COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy may be associated with traumatic events in childhood that undermine trust, including domestic violence, abuse in the home, or neglect. Findings by Prof. Mark A. Bellis, College of Human Sciences, Bangor University, United Kingdom, and colleagues, were published online in BMJ Open. Studies found that hesitancy or refusal to get the vaccine increased with the number of traumas reported.
Researchers used responses to a nationally representative telephone survey of adults in Wales taken between December 2020 and March 2021, when COVID restrictions were in force. The survey asked about nine types of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) before the age of 18, including: parental separation; physical, verbal, and sexual abuse; exposure to domestic violence; and living with a household member who has mental illness, misuses alcohol and/or drugs, or who was incarcerated. About half of the respondents said they hadn't experienced any childhood trauma. Of those who did, one in five said they had experienced one type, 17% reported two to three types, and 10% reported four or more. Survey results showed that people with more ACEs were more likely to have low trust in National Health Service COVID-19 information.
Researchers suggest the effect of childhood adversity needs to be considered at all levels in health systems
---Wenqi Song
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