Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
24th International Eastern Mediterranean Family Medicine Congress (EMFMC2025), Adana, Türkiye, 8 - 11 Mayıs 2025, ss.215-225, (Tam Metin Bildiri)
Objective: This study aims to investigate the factors influencing COVID-19 vaccine acceptance and hesitancy among individuals aged 18 and older.
Method: This cross-sectional analytical study was conducted in Turkey. Participants aged 18 and over were recruited online between October 2, 2021, and November 1, 2021, using convenience and snowball sampling methods via WhatsApp groups, Facebook groups, and email communities. The survey included sociodemographic information, the COVID-19 Vaccine Literacy Scale, and the COVID-19 Fear Scale. Data were analyzed using IBM Statistics Package for Social Sciences (SPSS ver. 22.0).
Results: A total of 1,729 individuals participated in the study, including 1,059 (61.2%) women and 670 (38.8%) men. The COVID-19 vaccine acceptance rate was found to be 92.9%. The average age of vaccinated individuals was higher than that of unvaccinated individuals, and their COVID-19 fear scores were also higher. Those with higher functional vaccine literacy scores were more likely to receive the COVID-19 vaccine than those with lower scores (p < 0.001). Additionally, COVID-19 vaccine acceptance was found to be; 1.8 times higher in men (p = 0.013), 3 times higher in healthcare workers (p < 0.001), 2.2 times higher in individuals who had previously received the flu vaccine (p = 0.012), 3.3 times higher in those who believed the COVID-19 vaccine would end the pandemic (p < 0.001), 2.1 times higher in individuals who had not witnessed serious side effects in their close circle after vaccination (p = 0.001), 1.1 times higher with each unit increase in fear scores, 2 times higher in those who did not receive anti-vaccine recommendations (p = 0.017).
Conclusion: This study provides crucial insights into the factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine acceptance and hesitancy in Turkey. More importantly, our findings serve as a valuable resource for healthcare providers in developing strategies to increase vaccine acceptance and ensure the continuity of vaccination to mitigate and ultimately end the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.