Predictors of Intention to Vaccinate for COVID-19 in the Philippines: Do Trust in Government and Trust in Vaccines Really Matter?

• Main Authors: Jabar, Melvin A., Torneo, Ador R., Razon, Luis F., Felices, John Benedict, Duya, Hazel Ann Marie R.
• Format: text
• Published: Animo Repository 2022
• Subjects: COVID-19; vaccines; trust; healthcare; government; information; vaccine propensity; vaccine hesitancy
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/apssr/vol22/iss2/12; https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/context/apssr/article/1427/viewcontent/RA_2011.pdf
• Institution: De La Salle University

This paper interrogates the influence of trust in government, trust in vaccines, and access to vaccine-related information as predictors of intention to vaccinate for COVID-19 among Filipinos. It also examines the relationship between social- and personal-related measures and the intention to vaccinate. Data for this article were collected from an online survey involving 1,953 respondents, conducted from July 28 to August 2020 before the trials were completed and emergency use authorizations were issued for any of the currently approved COVID-19 vaccines. Multinomial regression results show that trust in vaccines, sex, income, perceived risk exposure, and perceived health status were significant predictors of intention to vaccinate for COVID-19. Access to information, however, was not a result that possibly arose from the mixed bag of true and false information about vaccines that proliferate, especially online. These results suggest that trust in vaccines will likely encourage individuals to vaccinate. It is recommended that the Philippine government launch confidence-building measures and strategic communication that will help build people’s trust in the vaccines. Educating the public and improving awareness about risk exposure is thus needed to stimulate intention or interest among the population to get vaccinated for COVID-19.