Global Perspectives of COVID-19 Vaccines

Much of the global discourse over the past year has been centered around one topic: COVID-19 vaccines. Its efficacy has been scrutinized in emails, on Facebook, through WhatsApp forwards, plenty of in-person arguments, and through many other means. While many struggle to comprehend views unlike their own, it is important to realize the various perceptions of the vaccine and its efficacy on a global scale. In a study published in January of 2022, a global survey indicated just how wildly opinions on the vaccine vary. There seemed to be little regional similarities, as opinions changed from nation to nation. For example, willingness to take the vaccine in Thailand was reported as 76% while neighboring Myanmar and Malaysia reported 90% and 96% respectively (Marzo et al. 8). A similar phenomenon was seen in the European nations surveyed as Austria had much lower belief in vaccine efficacy (70%) than Turkey (80%) (Marzo et al. 8). These results suggest that national vaccine rollout programs may greatly influence the perceptions of individuals. In a study aimed to learn about public perceptions of government responses to COVID, respondents were asked to rate ten different aspects of their nation’s COVID response. Their responses were then formulated into a COVID Score. The study found that COVID scores varied

widely, but most nations had similar means across all categories. This suggests that approval of all aspects of a nation's COVID response are likely to be viewed as interlinked (Lazarus et al. 7). Nigeria, a nation included in both studies, had a COVID Score near the median and responses rated vaccine efficacy near the mean as well. Nigeria’s response to COVID through facets other than the vaccine likely built trust within the Nigerian people, allowing for reduced vaccine hesitancy when the vaccine was introduced. Trust in government health agencies also helps to fight misinformation around the vaccine. If government trust is low, any attempts to quell misinformation will only serve to fuel skepticism. As governments roll out additional booster shots, it will be interesting to consider how vaccine efficacy changes over time. Will global sentiment follow the trends seen in the first vaccine, or will opinion shift with the additional boosters?

References

Marzo, Roy Rillera et al. “Perceived COVID-19 Vaccine Effectiveness, Acceptance,

and Drivers of Vaccination Decision-Making Among the General Adult

Population: A Global Survey of 20 Countries.” PLoS neglected tropical

diseases 16.1 (2022): e0010103–e0010103. Web.

Lazarus, Jeffrey V et al. “COVID-SCORE: A Global Survey to Assess Public

Perceptions of Government Responses to COVID-19 (COVID-SCORE-10).”

PloS one 15.10 (2020): e0240011–e0240011. Web.