Physical and mental health characteristics related to trust in and intention to receive COVID-19 vaccination: results from a Korean community-based longitudinal study

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to explore factors affecting attitudes toward coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination, including socio-demographic characteristics and mental health status during the pandemic. METHODS: This study analyzed responses from 1,768 participants who were originally included in a community cohort study and responded to 3 online surveys related to COVID-19 (March 2020 to March 2021). The k-means method was used to cluster trust in and intention to receive COVID-19 vaccination. Baseline (2013-2018) socio-demographic characteristics, physical health status, and depressive symptoms were analyzed as exposure variables, and current mental health status was included in the analyses. RESULTS: Almost half of all participants were classified into the moderate trust and high intention cluster (n=838, 47.4%); those with high trust and high intention accounted only for 16.9%. They tended to be older, had high-income levels, and engaged in regular physical activity at baseline (p<0.05), and their sleep quality and psychological resilience were relatively high compared to other groups. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that more efforts are required to enhance the perceived need for and trust in COVID-19 vaccination.