Vaccine misinformation on social media - topic-based content and sentiment analysis of Polish vaccine-deniers' comments on Facebook
- PMID: 33517844
- PMCID: PMC8189052
- DOI: 10.1080/21645515.2020.1850072
Vaccine misinformation on social media - topic-based content and sentiment analysis of Polish vaccine-deniers' comments on Facebook
Abstract
Introduction: Vaccinations are referred to as one of the greatest achievements of modern medicine. However, their effectiveness is also constantly denied by certain groups in society. This results in an ongoing dispute that has been gradually moving online in the last few years due to the development of technology. Our study aimed to utilize social media to identify and analyze vaccine-deniers' arguments against child vaccinations.Method: All public comments posted to a leading Polish vaccination opponents' Facebook page posted between 01/05/2019 and 31/07/2019 were collected and analyzed quantitatively in terms of their content according to the modified method developed by Kata (Kata, 2010). Sentiment analysis was also performed.Results: Out of 18,685 comments analyzed, 4,042 contained content covered by the adopted criteria: conspiracy theories (28.2%), misinformation and unreliable premises (19.9%), content related to the safety and effectiveness of vaccinations (14.0%), noncompliance with civil rights (13.2%), own experience (10.9%), morality, religion, and belief (8.5%), and alternative medicine (5.4%). There were also 1,223 pro-vaccine comments, of which 15.2% were offensive, mocking, or non-substantive. Sentiment analysis showed that comments without any arguments as well as those containing statements about alternative medicine or misinformation were more positive and less angry than comments in other topic categories.Conclusions: The large amount of content in the conspiracy theory and misinformation categories may indicate that authors of such comments may be characterized by a lack of trust in the scientific achievements of medicine. These findings should be adequately addressed in vaccination campaigns.
Keywords: Anti-vaccination movement; misinformation; sentiment analysis; social media; vaccination refusal.
Figures
Similar articles
-
What Arguments against COVID-19 Vaccines Run on Facebook in Poland: Content Analysis of Comments.Vaccines (Basel). 2021 May 10;9(5):481. doi: 10.3390/vaccines9050481. Vaccines (Basel). 2021. PMID: 34068500 Free PMC article.
-
Addressing Antivaccine Sentiment on Public Social Media Forums Through Web-Based Conversations Based on Motivational Interviewing Techniques: Observational Study.JMIR Infodemiology. 2023 Nov 14;3:e50138. doi: 10.2196/50138. JMIR Infodemiology. 2023. PMID: 37962940 Free PMC article.
-
Impact of COVID-19 Vaccine Misinformation on Social Media Virality: Content Analysis of Message Themes and Writing Strategies.J Med Internet Res. 2022 Jul 6;24(7):e37806. doi: 10.2196/37806. J Med Internet Res. 2022. PMID: 35731969 Free PMC article.
-
Spreading of misinformation on mass media and digital platforms regarding vaccines. A systematic scoping review on stakeholders, policymakers, and sentiments/behavior of Italian consumers.Hum Vaccin Immunother. 2023 Aug;19(2):2259398. doi: 10.1080/21645515.2023.2259398. Epub 2023 Oct 2. Hum Vaccin Immunother. 2023. PMID: 37782549 Free PMC article. Review.
-
A qualitative analysis of online misinformation and conspiracy theories in psoriasis.Clin Exp Dermatol. 2022 May;47(5):949-952. doi: 10.1111/ced.15041. Epub 2021 Dec 21. Clin Exp Dermatol. 2022. PMID: 34856001 Review.
Cited by
-
Modeling opinion polarization on social media: Application to Covid-19 vaccination hesitancy in Italy.PLoS One. 2023 Oct 2;18(10):e0291993. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0291993. eCollection 2023. PLoS One. 2023. PMID: 37782677 Free PMC article.
-
A taxonomy of anti-vaccination arguments from a systematic literature review and text modelling.Nat Hum Behav. 2023 Sep;7(9):1462-1480. doi: 10.1038/s41562-023-01644-3. Epub 2023 Jul 17. Nat Hum Behav. 2023. PMID: 37460761
-
Media Data and Vaccine Hesitancy: Scoping Review.JMIR Infodemiology. 2022 Aug 10;2(2):e37300. doi: 10.2196/37300. eCollection 2022 Jul-Dec. JMIR Infodemiology. 2022. PMID: 37113443 Free PMC article.
-
The efficacy of interventions in reducing belief in conspiracy theories: A systematic review.PLoS One. 2023 Apr 5;18(4):e0280902. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0280902. eCollection 2023. PLoS One. 2023. PMID: 37018172 Free PMC article.
-
Network embedding aided vaccine skepticism detection.Appl Netw Sci. 2023;8(1):11. doi: 10.1007/s41109-023-00534-x. Epub 2023 Feb 16. Appl Netw Sci. 2023. PMID: 36811026 Free PMC article.
References
-
- Kostrzewski J, Magdzik W, Naruszewicz-Lesiuk D. Choroby zakaźne i ich zwalczanie na ziemiach polskich w XX wieku. 1st ed. PZWL; 2001.
-
- Szczepienia obowiązkowe i zalecane - ministerstwo zdrowia - portal gov.pl; [accessed: 2020. October 05]. https://www.gov.pl/web/zdrowie/szczepienia-obowiazkowe-i-zalecane.
Publication types
MeSH terms
Substances
Grants and funding
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Other Literature Sources
Medical