Vaccine Confidence Among Young Adults During COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study from Turkey

A lack of confidence in vaccination is a threat to public health and undermines vaccine uptake at national and global levels. Unfortunately, COVID-19 vaccine confidence among Turkish young adults is poorly known. This study aims to understand COVID-19 vaccine confidence among Turkish young adults aged 18-29 and the barriers to and facilitators of vaccine uptake.

The present research is a cross-sectional study. Survey data were collected in May and June 2022 (n = 1066) during the COVID-19 vaccination campaign. Results were expressed in frequencies and percentages for dichotomous variables and mean with standard deviation for continuous variables. To assess COVID-19 vaccine confidence based on selected sociodemographic characteristics, a one-way ANOVA analysis and an independent-sample t-test were used.

Almost half of the sample (43.9%) underestimated the risk of contracting COVID-19 disease. 65.9% of participants believed that getting vaccinated against COVID-19 was important, while 47.8% thought the vaccine was safe and not dangerous or harmful. Concerns about vaccine effectiveness (58.3%) were the primary reported reason for vaccination. The percentage of participants who reported barriers to vaccine access was generally low (8.7%). Importantly, 63.9% believed getting vaccinated is their responsibility to their community. 33.8% of participants reported encountering inaccurate, misleading, and unfavorable information about COVID-19 vaccines, while 22.9% said they were unsure.

Addressing concerns about COVID-19 vaccine safety and efficacy, emphasizing the role of vaccination in societal benefits, ensuring easy access to vaccines, and providing access to up-to-date and accurate information from reliable sources might help increase coverage among young adults. Perhaps the most crucial advice is to instill the correct comprehension of vaccination and make lifelong vaccination a reality before individuals develop false beliefs that are challenging to rectify.