Table 3.
Conspiracies and perceptions about COVID-19 infections and vaccines among study participants
| Respondents N (%) |
Accepting (%) | Hesitant (%) | Resistant (%) | P value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Impact of COVID-19 on Lebanon (N = 790) | |||||
| Behind us | 360 (46) | 324 (47) | 28 (35) | 8 (36.5) | |
| Happening currently | 221 (28) | 189 (27.5) | 24 (30) | 8 (36.5) | |
| Still to come (in the future) | 209 (26) | 175 (25.5) | 28 (35) | 6 (27) | |
| Total | 688 | 80 | 22 | 0.204 | |
| Views regarding COVID-19 vaccination (N = 757) | |||||
| Personal choice | 103 (14) | 61 (9) | 27 (38.5) | 15 (71.5) | |
| Everyone's responsibility | 363 (48) | 349 (52.5) | 13 (18.5) | 1 (4.5) | |
| Both | 291 (38) | 256 (38.5) | 30 (43) | 5 (24) | |
| Total | 666 | 70 | 21 | <0.001 | |
| Mainstream media creating unnecessary fear about COVID-19 (N = 757) | |||||
| Disagree | 156 (20.5) | 142 (21.5) | 10 (12.5) | 3 (13.5) | |
| Agree | 401 (53) | 345 (53) | 43 (54.5) | 13 (59) | |
| Neither | 200 (26.5) | 166 (25.5) | 26 (33) | 6 (27.5) | |
| Total | 653 | 79 | 22 | 0.011 | |
| COVID-19 vaccine is not needed (N = 755) | |||||
| Disagree | 639 (85) | 579 (89) | 52 (66) | 5 (22.5) | |
| Agree | 34 (14) | 19 (3) | 6 (7.5) | 9 (41) | |
| Neither | 82 (11) | 53 (8) | 21 (26.5) | 8 (36.5) | |
| Total | 651 | 79 | 22 | <0.001 | |
| Potential harm of COVID-19 infection is exaggerated (N = 753) | |||||
| Disagree | 437 (58) | 402 (62) | 26 (33) | 6 (28.5) | |
| Agree | 136 (18) | 103 (16) | 21 (26.5) | 12 (57) | |
| Neither | 180 (24) | 145 (22) | 32 (40.5) | 3 (14.5) | |
| Total | 650 | 79 | 21 | <0.001 | |
| Death/year from flu are millions more than that of COVID-19 (N = 749) | |||||
| Disagree | 189 (25) | 167 (26) | 13 (16.5) | 9 (43) | |
| Agree | 230 (31) | 189 (29) | 32 (40.5) | 7 (33) | |
| Neither | 330 (44) | 290 (45) | 34 (43) | 5 (24) | |
| Total | 646 | 79 | 21 | 0.003 | |
| COVID-19 vaccine is more dangerous than the disease itself (N = 752) | |||||
| Disagree | 595 (79) | 551 (85) | 36 (45.5) | 5 (23) | |
| Agree | 35 (5) | 20 (3) | 6 (7.5) | 9 (41) | |
| Neither | 122 (16) | 77 (12) | 37 (47) | 8 (36) | |
| Total | 648 | 79 | 22 | <0.001 | |
| Pharmaceutical companies have hidden information about the vaccine's bad health outcomes (N = 752) | |||||
| Disagree | 414 (55) | 388 (60) | 22 (28) | 3 (13.5) | |
| Agree | 76 (10) | 46 (7) | 17 (21.5) | 12 (54.5) | |
| Neither | 262 (35) | 214 (33) | 40 (50.5) | 7 (32) | |
| Total | 648 | 79 | 22 | <0.001 | |
| No sense to get the vaccine, higher power manipulates health outcomes (N = 750) | |||||
| Disagree | 587 (78) | 538 (83) | 39 (50) | 7 (33.5) | |
| Agree | 39 (5) | 22 (3.5) | 7 (9) | 10 (47.5) | |
| Neither | 124 (17) | 88 (13.5) | 32 (41) | 4 (19) | |
| Total | 648 | 78 | 21 | <0.001 | |
| COVID-19 vaccine is an attempt to take away personal freedom (N = 749) | |||||
| Disagree | 610 (81) | 553 (85.5) | 50 (65) | 4 (19) | |
| Agree | 43 (6) | 23 (3.5) | 8 (10.5) | 12 (57) | |
| Neither | 96 (13) | 72 (11) | 19 (24.5) | 5 (24) | |
| Total | 648 | 77 | 21 | <0.001 | |
| Government is using the vaccine to control population (N = 751) | |||||
| Disagree | 564 (75) | 517 (79.5) | 39 (50) | 5 (24) | |
| Agree | 58 (8) | 35 (5.5) | 12 (15.5) | 11 (52) | |
| Neither | 129 (17) | 97 (15) | 27 (34.5) | 5 (24) | |
| Total | 649 | 78 | 21 | 0.027 | |
χ2 tests were used to compare the frequencies in the cells for each variable. A p-value of <0.05 was considered significant.