A systematic literature review to clarify the concept of vaccine hesitancy

Publication type

Journal Article

Authors

Publication date

August 22, 2022

Summary:

Vaccine hesitancy (VH) is considered a top-10 global health threat. The concept of VH has been described and applied inconsistently. This systematic review aims to clarify VH by analysing how it is operationalized. We searched PubMed, Embase and PsycINFO databases on 14 January 2022. We selected 422 studies containing operationalizations of VH for inclusion. One limitation is that studies of lower quality were not excluded. Our qualitative analysis reveals that VH is conceptualized as involving (1) cognitions or affect, (2) behaviour and (3) decision making. A wide variety of methods have been used to measure VH. Our findings indicate the varied and confusing use of the term VH, leading to an impracticable concept. We propose that VH should be defined as a state of indecisiveness regarding a vaccination decision.

Published in

Nature Human Behaviour

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-022-01431-6

ISSN

23973374

Subjects

Notes

Online Early

#547426

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