The Relationship of Perceived Benefit, Perceived Barrier, and Knowledge with Vaccine Hesitancy among Anti- and Pro- Vaccine Community

Abstract

Introduction: The phenomenon of basic vaccine hesitancy in parents is the biggest challenge faced by
health workers in the global era currently. This study aimed to analyze the relationship between perceived
benefits, perceived barriers, and knowledge about vaccines towards vaccine hesitancy among anti and provaccine
communities on social media Facebook.
Methods: This study used a cross-sectional design. The sample was 150 members of the anti-vaccine
community and 234 members of the pro-vaccine community on social media Facebook using a purposive
sampling technique. Data were collected using questionnaire namely; HBM (health belief model)
questionnaire which was translated and modified, and Vaccine Hesitancy Scale (VHS) questionnaire. The
independent variables in this study were perceived benefits of vaccines, perceived barriers to vaccines,
knowledge about vaccines. The dependent variable was vaccine hesitancy. Spearman rho analysis was used
to measure the relationship between the dependent and independent variables.
Results: The results of the Spearman rho analysis showed that the perceived benefits of vaccines (p=0.363
of anti-vaccine, p=0.702 of pro-vaccine), the perceived barriers to vaccines (p=0.410 of anti-vaccine,
p=0.341 of pro-vaccine), and knowledge about vaccines (p=0.413 of anti-vaccine, p=0.192 of pro-vaccine)
was related to vaccine hesitancy in parents.
Discussion: This study results indicated that the perceived benefits of vaccines, perceived barriers to
vaccines, and knowledge about vaccines are related to vaccine hesitancy in parents. The implications of the
study are essential information for health workers to determine the right and wise strategy in responding to
the increasing vaccine hesitancy in public so that basic vaccine coverage will increase.