Advisory Committee Chair
Larrell Wilkinson
Advisory Committee Members
Teneasha Washington
Tanya Leblanc
David Macrina
Scott Snyder
Document Type
Dissertation
Date of Award
2023
Degree Name by School
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) School of Education
Abstract
COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and vaccine refusal contributed to many African Americans not receiving the COVID-19 vaccine. The reasons for vaccine hesitancy and vaccine refusal were unclear by sociodemographic factors (income, gender, education, and age) among African Americans. This research explored attitudes, subjective norms, and intent of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and vaccine refusal among African Americans in the United States using the Theory of Reasoned Action. The two research questions were (1) Among African Americans, do age, income, gender, and education factors remain stable across three study cohorts in differentiating subjects who are COVID-19 vaccine hesitant versus refusal from 2020–2022? (2) Are the reasons for COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and vaccine refusal among the African American population independent of age, income, gender, and education? (2a) Is the level of independence stable across three study cohorts from 2020 – 2022? A logistic regression analysis was conducted for research question 1 and a chi-square analysis was conducted for research question 2. Findings indicated that age, income, and gender were associated with attitudes and subjective norms of negative COVID-19 vaccine intentions. The number of COVID-19 vaccine hesitant and vaccine refusal African Americans decreased throughout the vaccine campaign for these sociodemographic factors: age 18-49 and income less than $35,000. However, the most COVID-19 vaccine refusal African Americans were females. Vaccine hesitancy and vaccine refusal can be related to historic events, political climate, and racism among African Americans. Addressing these issues and tailoring public health campaigns to African Americans can likely increase vaccine uptake.
Recommended Citation
Martinez, DeAndrea Lashay, "Understanding Attitudes, Subjective Norms, and Intent of COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy and Refusal Among African Americans in the United States Using the Theory of Reasoned Action" (2023). All ETDs from UAB. 392.
https://digitalcommons.library.uab.edu/etd-collection/392