Open AccessPerceptions of Tunisians on COVID-19 Vaccines: A Qualitative Study on a Sample of General Population
Author(s) -
Jomli Rabaa,
Habbachi Dorsaf,
Jemli Hend,
Ourari Sabrine,
Uta Ouali,
Yosra Zgueb,
Ali Mrabet
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
international journal of psychiatry research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2641-4317
DOI - 10.33425/2641-4317.1105
Subject(s) - distrust , focus group , pandemic , population , ethnic group , psychology , qualitative research , coping (psychology) , psychological intervention , vaccination , family medicine , medicine , social psychology , covid-19 , environmental health , clinical psychology , political science , sociology , psychiatry , disease , virology , infectious disease (medical specialty) , social science , pathology , anthropology , law , psychotherapist
Background: Given that vaccine acceptance is the primary means to hopefully end this pandemic and given the deleterious consequences of vaccine hesitancy, understanding its determinants is critical. Aim: The aim of the study was to identify Tunisians' mental perceptions and attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccines. Methods: We conducted a qualitative study in the form of a focus group consisting of 11 people randomly selected from the general Tunisian population using a topic guide containing seven open-ended questions in Tunisian dialect covering the topic of COVID-19 vaccines. Results: Eleven people agreed to participate in the research session. The age of the participants ranged from 35 to 55 years with a mean of 42 ± 8.27. Their academic status varied from an elementary to a university education level. We found unanimous vaccine hesitancy in the group. Main themes reported were: Religious coping and external health locus of control, concerns about the safety and efficacy of the vaccines due to the short development time frame of current SARS- CoV-2 vaccines and the lack of ethnic diversity in vaccine studies, the distrust in the manufacturer with belief in a “western-plot” conspiracy. Conclusion: The perceptions and opinions of our focus group of Tunisian citizens about vaccination against COVID-19 consisted of unanimous vaccine hesitancy, with doubts about its safety and efficacy, religious coping and external health locus of control, and belief in conspiracy theory as the main themes. Public health authorities must implement multi-faceted and systematic interventions, including the involvement of mosques in the awareness campaign.