Description

Despite the fact that COVID-19 vaccines have been widely available in the US for some time, a significant proportion of the population remains unvaccinated. Vaccine hesitancy is particularly noted among racial and ethnic minorities, reflecting existing inequalities in COVID-19 infection and mortality rates (Khubchandani & Macias, 2021; Callaghan et al., 2021). Contributing factors may include medical mistrust due to past racism and greater exposure to misinformation (Bogart et al., 2021; Khubchandani & Macias, 2021). Vaccine refusal more generally is also associated with higher levels of political conservatism and religiosity (Callaghan et al., 2021). Due to the continuing impact of the pandemic, there is a need for information on how these and other factors operate in different populations. One understudied region is California’s Imperial Valley, a rural agricultural region that borders on Mexico and has a predominantly Mexican-American population. Studies suggest that such populations may mistrust medical institutions due to fear of job loss and deportation, while language barriers may make them more susceptible to misinformation (Gehlback et al., 2021). In our study, we therefore used a Qualtrics survey to examine the relationship between demographic, socio-cultural, and psychological factors and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among 50 adults in the Imperial Valley. Our predictor variables included demographic factors (e.g., ethnicity, language, education, employment, and income), and measures of conservatism, religiosity, individualism, and attitudes about science. We also asked about participants’ sources of information about COVID-19 and about their trust in different sources. Our outcome measures included whether participants had been vaccinated (and how many doses) and why or why not. We also asked about specific misconceptions about the COVID-19 vaccine, including purported side-effects like infertility, that it is part of a political plot, and about alternative treatments like Ivermectin. We analyzed the data using logistic regression to see what factors contributed to participants not getting the vaccine. Our preliminary results suggest that misinformation continues to be prevalent and associated with higher levels of vaccine hesitancy among Mexican-Americans in this region. Positive attitudes about science, however, may counter these effects. This suggests the need for better science education and communication for diverse populations.