COVID-19 Vaccines and Mental Health

Abstract

In this study, we aimed to examine the impacts of COVID-19 vaccines on mental health and relationships between psychological factors and vaccine acceptance in Turkey during the early pandemic period. The study included 1042 adults (70.9% females) with a mean age of 29.55 (SD = 10.29). The results showed that vaccinated participants had lower levels of COVID-19-induced anxiety and depression, and higher levels of life satisfaction compared to those without the vaccine. Furthermore, we found that COVID-19-induced anxiety and protective behaviours towards COVID-19 significantly increased the probability of vaccine acceptance, while depression significantly decreased it. Accordingly, governments should consider the mental health consequences of vaccination, as well as vaccine acceptance and refusal. More attention should be paid to psychological factors associated with attitudes towards the COVID-19 vaccine.