Barriers and Intention to Get Vaccinated for COVID-19 and Associated Factors Among Adults in Southwest Ethiopia: A Theory of Planned Behavior Approach

BACKGROUND: Different vaccines have been approved for use against coronavirus disease and distributed globally in different regions. Efforts should be made on the vaccination to control the spread and impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. However, the general population’s attitudes and intention to uptake coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccinations were poor. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to assess the barriers to and intention to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and the associated factors among adults in the Jimma zone, Ethiopia. METHODS: A community-based cross-sectional study with multistage sampling was conducted with 621 participants from 16 April to 17 May 2022. Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with the outcome of interest. Statistical p-value ≤0.05 was set at p ≤ 0.05. Qualitative data were supplemented with quantitative results. RESULTS: The majority of the study participants (382 [61.5%]) intended to uptake the COVID-19 vaccine. In this study, travel history (Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) = 2.18, 95% CI 1.23–3.87), vaccination history (AOR = 2.64, 95% CI 1.69–4.12), perceptions of infection prevention for COVID-19 (AOR = 1.97, 95% CI 1.28–3.03), subjective norm (AOR = 2.27, 95% CI 1.52–3.39), and perceived behavioral control (PBC) (AOR = 2.30, 95% CI 1.55–3.41) were significantly associated with the intention to be vaccinated against COVID-19. CONCLUSION: More than half of the adult participants intended to be vaccinated against COVID-19. The study participant’s traveling history, vaccination history, perception of infection prevention for COVID-19, subjective norms, and Perceived Behavioral Control were significantly associated with the intention to be vaccinated.