Behavioral Differences in the Preference for Hepatitis B Virus Vaccination: A Discrete Choice Experiment

Understanding behavioral factors differences in the preferences for vaccinations can improve predictions of vaccine uptake rates and identify effective policy interventions to increase the demand for vaccinations. In this study, 353 adults in Shandong province in China were interviewed about their preferences for hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccination. A discrete choice experiment (DCE) was employed to analyze the preference for HBV vaccinations, and a mixed logit model was used to estimate respondent preferences for vaccination attributes included in the DCE. While the protection rate against hepatitis B (HB), duration of protection, risk of side-effects, and vaccination cost were shown to influence adults’ preferences for HBV vaccination, adults valued “99% hepatitis B protection” above other attributes, followed by “20 years’ protection duration” and “1 in 150,000 risk of side-effects”. Individuals with lower time discount rates, non-overconfidence, or higher risk aversion were more likely to choose a vaccine. Lower risk aversion individuals showed a higher preference for lower risk of side-effects. Lower time discount rate individuals showed a higher preference for longer protection duration. Non-overconfidence individuals showed a higher preference for higher hepatitis B protection and cost. Interventions should be targeted to the behavioral determinants impeding vaccination.