From Psychological Mechanisms to Policy Interventions: Integrating SOR Framework and Secondary Risk Theory for Mitigating Vaccine Hesitancy

Vaccination has emerged as the most anticipated intervention to mitigate the spread of the virus. However, vaccine hesitancy remains a pervasive issue, and few studies have explored the link between external policy intervention and psychological factors and the impact on vaccine hesitancy. This study categorizes policy interventions into three types: media interventions, reminder interventions, and service interventions, and proposes integrating the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) framework into the secondary risk theory to explore the integration of external policy intervention and psychological factors in the receivers’ willingness and reactions (n = 6532). Using a survey dataset collected in China, the study employs structural equation modeling (SEM) to analyze the relationships between these intervention strategies, individual risk cognitions, and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. The results show that media interventions from formal news sources, reminders from family members, and educational campaigns about vaccines significantly enhance vaccination willingness. Conversely, reminders via telephone and material incentives have little to no positive effect. The study also finds that vaccine confidence and the perception of vaccine risk significantly influence vaccination willingness, while the perception of pandemic risk does not. These findings provide valuable insights for policymakers in designing effective intervention strategies to combat vaccine hesitancy and promote vaccination during the pandemic.