The other day I heard part of an interview on radio with Rachel Levine of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Among the topics discussed was the recent phenomenon being referred to as “vaccine hesitance” or “vaccine resistance” in the United States. In brief, while the number of available vaccinations has risen, the number of people getting vaccinated has plateaued. The emerging explanation for this is a persistent hesitance or resistance amongst many in the public. Possible reasons include ongoing doubts about the vaccines and lingering distrust of the government; a recent article in the Washington Post even blamed a “powerful network” of anti-vaccination interests for bolstering the resistance through an active information (or perhaps disinformation) campaign. Asked how this hesitance/resistance could be overcome, Dr. Levine stated that the answer lay in having federal, state, and local officials continue to get the message to the public about the facts and benefits of vaccination through various media.    

I found Dr. Levine’s answer lacking. At CBI, we recently concluded our first research internship program with the NATO Crisis Management and Disaster Response COE, and one of the interns who completed the program submitted a paper for publishing entitled, “Effects Of Misinformation On Cognition And Mitigation Of National Security: Resilient Societies In The Wake Of Covid-19.” In brief, her research addressed the misinformation that had proliferated about COVID-19 during the pandemic, who was susceptible, and why. It noted that susceptibility was higher in older demographic levels, which in part could be linked to reduced levels of social media literacy (with the less “literate” being more susceptible to conspiracy theories, etc.). It also cited anxiety as a key factor, as amidst the social isolation of the pandemic, people experienced heightened anxiety, which studies show can increase susceptibility to misinformation. One’s educational level and reasoning competency also played a role, as people with lesser of either were more susceptible to misinformation. The effect of increased susceptibility was a tendency to more readily embrace misinformation and conspiracy theories, and a greatly reduced trust in government and health officials, with grave implications.        

In light of such findings, the idea that the solution to vaccine hesitance/resistance was simply to have government officials double down (as it were) on their message seems hardly satisfactory. Put simply, if there is a lack of trust in the government among some people, do we really think the solution lies in having government officials talk more? This would yield little benefit, and in fact could be counterproductive. In a recent article, Stefanie Friedhoff, a professor of public health at Brown University (USA), argued that the very discussion of “vaccine resistance” is problematical. She declared that it offered “convenient narratives. But they are false, and can have harmful consequences.“ She asserted that there was a need to understand what was really driving choices about vaccination, provide accurate information about the matter in ways people could and would be ready to grasp, and allow them to arrive at the decision to vaccinate on their own terms and in their own time.  

Both the paper and the article point to something vital: the power of narrative. In the former, it is noted that people grasp for narratives (e.g. conspiracy theories) to make sense of what is happening. In the same vein, Friedhoff points to the danger of resistance “narratives.” On the other hand, while narratives can misguide people, she also posits they can be powerful tools to aid them in making informed choices. In calling for information to be presented in ways that people can grasp, she is, in effect, calling for effective narratives, or more simply, stories.

This is a vital yet oft overlooked consideration. Narratives are powerful means of fostering communication, understanding, and communal commitment. These are key to dealing with emergencies, whether a pandemic or in other form. (Think about it: getting vaccinated reflects a communal commitment, right?) Thus, as we seek to learn from the pandemic about how to respond to this and other types of emergencies in the future, it is imperative that we consider narrative. We will delve further into this in future posts.    

Stefanie Friedhoff, “Vaccinations Are Plateauing: Don’t Blame It on ‘Resistance’,” Statnews (27 April 2021), https://www.statnews.com/2021/04/27/vaccinations-are-plateauing-dont-blame-it-on-resistance/  

Elisavet Katmada, “Effects Of Misinformation On Cognition And Mitigation Of National Security: Resilient Societies In The Wake Of Covid-19.” (Research Paper), Capacity Building International (2 July 2020).

Cara Murez, “Poll Reveals Who’s most Vaccine-Hesitant and Why,” WebMD (29 April 2021), https://www.webmd.com/vaccines/covid-19-vaccine/news/20210429/poll-reveals-whos-most-vaccine-hesitant-in-america-and-why

Isaac Stanley-Becker, “Resistance to Vaccine Mandates is Building. A Powerful Network is Helping,” Washington Post (26 May 2021),

https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/05/26/vaccine-mandate-litigation-siri-glimstad-ican/