Comparing human papillomavirus vaccine concerns on Twitter: a cross-sectional study of users in Australia, Canada and the UK.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Opposition to human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination is common on social media and has the potential to impact vaccine coverage. This study aims to conduct an international comparison of the proportions of tweets about HPV vaccines that express concerns, the types of concerns expressed and the social connections among users posting about HPV vaccines in Australia, Canada and the UK.

Design

Using a cross-sectional design, an international comparison of English language tweets about HPV vaccines and social connections among Twitter users posting about HPV vaccines between January 2014 and April 2016 was conducted. The Health Belief Model, one of the most widely used theories in health psychology, was used as the basis for coding the types of HPV vaccine concerns expr

SUBMITTER: Shapiro GK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5640044 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature