Date of Award
2023-08-01
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Department
Psychology
Advisor(s)
Lawrence D Cohn
Abstract
This study investigated the relative impact of anecdotal and statistical safety evidence on the perceived likelihood of unvaccinated friends or relatives experiencing severe adverse reactions to COVID-19 vaccination. This study also investigated the relative impact of anecdotal and statistical evidence on an individualâ??s intention to encourage unvaccinated friends and relatives to talk with healthcare providers about COVID-19 vaccination. Three hundred and fifty-nine participants were randomly assigned to one of six experimental conditions. In each condition, I manipulated the presence of base rate evidence (present, absent) that supported the safety of COVID-19 vaccination; I also manipulated the presence of anecdotal evidence (present, absent) that either challenged or supported COVID-19 vaccination. Anecdotal evidence was always presented in the form of brief videos taken from news reports and YouTube depicting a community memberâ??s personal vaccine-related experience (positive or negative). In contrast, base rate evidence was always presented in the form of written numerical safety estimates (e.g., two out of a million individuals experience heart inflammation) based on findings derived from millions of individuals. I hypothesized that watching two emotionally disturbing YouTube videos, each depicting a personal tragedy after COVID-19 vaccination, would decrease a participantâ??s reliance on objective, base rate safety evidence when evaluating the safety of COVID-19 vaccination. I also hypothesized that watching several emotionally uplifting YouTube videos, each depicting a positive experience after COVID-19 vaccination, would decrease the impact of watching tragic YouTube videos when evaluating vaccine safety. Results did not support either hypothesis. The potential implications of these findings are discussed.
Language
en
Provenance
Recieved from ProQuest
Copyright Date
2023-08
File Size
106 p.
File Format
application/pdf
Rights Holder
Kiran Misra
Recommended Citation
Misra, Kiran, "The Relative Impact of Anecdotal and Statistical Evidence on COVID-19 Vaccine Intentions." (2023). Open Access Theses & Dissertations. 3926.
https://scholarworks.utep.edu/open_etd/3926