Social Network Factors for HPV Vaccine Adoption in Young Adults

Abstract

Studies find that while there is an increase in general awareness of HPV, many misconceptions about HPV and the vaccine remain. An individual’s adoption of HPV vaccination should be influenced, in part, by the behavior of others in their network. Understanding differences between HPV vaccine adopters and nonadopters when it comes to trust in sources, knowledge of HPV and HPV vaccines, and individual networks are critical as vaccine decisions are rarely made without consultation with others in the individual’s social network. An online survey of students attending a Northern California university (N=346) assessed HPV vaccination sources of information, knowledge, and adoption among young adults. Seventy-seven percent of respondents reported relying on the internet when initially seeking health or medical information. Respondents who received the HPV vaccine were more likely than unvaccinated respondents to know that HPV causes cancer (70% vs. 43%) and that it is sexually transmitted (80% vs. 62%). Vaccinated individuals are more knowledgeable about HPV and the HPV vaccine than non- vaccinated young adults. Social network differences are visible between vaccinated and unvaccinated respondents. The likelihood that a young adult will be vaccinated against HPV was positively related to whether the individual was part of the decision to vaccinate, whether the individual’s parent(s) were a part of the decision to vaccinate, whether or not they believed their family members to also have been vaccinated, and the density of their social network.

Note: Funding Statement: No funding was received for this project. Declaration of Interests: There are no conflicts of interest to report. Ethics Approval Statement: Approval to conduct research with human subjects was granted by the Institutional Review Board at the University of California, Davis on August 19, 2015.

Keywords: HPV, vaccine hesitancy, social network factors