Journal Article Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Ppublish 2 citations
PubMed: 39044701 DOI: 10.1080/21645515.2024.2379093
Use of narratives to enhance childhood vaccine acceptance: Results of an online experiment among Canadian parents.
Hum Vaccin Immunother 20(1):2379093
Authors: Eve Dube, Marie-Eve Trottier, Devon Greyson, Noni E MacDonald, Samantha B Meyer, Shannon E MacDonald, S Michelle Driedger, Holly O Witteman, Manale Ouakki, Dominique Gagnon
Affiliations
- Department of Anthropology, Laval University, Quebec, Quebec, Canada.
- Department of Biohazard, Quebec National Institute of Public Health, Quebec, Quebec, Canada.
- School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
- Department of Pediatrics, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
- School of Public Health Sciences, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.
- Faculty of Nursing, University, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
- Department of Community Health Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
- Department of Family Medicine, Laval University, Quebec, Quebec, Canada.
Abstract
Identifying effective interventions to promote children's vaccination acceptance is crucial for the health and wellbeing of communities. Many interventions can be implemented to increase parental awareness of the benefits of vaccination and positively influence their confidence in vaccines and vaccination services. One potential approach is using narratives as an intervention. This study aims to evaluate the effects of a narrative-based intervention on parents' attitudes and vaccination intentions. In a pre-post experiment, 2,000 parents of young children recruited from an online pan-Canadian panel were randomly exposed to one of the three videos presenting narratives to promote childhood vaccination or a control condition video about the importance and benefits of physical activity in children. Pre-post measures reveal a relatively modest but positive impact of the narratives on parents' attitudes and intention to vaccinate their child(ren). The results also suggest that narratives with more emotional content may be more effective in positively influencing vaccine attitudes than the more factual narrative. Using narratives to promote vaccination can positively influence parents' views and intentions toward childhood vaccines, but research is still required to identify the best components of such interventions.
MeSH
Immunization, Vaccines, Vaccination, Child, Vaccination Hesitancy