Why anti-vax?

To be frank, my blood boils every time I hear people spouting absolutely absurd "facts" about vaccinations as the reason behind why they don't get inoculated. In this piece, we will put all emotions, ego and disdain aside to pry into the minds of anti-vaxxers.

Schemeful

From what I've read in journal articles and studies about anti-vaxxers, the conspiracy mentality seems to be discussed the most as there is a high correlation between distrust in the source of the pandemic/vaccines and the anti-vaccine attitude. "The whole thing is orchestrated by the government to place microchips in our bodies to track us" "It's all a hoax, there is no such thing as COVID-19" "After my jab, my body becomes magnetized" are some of the popular beliefs in the antivax communities. According to this kind of cynical worldview, our society is not a simple place, there must be something sinister, malicious and of course caused by deliberate human interventions behind huge, world-shaking events.

From a study in the journal, Health Psychology:

Indeed, there is evidence from an online American sample that people’s willingness to endorse conspiracies generally (e.g., about the assassination of John F. Kennedy or the death of Princess Diana) are positively correlated with a range of “anti-science” attitudes, including antivaccination attitudes (Lewandowsky, Gignac, & Oberauer, 2013; see also Lewandowsky, Oberaruer, & Gignac, 2013).

Initially, people didn't buy it when Bourla (Pfizer's CEO) said during an interview in December 2020 about not receiving the jab when it was first distributed to the public because he didn't want to cut in line. Some thought it must be something fishy about the vaccine. People also grew suspicious of the Pfizer vaccine when netizens spread claims about its CEO not being vaccinated in Aug 2021. However in reality, Bourla has gotten his vaccine on March 10, 2021.

I believe some of the flaws in the human mind namely availability heuristic, motivated reasoning, confirmation bias and the Dunning-Kruger effect are to blame for adamant antivaxxers.

Availability heuristic: people judge how common is an event based on how easily related examples or cases emerge in their minds.

This can be unhelpful when people misjudge how frequently severe vaccine side effects occur and make it the reason for rejecting it when the risks are actually negligible when compared to the risk of contracting covid itself or other fatal diseases.  

Motivated reasoning: emotionally biased cognition based on motivations and what the person chose to believe while rejecting contradicting ideas even if they're the truth

Confirmation bias: the tendency to favor, remember, recall and seek out information that further confirms pre-existing beliefs

Motivated reasoning and confirmation bias are pretty similar and both work outside of our consciousness. When people don't believe in the vaccine, they are more likely to trust dubious sources and studies that are congruent with their antivax opinion.

Dunning-Kruger effect: a cognitive bias where people overestimate their knowledge and ability, thinking that they are smarter than they really are

This study found evidence that this effect is one of the reasons people believe in the 'vaccine causes autism' claim because they assume they know more than doctors and scientists.

In this video, the host even shed light on how vaccines are working so well to a point that people don't think they need it anymore causing measles death cases to reach a 23-year high in 2019.

However, MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS aren't immune to what I have stated so far too, there were a doctor and a nurse who testified before Ohio lawmakers in a committee hearing stating that the vaccine makes us magnetic. (*whispers* can you believe it? medical professionals as antivaxxers?)

Nonconformist

We certainly have met a person or two who likes to use "I'm not like the others" as their whole personality trait. Of course, it makes people seem mysterious, interesting and intellectual because they claim themselves to be one-of-a-kind, quirky and eccentric in a humblebrag way. Interestingly, this study also relates this way of thinking to one of the root reasons why people reject vaccines. They do not like it when people tell them how to behave and think, they will dissent no matter how strong the vaccine's merits are. I do think individualism correlates to this kind of psychological reactance where 'the self' and personal goals are prioritized.

Fear

Irrational fear towards needles and blood is not uncommon and it's something people might be ashamed of. From this article:

It’s estimated that fear of needles affects up to 25% of adults, and may lead 16% of people in the US to skip vaccinations.

Thus, it's easier to disguise it with "I just don't want the vaccine" "I'm perfectly healthy, there's no need for any external help". There are studies (eg: this & this) that show the correlation between this fear with vaccination hesitancy.

Conclusion

This is a rather complex problem that requires multifaceted solutions dealing with the human mind and behavior. By understanding a little bit more about why someone refuses the vaccine, we might be a step nearer to find better ways for convincing them to do otherwise. Finally, to anyone reading this: DO GET VACCINATED! PEOPLE'S LIVES ARE COUNTING ON YOU!