Table 2. Awareness phase beliefs.
| Construct and sub-themes | Specific belief | Sample quotes | Frequency intenders N (%) (n = 13) | Frequency non-intenders N (%) (n = 5) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knowledge (%) | ||||
| Aware of the different vaccine manufacturers | “Yes, so Astra Zeneca, Pfizer, Moderna. I know Johnson and Johnson (…) which is American and Sputnik which is the Russian one, and there is a Chinese one but I can’t remember what’s that called exactly” | 10 (76.9) | 4 (80.0) | |
| Aware of the priority system | “It’s been done in phases” “I know that the government has this kind of like hierarchy. Like a top-down list of most vulnerable to least vulnerable.” |
12 (92.3) | 4 (80.0) | |
| Aware of what (COVID-19) vaccinations do | “They tend to either stop you from getting a disease or tech your body how to fight the disease” “To learn to defend you from that whatever it is the vaccine for” |
11 (84.6) | 4 (80.0) | |
| Aware of the safety requirements of COVID-19 vaccinations | “Other vaccines usually take longer (…), so that’s one of the reasons why I’m aware of it being faster than historically other vaccines have been” | 5 (38.5) | 1 (20.0) | |
| Aware of the requirement of two doses | “All the ones that are available in the UK are two vaccinations” | 3 (23.1) | 1 (20.0) | |
| News websites as the main source of information | “Mainly the news, so like BBC or the Guardian or the Telegraph, mainly online” “News, like, what comes up on BBC, Apple News” |
8 (61.5) | 3 (60.0) | |
| Aware of the blood clotting controversy | “I know there has been some controversy, I believe about Astra Zeneca, because of the risk of blood clotting” | 4 (30.8) | 3 (60.0) | |
| Knowledge about effectiveness rates | “I know that the Pfizer one supposed to be like 90%, then some of the others around 70 or 80%” | 5 (38.5) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Risk perception (%) | ||||
| Susceptibility (COVID-19) | Likely to catch COVID-19 at this moment | “Prior to vaccination I think it’s very likely” | 4 (30.8) | 0 (0.0) |
| Unlikely to catch COVID-19 at this moment | “Very unlikely” “Not very likely” |
9 (69.2) | 5 (100.0) | |
| Likely to catch COVID-19 because the infection rate is high. | “Because especially with the cases going back up again now I think people are wearing less masks now, so I think it’s likely” | 3 (23.1) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Unlikely to catch COVID-19 because the infection rate is low. | “The city I live in is a not a very high infection zone, so I believe my risk of contracting is quite low” “The risk itself would be quite minor for myself, because the rates of COVID-19 are falling in the UK” |
3 (23.1) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Likely to catch COVID-19 because of meeting people | “I have been on the underground while it was busy, and people are wearing less masks now, so I think it’s likely” “I think it is likely because I have been in social situations recently” |
5 (38.5) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Reduced risk of catching COVID-19 after vaccination | “I think without the vaccine I would have been likely” “I believe after I get vaccinated, my risk of contracting it falls even more” |
8 (61.5) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Unlikely to catch COVID-19 because of not catching it before | “I think I just haven’t had it just far, I probably stopped wearing the mask about six months ago or more, I haven’t contracted COVID (…) I just don’t think it’s very likely at this point” | 2 (15.4) | 3 (60.0) | |
| Unlikely to catch COVID-19 because of taking the necessary precautions | “When I do go out I wear a mask, sanitize my hands, just taking all sorts of precautions to reduce their spreads” “I am careful and I’m not always like going out a lot, but I don’t think that means I’m immune to it” |
3 (23.1) | 1 (20.0) | |
| Severity of COVID-19 | Perceived consequences of a COVID-19 infection are mild or non-existent symptoms | “depending on my age, I am not so at risk” “I think for someone with my age (…), you just catch COVID and you have a severe flu and you stay at home for 10 days or until you feel better” “I don’t have any of the underlying symptoms that could cause complications” |
9 (69.2) | 4 (80.0) |
| Uncertain about the impact of a COVID-19 infection on personal health | “I can’t say it’s not affecting me or if it’s going to affect me or not” “I think it’s quite unknown because it could either be just like there are no symptoms, or I could have a cold or a fever, but then you don’t know if you’re going to have a severe reaction to it” |
3 (23.1) | 1 (20.0) | |
| High perceived likelihood of getting seriously ill after a COVID-19 infection | “But if I got COVID, I can lose my life” “I suppose it could get serious and I might need the hospital” |
6 (46.2) | 1 (20.0) | |
| Potentially experiencing long-term consequences of a COVID-19 infection. | “I’m definitely aware of or more concerned about the long term impacts because I know there has been some studies that have looked at it and I know that some people have reported reduced lung capacity for quite a while afterwards” | 3 (23.1) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Reduced likelihood of severe illness due to COVID-19 after being vaccinated | “in case you do catch it, … the consequences could be a lot worse for you …” “Now I’ve already had a small dosage of a similar thing, (…), the risk is dramatically lower” |
3 (23.1) | 0 (0.0) | |
| A COVID-19 infection negatively affects quality of life | “I mean like the quality of life could definitely be” | 1 (7.7) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Unable to go to work due to a COVID-19 infection | “(…) and I have to come out of work so I won’t be very helpful there” | 0 (0.0) | 2 (40.0) | |
| Likely to infect other people when being infected with COVID-19 | “The main risk would be passing it on to other people (…), I would be concerned about passing it to my parents and other older people” | 1 (7.7) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Risk of side effects | Side effects of COVID-19 vaccinations are mild | “Some people have experienced sort of flu like symptoms for a couple days afterwards” “just sort of more general with vaccination injection things like having a sore arm or stiff arm” |
10 (76.9) | 0 (0.0) |
| Concerned about getting a blood clot as a result of a vaccination | “The blood clot would be a big one” “I am sort of slightly worries about getting a brain clot” |
4 (30.8) | 3 (60.0) | |
| Vaccinations may impact fertility | “There hasn’t been a long enough time has passed to see the effects on fertility and effects on babies being born (…), and that would be a big concern of mine” | 0 (0.0) | 3 (60.0) | |
| Risk of side effects as a reason not to vaccinate | “I’m not willing to take that risk now” “I could die” |
0 (0.0) | 5 (100.0) | |
| Risk of side effects small enough to get vaccinated | “You know we can get blood clots from it, but the likelihood is so small” “The risk of blood clotting with the vaccination is that low, it’s very similar to the average blood clot statistics of the UK anyway” |
13 (100.0) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Concerned about the unknown long term effects of the COVID-19 vaccinations | “We won’t know that until a year, two years into looking at the side effects of the vaccine” “I think it could be long term risk, but we don’t know them yet, basically” |
1 (7.7) | 3 (60.0) | |
| Catching COVID-19 is worse than the side effects of vaccinations | “It’s worth the side effects for like two days” “I’m less worries about side effects because I think the side effects are better than getting COVID itself” |
5 (38.5) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Risk of not being? vaccinating | Risk of not being vaccinated, is catching COVID-19. | “So obviously getting COVID” “I suppose if I don’t get vaccinated, I’m more prone to catching it” |
6 (46.2) | 3 (60.0) |
| Risk of being excluded (social isolation) | “and you can’t go into certain places without being vaccinated, you can’t be settled in certain places, so it’s just segregation that is the main risk for not being vaccinated now” “So there’s a risk of social isolation” |
7 (53.8) | 5 (100.0) | |
| Being a risk to others | “I’m a potential harm for other people who are wither much older than me or immune compromised (…)” “I think the risk is passing it on to other people” |
5 (38.5) | 1 (20.0) | |
| Not being able to travel | “Will stop you from travelling (…)” “Also you won’t be allowed to travel” |
7 (53.8) | 5 (100.0) | |
| Risk of getting seriously ill | “High risk of death” “Potentially getting it myself and becoming more ill than I would be if I am, if I do get the vaccines” |
5 (38.5) | 2 (40.0) | |
| No consequences of not being vaccinated | “So basically no impact at all” “At the moment I work from home and I’ve only got my partner around so, really, it wouldn’t affect me too drastically” |
2 (15.4) | 1 (20.0) | |