Behavioral science: a key to unwind vaccine hesitancy

As behavioral biases can help us understand why people refuse to vaccinate, they also can be used to encourage people to get the vaccine. That's why we're sharing our data and recommendations based on more than 20 years of harnessing behavioral science to create initiatives and incentives that drive behavior change. This was the impetus behind the behavior change framework we used to educate, engage, and reward members to get vaccinated. These interventions relied on the same human behavioral biases that cause vaccine hesitancy to attempt to unwind it:

Educate. Confirmation bias and information filtering has created a situation where many are not aware of the scientific evidence that vaccines are safe and effective. Many are also not aware of the impact that vaccinating and other positive behaviors have on those around them. Getting information in the hands of our members was the first step to unwinding the effects of misinformation and confirmation bias. This includes motivational and educational communications, blog posts, webinars – from trusted experts – and a toolkit of resources for employers, insurance clients and the broader community.
Engage. Create practical, personal goals for members to achieve. This included gamified activities that test COVID-19 knowledge and motivate members to do their part in preventing the spread and impact of the virus, and of course, getting vaccinated.
Reward. Incentivize people to participate, ranging from points and gift cards for achieving goals and getting vaccinated to allowing employers to link vaccination status to healthcare contributions. Incentives add another thumb to the scale of loss aversion.

Together these interventions maximized the likelihood of behavior change, and the results were stark. Before the campaign, we surveyed over 90,000 of our members and 30% responded that they were either vaccine-hesitant or undecided. From the participating vaccine-hesitant pool, 69% increased their willingness to or got vaccinated and 74% of those who were originally undecided received the vaccine. In vulnerable groups, we also saw strong results, with 67% of those with elevated clinical and/or lifestyle risks increasing their willingness to get the vaccine. This demonstrates that behavioral science can be leveraged to cure behavioral biases and are pivotal tools to unwind vaccine hesitancy.

Instant Insights /

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