Social Media and Vaccine Hesitancy: Perspectives of Social Media Users in Oredo Local Government Area, Edo State, Nigeria

This study focuses on online users’ perception of social media influence on Covid-19 vaccine hesitancy in Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State. The study was carried out to determine issues and challenges associated with social media and Covid-19 vaccine hesitancy. The technological determinism theory proposed by Marshall McLuhan, (1982) guided this study. The study adopted the survey research design found that a considerable vaccine hesitancy persists, even with the widespread availability of information on the vaccines. The study agrees that to achieve effective community-based immunity, over 70% of the population will need to be vaccinated. The study notes that it will be important to devise strategies to meet this threshold as part of a society-wide response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The study recommends that experts in media and communication ought to dispel myths about the Covid-19 vaccination using the social media platforms, that the government should act decisively at all levels to create a strategy for a youth-focused vaccination program, and that health promotion professionals need to act quickly to address widespread false information about the coronavirus vaccination. Particularly mistrust of the government, vaccination safety, and encouragement of vaccine uptake rather than resorting to force against the populace. The study advocates that members of the public should be persuaded to accept the vaccinations by this message's clear design, which will increase public confidence in the healthcare system.