With it looking increasingly likely that governments will force vaccinate us for the SARS-CoV-2 virus should a vaccine actually be created and manufactured as a means of returning society to whatever passes for “normal” in the post-COVID-19 reality, it is interesting to see how the United States federal government is working to persuade us to accept the vaccine.
Washington, in collaboration with Yale University, are researching the best methods that will make us think that it is a good idea to be vaccinated as protection against the current novel coronavirus. The official title of the trial is “Persuasive Messages for COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake: a Randomized Controlled Trial, Part 1” as shown here on the National Institutes of Health, U.S National Library of Medicine website:
The brief summary of the study reads as follows:
“This study tests different messages about vaccinating against COVID-19 once the vaccine becomes available. Participants are randomized to 1 of 12 arms, with one control arm and one baseline arm. We will compare the reported willingness to get a COVID-19 vaccine at 3 and 6 months of it becoming available between the 10 intervention arms to the 2 control arms.“
The 4000 participants were aged at least 18 years of age and were U.S. resident. The participants in the study were recruited online by Lucid; the study started on July 3, 2020 and was completed on July 8, 2020. The participants were divided into groups based on the message as follows:
1.) Control Message – 2/15ths of participants were assigned to a control passage on the costs and benefits of bird feeding.
2.) Benefits of Vaccination -3/15ths of of participants were assigned to a control group with a message about the effectiveness and safety of vaccines.
3.) Personal Freedom Message – 1/15th of participants were assigned to a message about how COVID-19 is limiting personal freedoms and by working together to get enough people vaccinated, society can preserve its personal freedom.
4.) Economic Freedom Message – 1/15th of participants were assigned to a message about how COVID-19 is limiting economic freedoms and by working together to get enough people vaccinated, society can preserve its economic freedom.
5.) Self-Interest Message – 1/15th of participants were assigned to a message about how COVID-19 presents a real danger to ones’ health even if one is young and healthy. Getting vaccinated against COVID-19 is the best way to prevent oneself from getting sick.
6.) Community Interest Message – 1/15th of participants were assigned to a message about the danger of COVID-19 to the health of loved ones. The more people who get vaccinated against COVID-19, the lower the risk that one’s loved ones will get sick. Society must work together and all get vaccinated.
7.) Economic Benefit Message – 1/15th of participants were assigned to a message about how COVID-19 is wreaking havoc on the economy and the only way to strengthen the economy is to work together to get enough people vaccinated.
8.) Guilt Message – 1/15th of participants were assigned to a message about the danger that COVID-19 presents to the health of one’s family and community. The best way to protect them is by getting vaccinated and society must work together to get enough people vaccinated. It then asks the participant to imagine the guilt they will feel if they don’t get vaccinated and spread the disease.
9.) Embarrassment Message – 1/15th of participants were assigned to a message about the danger that COVID-19 presents to the health of one’s family and community. The best way to protect them is by getting vaccinated and society must work together to get enough people vaccinated. It then asks the participant to imagine the embarrassment they will feel if they don’t get vaccinated and spread the disease.
10.) Anger Message – 1/15th of participants were assigned to a message about the danger that COVID-19 presents to the health of one’s family and community. The best way to protect them is by getting vaccinated and society must work together to get enough people vaccinated. It then asks the participant to imagine the anger they will feel if they don’t get vaccinated and spread the disease.
11.) Trust in Science Message – 1/15 of the sample will be assigned to this message about how getting vaccinated against COVID-19 is the most effective way of protecting one’s community. Vaccination is backed by science. If one doesn’t get vaccinated that means that one doesn’t understand how infections are spread or who ignores science.
12.) Not Bravery Message – 1/15 of the sample will be assigned to this message which describes how firefighters, doctors, and front line medical workers are brave. Those who choose not to get vaccinated against COVID-19 are not brave.
The study measured these outcomes:
1.) Self-reported intention to get COVID-19 vaccine immediately after being exposed to the message.
2.) Assess the impact of the message on confidence in the COVID-19 vaccine.
3.) Assess the impact of the message on the willingness of participants to persuade others to take the COVID-19 vaccine.
4.) Assess the impact of the message on the measure of comfort with an unvaccinated individual visiting an elderly friend after a vaccine becomes available.
5.) Assess the impact of the message on four social judgement issues including trustworthiness, selfishness, likeableness and competence of those who elect not to get vaccinated after a vaccine for COVID-19 is available.
No results of the study have been posted at this time but I will update my readers once the results are publicly available.
It is fascinating to see the lengths that the United States government (and other governments as well) are willing to go to to ensure that we are all vaccinated against the SARS-CoV-2 virus. It is my personal opinion that we will be given little choice in the matter and this study shows us just how the federal government will manipulate us into accepting the vaccine by using guilt, embarrassment and the narrative that the economy and society as a whole will never return to normal until most of the population is vaccinated. It is also very clear that the government is planning to use a “divide and conquer” strategy by using peer pressure to force us to accept what we may otherwise not accept willingly.
From Messaging the Vaccine – How to Manipulate the American Public