Study: Asians and Latinos are most supportive of COVID vaccine mandates – Houston Public Media

(AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)

A study by the Kinder Institute at Rice University shows that Asians and Latinos are the most supportive of COVID-19 vaccine mandates.

Partnering with UT Health Science Center in San Antonio, Rice surveyed 900 participants in the fall of 2021. As residents of the San Antonio region waited in line to get the vaccine, each participant was asked if they would support a vaccine mandate.

"When we asked the question, we found out that not everybody would support a vaccine mandate, which was interesting. We found that 59% of participants thought that it was a positive thing. But, when we started digging a little more into the data, we found that there were important racial and ethnic differences that we needed to start looking at and learning more about that, said Luz Garcini, Assistant Professor and Interim Director at Rice Kinder Institute. She also co-authored the study. 80% of the people of Asian background reported the potential support of a COVID-19 vaccine mandate, compared to other ethnic groups. The next one to follow were the people of Latino origin."

She said to better understand the responses of specific communities to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is essential to consider the context in which the responses occurred. She says the Asian and Latino cultures tend to be high in collectivistic values.

"Your own behavior has implications for the people around you and you are always looking for the common good. So, if we start thinking in the collectivistic approach, it will also make sense if they believed the vaccination is the way to go, regardless of their opinion, they would be supportive of that," Garcini said.

The survey also showed groups between 16 to 25 years old and those older than 55 were also more likely to support vaccine mandates. She explained, likely because younger people want to be social, and the older group is concerned about the risk of getting COVID-19 with pre-existing conditions. The report also showed single participants as compared to married participants showed more support for the vaccine mandate, Garcini said also likely due to the social aspect. Less significant differences were documented between individuals with varying education levels. 66% of the respondents with an education level of high school or below supported mandates compared to 59% of individuals with any kind of higher education (including trade school).

"Sometimes I say knowledge can be a curse, the more you know, the more you start asking questions. You start evaluating alternatives, she said. The data does not tell us the whole story. I think the bigger message here, is the importance of listening to people's stories, understanding what influences their decisions and their behaviors, so that we can be prepared, God forbid, in case of future emergencies."

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Study: Asians and Latinos are most supportive of COVID vaccine mandates - Houston Public Media