Indian citizen's perspective about side effects of COVID-19 vaccine – A machine learning study

• Published in: Diabetes & metabolic syndrome clinical research & reviews 2021-07, Vol.15 (4), p.102172-102172, Article 102172
• Main Authors: Sv, Praveen, Tandon, Jyoti, Vikas, Hinduja, Hitesh
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: COVID-19; COVID-19 - epidemiology; COVID-19 - prevention & control; COVID-19 - psychology; COVID-19 - virology; COVID-19 Vaccines - administration & dosage; COVID-19 Vaccines - adverse effects; Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions - epidemiology; Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions - psychology; Humans; India - epidemiology; Machine Learning; Original; SARS-CoV-2 - immunology; Sentimental analysis; Side effect; Social Media - statistics & numerical data; Topic modeling; Vaccination - psychology; Vaccines
• ISSN: 1871-4021; 1878-0334
• DOI: 10.1016/j.dsx.2021.06.009

Ever since the vaccination drive for COVID-19 has started in India, the citizens have been sharing their views on social media about it. The present study examines the attitude of Indian citizens towards the side effects of the COVID-19 vaccine. Social media posts were used for this research. Using Python, we have collected social media posts of Indians focusing on side effects of COVID -19 vaccines. In study one, sentimental analysis was done to find overall attitude of Indian citizens towards the side effects of COVID-19 vaccine and in study two, topic modeling done to analyze the major side effects voiced out by the citizens after taking COVID-19 vaccine. The studies conducted have revealed that nearly 78.5% of tweets posted by Indian citizens about the side effects of the COVID-19 vaccine were either in neutral or positive sentiments. Our topic modeling studies have found that fear of efficiency in the workplace and the fear of death as the prime two issues that contributes Indian citizens to have negative sentiment about the side effects of the COVID-19 vaccine. While it is important for the Indian government to actively encourage its citizens to have vaccine, it is also important to help the citizens understand the important of the vaccination program. The best way to educate citizens regarding the positive aspect of the vaccination program is by addressing the fears, Indian citizens have voiced in their social media post about the COVID-19 vaccines. •78.5% of tweets by Indian citizens have a positive/neutral viewpoint towards the side effects of the COVID-19 Vaccine.•Fear of death, long-term effects & risk are the top causes of negative sentiments of Indians towards COVID-19 Vaccine.•As the cases of Covid-19 are booming, the perception of the public is becoming favorable towards the Covid-19 vaccine.