Communicating doctors’ consensus persistently increases COVID-19 vaccinations (V. Bartoš, M. Bauer, J. Cahlíková, J. Chytilová)
| Autor: | doc. PhDr. Michal Bauer Ph.D., Vojtěch Bartoš, Jana Cahlíková doc. PhDr. Julie Chytilová Ph.D., Vojtěch Bartoš, Jana Cahlíková |
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| Typ: | Články v impaktovaných časopisech |
| Rok: | 2022 |
| Číslo: | 0 |
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| Publikováno v: | Nature 606: 542-549 |
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| Abstrakt: | The reluctance of people to get vaccinated represents a fundamental challenge to containing the spread of deadly infectious diseases, including COVID-19. Identifying misperceptions that can fuel vaccine hesitancy and creating effective communication strategies to overcome them are a global public health priority5. Medical doctors are a trusted source of advice about vaccinations6, but media reports may create an inaccurate impression that vaccine controversy is prevalent among doctors, even when a broad consensus exists7,8. Here we show that public misperceptions about the views of doctors on the COVID-19 vaccines are widespread, and correcting them increases vaccine uptake. We implement a survey among 9,650 doctors in the Czech Republic and find that 90% of doctors trust the vaccines. Next, we show that 90% of respondents in a nationally representative sample (n = 2,101) underestimate doctors’ trust; the most common belief is that only 50% of doctors trust the vaccines. Finally, we integrate randomized provision of information about the true views held by doctors into a longitudinal data collection that regularly monitors vaccination status over 9 months. The treatment recalibrates beliefs and leads to a persistent increase in vaccine uptake. The approach demonstrated in this paper shows how the engagement of professional medical associations, with their unparalleled capacity to elicit individual views of doctors on a large scale, can help to create a cheap, scalable intervention that has lasting positive impacts on health behaviour. |
