Using Survey Data to Understand the Role of Attitudes In Parents' Vaccination Behaviors

Theoretical Background and research questions/hypothesis:  A nuanced understanding of parents’ vaccine attitudes is essential to providing relevant and effective vaccine education

Methods: This presentation describes results from quantitative research conducted using two nationally representative surveys of parents regarding their childhood vaccination attitudes and behaviors. The first analysis used survey data from 475 parents of children six years of age and younger collected in 2009. We conducted a K-means cluster analysis to better characterize the vaccine attitudes and behaviors of parents in distinct audience segments. The second analysis used survey data from 376 parents of children six years of age and younger collected in 2010. We used stepwise logistic regression analyses to determine if questions regarding the safety, efficacy, and value of vaccines could predict vaccination behavior when controlling for sociodemographics

Results:  For the cluster analysis, we identified three distinct audience segments representing 72%, 21%, and 8% of parents, respectively. Parents in the middle cluster were characterized by a lack of engagement in vaccination issues and were less likely than the other two groups to have strong beliefs about the value and efficacy of vaccines. For the logistic regression analysis, we found that a two-question index regarding the value of vaccines accounted for 40% of the variance in vaccination behavior.

Conclusions: These findings will help us identify more relevant messages and communication channels for parents seeking information on childhood vaccines.

Implications for research and/or practice: Future research should explore other potential factors that contribute to vaccination behavior  in order to take a more tailored approach to communicating with parents about childhood vaccines.