Mothers remain more resistant than fathers to COVID-19 vaccines for their children

Although fathers have a more favorable view of COVID-19 vaccines for their children than at the beginning of the year, strong differences between fathers and mothers have barely sprouted, and mothers remain more puzzled about vaccines, according to a US poll by researchers from the Northeast, Harvard, Northwest, and Rutgers.

It highlights persistent maternal reluctance, as mothers tend to have more influence on children’s health decisions than fathers, and their prudent approach could be caused by society’s expectations, says Matthew Simonson, network science in the northeast and lead author of the study.

“Women may be more judged by women for the good quality their parents have than their parents, and this creates even greater pressure on women. mothers to play safely, “he explains.” There is a false perception that playing safely means avoiding vaccinations. But that perception may change as more children begin to get sick with the Delta variant. “

The survey found that mothers aged 36 and over were more open to vaccinating their children than in the spring, with resistance falling four percentage points to 20%. However, parents in the same age group were much more likely to embrace inoculations, with resistance dropping to 11%.

However, mothers aged 18 to 35 remain strongly opposed, with only the slightest movement in favor of vaccines. Resistance fell by only one percentage point, to 32%. But researchers predict that more of these mothers will be increasingly receptive once federal health authorities green light vaccines in the age ranges of their children.

“Younger mothers usually have younger children“says David Lazer, a professor of political science and computer science at the university’s northeast and one of the researchers who conducted the study.” Therefore, we would expect to see substantial movements [toward vaccines] of younger mothers once we see the approval of younger children. “

Simonson adds: “Availability will increase interest in getting vaccinated. It’s about gradually reducing the age of vaccine. “

Authorization from the Food and Drug Administration could also trigger a drip effect in which parents of older children convince mothers of younger children that it’s okay to have them shoot their children, Simonson says. “Again, there are probably groups of young mothers who are in the echo chambers of other young mothers, which reinforces their resilience,” she adds.

Attitudes of parents have changed greatly in favor of vaccines since the initial survey began in February and resumed in April and June, coinciding with the approval of federal health authorities for shoot young people aged 12 or over.

“Most of the movement we’re seeing is for parents of 13- to 17-year-olds,” Lazer says.

The summer survey of 7,000 U.S. residents lasted a month from early June to early July, weeks after the FDA gave its blessing in May to Pfizer / BioNTech shots for 12-year-olds or more. Moderna’s application in June for emergency authorization of its vaccine in teens ages 12 to 17 is pending from the FDA.

Pharmaceutical companies are conducting clinical trials in children up to 6 months; approval is expected in the fall, coinciding with the opening of schools in some states.

The incorporation of more mothers can boost the vaccination rate in the United States, which is currently 48% of the total population for fully vaccinated people, according to federal data. This figure rises to 56.5 percent of the population aged 12 and over.

With school reopening in a few weeks in certain parts of the country, the study found that parental support for school vaccine mandates grew significantly from 54.4% in the winter to 61.3% in the summer. . It was driven primarily by vaccination approvals for older children.

“The younger parents moved a little in the direction of the mandate, but the other young groups of parents didn’t move at all,” Lazer says.

The survey did not differentiate between public or private schools.

Black parents were found to have become much less resilient since winter, falling by a quarter (24% to 19%), while white parents were slightly less resilient (20% to 18%). ). In general, white, black, and Hispanic parents have similar levels of resistance to the vaccine. But among parents with a similar policy, black parents tend to be much more resilient than other parents, according to the survey.

Black Democrats, for example, are much more reluctant to vaccinate them children than Hispanic, Asian, and white Democrats.

The researchers noted that because blacks have faced a long history of government abuse, including the health care system, the study took into account confidence levels in government and health care institutions in respondents’ responses.

“We found that differences between black parents and parents of other races are substantially reduced once institutional trust is taken into account,” the researchers wrote. Thus, greater resistance to vaccination among black Democrats compared to white Democrats, Asian Americans, and Hispanics “is largely driven by greater distrust of the government and health care institutions.”

While Democrats are united around mandates by more than four to one in favor, most Republicans oppose it, a broader partisan chasm than in the winter. But Republicans can ease their opposition if younger children are eligible for inoculations or if they go from an emergency use permit to direct FDA approval, Lazer predicts.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw most Republicans approving mandates,” he says.