DIGITAL INJECTION OF UNCERTAINTY:THE INFLUENCE OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON VACCINATION HESITANCY IN THE EUROPEAN UNION

Sidorina Ekaterina – Budapest Metropolitan University, Nagy Lajos király útja 1-9, 1148 Budapest, Hungary

DOI: https://doi.org/10.31410/EMAN.2021.149

5th International Scientific Conference – EMAN 2021 – Economics and Management: How to Cope With Disrupted Times, Online/Virtual, March 18, 2021, CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS published by: Association of Economists and Managers of the Balkans, Belgrade, Serbia; ISBN 978-86-80194-43-1, ISSN 2683-4510

Abstract:

The influence of social media on vaccine hesitant users is concerning, as it most often negatively
affects the decision about vaccination of oneself and their children, encourages the spread of
misinformation and leads to the endangerment of the population. Giving all the potential that the online
sphere obtains, this work is meant to bring awareness of the issues caused by social media regarding
anti-vaccination and encourage closer monitoring of such content in order to battle hesitancy. The
territory of interest for this research is European Union, as despite its unsullied prior record, the most
recent data has been showing outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases due to insufficient vaccination
coverage rates. (European Commission, 2016)
Analyzing European vaccination data and patterns, EU-focused academic researches and literature
and social media presence of the “anti-vax” campaigns, the work brings up the prospects and suggestions
for the possible solutions to the problem.

Keywords:

Medical communication, Social media, Anti-vaccination.

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