Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyse the cognitive predictors of SARS-CoV-2 vaccine hesitancy among the young people in Croatia. Within the context of the COVID-19 global pandemic, vaccination has become crucial to prevent the spread of the virus and protect the population. However, the proportion of vaccinated people in Croatia is relatively small compared to the other European countries. Vaccine hesitancy, i.e. vaccine refusal or delay in vaccination despite the availability of vaccines, represents a serious challenge for public health. The data were collected based on an online convenience sample of 398 participants and were processed using hierarchical logistic regression. Our aim was to determine whether and to what extent cognitive factors such as access to different sources of information and points of view can predict the likelihood of vaccine hesitancy. The results indicate that older participants who consider themselves to be politically more left-oriented and regard religion as less important are more likely to get vaccinated. Furthermore, individuals who obtain information through television and from other people, as well as those who display a scientific worldview and do not believe in conspiracy theories, are more likely to get vaccinated. ADRESA ZA