Predicting Acceptance of COVID-19 Vaccination: Application of A Modified Health Belief Model

Although the health belief model (HBM) is commonly used to predict preventive behaviors, previous research shows inconsistent results. To better predict vaccination intention against infectious disease, this study implemented Ronis’ (1992) modified HBM. In a survey of 266 participants, perceived risk (i.e., susceptibility and severity) under both action and inaction conditions, perceived benefits and costs of vaccination, self-efficacy for vaccination, and vaccination intention were measured to test the hypothesized model. Vaccination intention was negatively associated with action-conditional risk perceptions while positively associated with inaction-conditional risk perceptions. Furthermore, vaccination intention was positively associated with perceived benefits and self-efficacy, but negatively associated with perceived costs. Perceived benefits mediated the influence of action and inaction susceptibility on vaccination intention. The modified HBM explained the variance of vaccination intention to a high degree (R² = .54), demonstrating its utility in predicting vaccination intention and designing targeted interventions to combat vaccine hesitancy.