COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy in Cameroon: The Role of Medical Mistrust and Social Media Use

• Published in: Journal of health communication 2023-09, Vol.28 (9), p.619-632
• Main Authors: Nah, Soya, Williamson, Lillie D., Kahlor, Lee Ann, Atkinson, Lucy, Ntang-Beb, Jean-Louis, Upshaw, Sean J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: COVID-19; COVID-19 vaccines; False information; Immunization; Information seeking behavior; Misinformation; Social media; Social networks; Trust
• ISSN: 1081-0730; 1087-0415; 1087-0415
• DOI: 10.1080/10810730.2023.2250287

Most African countries report low COVID-19 vaccination rates (Msellati et al., 2022; WHO Africa; 2020). This study focuses on factors associated with vaccine hesitancy specifically in the country of Cameroon. Social media use and medical mistrust have been suggested as key variables that may increase vaccine hesitancy. Adopting the information-related perspective guided by the risk information seeking and processing model, the current research explored how social media use and medical mistrust are related to vaccine hesitancy among Cameroonians. Survey results from a sample of 1,000 Cameroonians fielded in early 2022 showed that social media use and medical mistrust were positively associated with belief in misinformation related to the COVID-19 vaccine. Belief in misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine was negatively associated with perceived information insufficiency. A positive relationship between perceived information insufficiency and information seeking, as well as a negative relationship between information seeking and vaccine hesitancy were also found. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.