Objectives: The aim of the study was to determine the relation between coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) death exposure and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and vaccine uptake among Arkansans, controlling for sociodemographic factors.
Methods: Data were collected from a telephone survey administered in Arkansas between July 12 and July 30, 2021 (N = 1500) via random digit dialing of telephone landlines and cellular telephones. Weighted data were used to estimate regressions.
Results: Controlling for sociodemographic variables, COVID-19 death exposure was not a significant predictor of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy (P = 0.423) or COVID-19 vaccine uptake (P = 0.318). Younger individuals, those with lower levels of education, and those who live in rural counties were more likely to be COVID-19 vaccine hesitant. Older individuals, Hispanic/Latinx individuals, those who reported higher levels of education, and those who reported living in urban counties were more likely to have reported receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.
Conclusions: Many efforts to promote COVID-19 vaccines have focused on prosocial norms, including encouraging vaccination to protect the community from COVID-19 infection and death; however, COVID-19 death exposure was not related to COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy or uptake in the present study. Future research should examine whether prosocial messaging is effective in decreasing hesitancy or motivating some individuals to receive the vaccine among those who have been exposed to COVID-19 deaths.