COVID-19 vaccine-related misinformation identification among Chinese residents during a regional outbreak

Misinformation about the COVID vaccines poses a significant challenge to vaccination efforts in many countries. This study examined Chinese citizens' ability to correctly identify COVID-19 vaccine misinformation in geographic areas with and without a regional outbreak. We also investigated the associations between misinformation identification and information source usage, source trust, perceived information quality, and demographic characteristics.

The online survey was conducted in four cities from June 8th to 15th, 2021 in Guangdong Province, two of which were experiencing a regional surge of COVID-19 delta variant infections, and four cities in Hunan Province, a neighboring province largely unaffected.

A total of 4,479 individuals aged 18 and above completed the online questionnaire. Given survey length, those who finished the study under 5 min were excluded, resulting in a final sample of 3,800.

Misinformation identification, source exposure, source trust, and perceived information quality.

Results showed slightly higher levels of correct misinformation identification in surge vs. non-surge areas. Trust in official information sources was positively associated with correct misinformation identification in full sample analysis, while trust in informal sources was negatively associated with the same outcome. Perceived information quality was positively associated with correct misinformation identification in the full sample.

Information providers in China should enhance the quality of the vaccine information they provide, and the Chinese public should balance their usage of different sources of information to acquire vaccine knowledge.