Abstract
This study investigates the effects of social media use on COVID-19 vaccination intentions in China. It selects perceived risk, negative emotion, and subjective norms in a model to explore their mediating effects. A total of 1200 Chinese adults filled out an online questionnaire using the quota sampling method. Results suggest that social media use promotes COVID-19 vaccination willingness by reducing perceived risk and negative emotion and increasing subjective norms. This study aims to provide a reference for improving intentions relating to the COVID-19 vaccine, booster shots, and other types of vaccination.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Ajzen, I. (2011). The theory of planned behavior: Reactions and reflections. Psychology and Health, 26(9), 1113–1127. https://doi.org/10.1080/08870446.2011.613995
Alagoz, O., Sethi, A. K., Patterson, B. W., Churpek, M., Alhanaee, G., Scaria, E., & Safdar, N. (2021). The impact of vaccination to control COVID-19 burden in the United States: A simulation modeling approach. PLoS One, 16, 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0254456
Armitage, C. J., & Conner, M. (2001). Efficacy of the theory of planned behaviour: A meta-analytic review. British Journal of Social Psychology, 40, 471. https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/ab83/87ae29317c651a129efc7a2297bc5f348a95.pdf
Askelson, N. M., Campo, S., Lowe, J. B., Smith, S., Dennis, L. K., & Andsager, J. (2010). Using the theory of planned behavior to predict mothers’ intentions to vaccinate their daughters against HPV. Journal of School Nursing, 26(3), 194–202. https://doi.org/10.1177/1059840510366022
Asmundson, G. J. G., & Taylor, S. (2020). Chronophobia: Fear and the 2019-nCoV outbreak. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 70(February). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.janxdis.2020.102196
Benis, A., Khodos, A., Ran, S., Levner, E., & Ashkenazi, S. (2021a). Social media engagement and influenza vaccination during the COVID-19 pandemic: Cross-sectional survey study. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 23(3), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.2196/25977
Benis, A., Seidmann, A., & Ashkenazi, S. (2021b). Reasons for taking the COVID-19 vaccine by US social media users. Vaccines, 9(4), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines9040315
Carr, C. T., & Hayes, R. A. (2015). Social media: Defining, developing, and divining. Atlantic Journal of Communication, 23(1), 46–65. https://doi.org/10.1080/15456870.2015.972282
Chen, H., Li, X., Gao, J., Liu, X., Mao, Y., Wang, R., Zheng, P., Xiao, Q., Jia, Y., Fu, H., & Dai, J. (2021). Health belief model perspective on the control of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and the promotion of vaccination in china: Web-based cross-sectional study. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 23(9). https://doi.org/10.2196/29329
Chou, W. Y. S., Gaysynsky, A., & Cappella, J. N. (2020). Where we go from here: Health misinformation on social media. American Journal of Public Health, 110, S273–S275. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2020.305905
Crawshaw, J., Konnyu, K., Castillo, G., van Allen, Z., Grimshaw, J., & Presseau, J. (2021). Factors affecting healthcare worker COVID-19 vaccination acceptance and uptake among the general public: A living behavioral science evidence synthesis. McMaster Health Forum. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jacob-Crawshaw/publication/353044581_HCW_Vaccination_Living_Behavioural_Science_Evidence_Synthesis_v2_May_18/links/60e5daee1c28af345850c5c5/HCW-Vaccination-Living-Behavioural-Science-Evidence-Synthesis-v2-May-18.pdf
Featherstone, J. D., & Zhang, J. (2020). Feeling angry: The effects of vaccine misinformation and refutational messages on negative emotions and vaccination attitude. Journal of Health Communication, 25(9), 692–702. https://doi.org/10.1080/10810730.2020.1838671
Glanz, J. M., Wagner, N. M., Narwaney, K. J., Kraus, C. R., Shoup, J. A., Xu, S., O’Leary, S. T., Omer, S. B., Gleason, K. S., & Daley, M. F. (2017). Web-based social media intervention to increase vaccine acceptance: A randomized controlled trial. Pediatrics, 140(6). https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2017-1117
Han, R., & Cheng, Y. (2020). The influence of norm perception on pro-environmental behavior: A comparison between the moderating roles of traditional media and social media. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(19), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17197164
Huo, C., Zhang, M., & Ma, F. (2018). Factors influencing people’s health knowledge adoption in social media: The mediating effect of trust and the moderating effect of health threat. Library Hi Tech, 36(1), 129–151. https://doi.org/10.1108/LHT-04-2017-0074
Hyvönen, E., Alonen, M., Ikkala, E., & Mäkelä, E. (2014). Life stories as event-based linked data: Case semantic national biography. CEUR Workshop Proceedings, 1272, 1–4.
Im Kampe, E. O., Lehfeld, A. S., Buda, S., Buchholz, U., & Haas, W. (2020). Surveillance of COVID-19 school outbreaks, Germany, March to August 2020. Eurosurveillance, 25(38). https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.38.2001645
Krueger, N. F., Reilly, M. D., & Carsrud, A. L. (2000). Competing models of entrepreneurial intentions. Journal of Business Venturing, 15(5), 411–432. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0883-9026(98)00033-0
Larson, H. J., Cooper, L. Z., Eskola, J., Katz, S. L., & Ratzan, S. (2011). Addressing the vaccine confidence gap. The Lancet, 378(9790), 526–535. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(11)60678-8
Lee, S., Yamamoto, M., & Tandoc, E. C. (2021). Why people who know less think they know about COVID-19: Evidence from US and Singapore. Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly. https://doi.org/10.1177/10776990211049460
Lin, Y., Hu, Z., Zhao, Q., Alias, H., Danaee, M., & Wong, L. P. (2020). Understanding COVID-19 vaccine demand and hesitancy: A nationwide online survey in China. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 14(12), e0008961. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0008961
Liu, L., Xie, J., Li, K., & Ji, S. (2020). Exploring how media influence preventive behavior and excessive preventive intention during the COVID-19 pandemic in China. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(21), 1–27. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17217990
Luo, S., Xin, M., Wang, S., Zhao, J., Zhang, G., Li, L., Li, L., & Lau, J. T. F. (2021, May). Behavioral intention of receiving COVID-19 vaccination, social media exposures, and peer discussions in China. Epidemiology and Infection. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0950268821000947
Marcelin, J. R., Cortés-Penfield, N., Del Rio, C., Desai, A., Echenique, I., Granwehr, B., Lawal, F., Kuriakose, K., Lee, D. H., Malinis, M., Ruidera, D., Siddiqui, J., Spec, A., & Swartz, T. H. (2021). How the field of infectious diseases can leverage digital strategy and social media use during a pandemic. Open Forum Infectious Diseases, 8(2), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1093/ofid/ofab027
Mckinley, C. J., & Lauby, F. (2021). Anti-vaccine beliefs and COVID-19 information seeking on social media: Examining processes influencing COVID-19 beliefs and preventative actions. International Journal of Communication, 15, 4252–4274. http://ijoc.org.
Mo, P. K. H., Luo, S., Wang, S., Zhao, J., Zhang, G., Li, L., Li, L., Xie, L., & Lau, J. T. F. (2021). Intention to receive the COVID-19 vaccination in china: Application of the diffusion of innovations theory and the moderating role of openness to experience. Vaccines, 9(2), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines9020129
Morrow, B. H. (2009, July). Risk behavior and risk communication: synthesis and expert interviews (pp. 1–52). Final Report for the NOAA Coastal Services Center.
Morton, T. A., & Duck, J. M. (2001). Communication and health beliefs: Mass and interpersonal influences on perceptions of risk to self and others. Communication Research, 28(5), 602–626. https://doi.org/10.1177/009365001028005002
Puri, N., Coomes, E. A., Haghbayan, H., & Gunaratne, K. (2020). Social media and vaccine hesitancy: New updates for the era of COVID-19 and globalized infectious diseases. Human Vaccines and Immunotherapeutics, 16(11), 2586–2593. https://doi.org/10.1080/21645515.2020.1780846
Qin, N., Shi, S., Duan, Y., Ma, G., Li, X., Shen, Z., Zhang, S., Luo, A., & Zhong, Z. (2022). Social media use, eHealth literacy, knowledge, attitudes, and practices toward COVID-19 vaccination among chinese college students in the phase of regular epidemic prevention and control: A cross-sectional survey. Frontiers in Public Health, 9(January). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.754904
Rakhmadhani, I., Yulida, E., Fahrina, & Jaelani, A. K. (2021). COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy on society and related legal regulations. Proceedings of the International Conference on Environmental and Energy Policy (ICEEP 2021), 583, 281–285. https://doi.org/10.2991/assehr.k.211014.061
Ratanasiripong, N. T., Sri-Umporn, S., Kathalae, D., Hanklang, S., & Ratanasiripong, P. (2018). Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination and factors related to intention to obtain the vaccine among young college women in Thailand. Journal of Health Research, 32(2), 142–151. https://doi.org/10.1108/JHR-01-2018-018
Rivis, A., & Sheeran, P. (2017). Descriptive norms as an additional predictor in the theory of planned behavior: A meta-analysis. Planned Behavior: THe Relationship between Human Thought and Action, 43–62,. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315126449-4
Rosenstock, I. M., Strecher, V. J., Becker, M. H. (1988). Social learning theory and the health belief model. Corporate Ownership and Control, 13(2), 393–401. https://doi.org/10.22495/cocv13i3c2p11
Rubinstein, H., Marcu, A., Yardley, L., & Michie, S. (2015). Public preferences for vaccination and antiviral medicines under different pandemic flu outbreak scenarios. BMC Public Health, 15(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-015-1541-8
Slovic, P. (1987). Risk perception. Science, 236(4799), 280–285.
Sooknanan, J., & Comissiong, D. M. G. (2020). Trending on social media: Integrating social media into infectious disease dynamics. Bulletin of Mathematical Biology, 82(7), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11538-020-00757-4
Tang, L., Bie, B., Park, S. E., & Zhi, D. (2018). Social media and outbreaks of emerging infectious diseases: A systematic review of literature. American Journal of Infection Control, 46(9), 962–972. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajic.2018.02.010
Thaker, J. (2020). Planning for a COVID-19 vaccination campaign: The role of social norms, trust, knowledge, and vaccine attitudes.
Thaker, J. (2021). The persistence of vaccine hesitancy: COVID-19 vaccination intention in New Zealand. Journal of Health Communication, 26(2), 104–111. https://doi.org/10.1080/10810730.2021.1899346
Vahedi, Z., Sibalis, A., & Sutherland, J. E. (2018). Are media literacy interventions effective at changing attitudes and intentions towards risky health behaviors in adolescents? A Meta-Analytic Review. Journal of Adolescence, 67(July), 140–152. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2018.06.007
Vanderpool, R. C., Gaysynsky, A., & Chou, W. Y. S. (2020). Using a global pandemic as a teachable moment to promote vaccine literacy and build resilience to misinformation. American Journal of Public Health, 110, S284–S285. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2020.305906
Yıldırım, M., & Güler, A. (2020, January). Positivity explains how COVID-19 perceived risk increases death distress and reduces happiness. Personality and Individual Differences, 168, 110347.
Yong, S. D., & Jordan, A. H. (2017). The influence of social networking photos on social norms and sexual health behaviors. Clinical Infectious Diseases.
Zenk, L., Steiner, G., Cunha, M. P., Laubichler, M. D., Bertau, M., Kainz, M. J., Jäger, C., & Schernhammer, E. S. (2020). Fast response to superspreading: Uncertainty and complexity in the context of COVID-19. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(21), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17217884
Zhao, Y.-M., Liu, L., Sun, J., Yan, W., Yuan, K., Zheng, Y.-B., Lu, Z.-A., Liu, L., Ni, S.-Y., Su, S.-Z., Zhu, X.-M., Zeng, N., Gong, Y.-M., Wu, P., Ran, M.-S., Leng, Y., Shi, J., Shi, L., Lu, L., & Bao, Y.-P. (2021). Public willingness and determinants of COVID-19 vaccination at the initial stage of mass vaccination in China. Vaccines, 9(10), 1172. https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines9101172
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2023 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Tao, Y., Xia, C., Zhao, H., Liu, N. (2023). Exploring How Social Media Influences COVID-19 Vaccination Intention in China: The Mediating Effect of Perceived Risk, Negative Emotion, and Subjective Norms. In: Zhao, S.X.B., Chan, K.T., Çolakoğlu, S., Zhang, Q., Yan, B. (eds) Comparative Studies on Pandemic Control Policies and the Resilience of Society. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-9993-2_13
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-9993-2_13
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-19-9992-5
Online ISBN: 978-981-19-9993-2
eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)