Using social media surveys and interventions to address vaccine hesitancy in Saudi Arabia

Countering COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy has been a challenge in Saudi Arabia, one of the countries affected most by the pandemic in the Eastern Mediterranean Region.

To identify information needs, perceived benefits, concerns, trusted information sources, social norms, and predictors for COVID-19 vaccine uptake in Saudi Arabia and identify effective messaging strategies to increase vaccination intentions among the unvaccinated.

Between March and April 2021, we conducted an online cross-sectional survey (N = 2883), and in part, a randomized experiment for unvaccinated participants (n = 675) in Saudi Arabia using Facebook Ads and Messenger. Unvaccinated participants were randomly assigned to 1 of 5 message conditions and after message exposure, participants were asked if they planned to take the COVID-19 vaccine.

In total, 2883 adults participated in the survey. All message framings worked equally well, with no statistically significant difference between the arms. Approximately 80% of the participants across all message conditions said they intended to vaccinate. However, participants wanted to know more about the vaccines; about 35% wanted to know more about vaccine efficacy, 31.5% about safety, 26.8% about health authority's recommendation, and 3.7% about where to get the vaccines. Health workers (61.4%) and scientists and epidemiologists (25.7%) were the most trusted sources. Others were family members (7.5%), community leaders (2.2%), religious leaders (1.6%), friends (1.4%), and celebrities and social media influencers (0.2%).

Vaccine hesitancy can be overcome by understanding individuals' decision-making processes and using effective risk communication targeted to their needs.