ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the COVID-19 pandemic as a problem that requires large-scale cooperation. High immunisation uptake can reduce overall morbidity and mortality. However, to achieve the public good of community protection against COVID-19, high immunisation coverage must also be obtained in groups with low risk of severe COVID-19 infection. This chapter explores the link between distrust and COVID-19 pandemic vaccine hesitancy. Making use of two nationally representative Swedish surveys from 2021, two hypotheses are subject to empirical investigation. Firstly, it is hypothesised that distrust is linked to vaccine hesitancy. Secondly, since trust is argued to spur cooperation for the common good, this kind of trust is theorised to be a particularly important driver of vaccination acceptance outside risk groups. Thus, hypothetically, distrust is linked to COVID-19 vaccine acceptance among younger people and those who do not believe themselves to be vulnerable to the virus. Results demonstrate that distrust is linked to vaccine hesitancy, also when controlling for potential confounders. However, the results are mixed when it comes to risk factors as moderator of the link between distrust and vaccine hesitancy. In line with predictions, the association between social trust and vaccine hesitancy is stronger among people who do not perceive themselves to be vulnerable. But this link is not significantly different between people in different age groups.
