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pmedr.2022.101903
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Sponsors

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Sponsor Name Berkeley Center on the Economics and Demography of Aging (CEDA) University of California, Berkeley, Center on the Economics and Demography of Aging
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