Parental perceptions and willingness to pay for childhood vaccination experiences in China: a multi-city comprehensive evaluation study

IF 4.5 3区医学 Q2 IMMUNOLOGY

Vaccine Pub Date : 2025-10-17 DOI:10.1016/j.vaccine.2025.127826

Bei Liu , Ninghua Huang , Yaqiong Liu , Xiyu Zhang , Bing Wu , Bing Cao , Tao Sun , Yudong Miao , Fuqiang Cui

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background

With China's evolving family policies and rising parental expectations, there is increasing demand for improved childhood vaccination experiences. This study aimed to assess Chinese parents' comprehensive perceptions and willingness to pay (WTP) for childhood vaccination experience improvements, with particular focus on combination vaccine preferences.

Methods

A multi-city cross-sectional survey was conducted from January to December 2021 across five cities representing China's eastern, central, and western regions. Face-to-face interviews were conducted with 1845 parents of children aged 1–18 months in 60 community health service centers. The study employed questionnaire surveys, discrete choice experiments (DCE) with four attributes (injection frequency, diseases prevented per dose, vaccination coverage rates, and cost), and contingent valuation methods to assess WTP for specific vaccination benefits including pain reduction, adverse reaction prevention, and convenience improvements.

Results

Participants had a mean age of 30.95 ± 4.34 years, with 79 % being mothers and 66.4 % having bachelor's degrees. Over two-thirds (67.84 %) expressed strong concerns about adverse reactions, 74.40 % reported significant child crying during vaccination, and 65.02 % considered travel time to vaccination sites excessive. DCE analysis revealed strong stated preferences for fewer injections, vaccines preventing more diseases per dose, higher on-time vaccination coverage, and lower costs (all p < 0.001). Parents demonstrated highest WTP for preventing serious adverse reactions (54.53 % willing to pay 200 CNY[approximately 28 USD] per avoided reaction), substantially exceeding WTP for convenience factors. Education level, income, and age were key determinants of WTP, with postgraduate-educated parents showing 32.86–58.13 CNY(approximately 4.6–8.1 USD) higher WTP across different benefits compared to those with high school education or below.

Conclusions

Chinese parents prioritize vaccine safety over convenience factors, with significant concerns about adverse reactions and strong preferences for combination vaccines offering reduced injection frequency. The findings support policy initiatives emphasizing combination vaccine development, government procurement programs, and enhanced safety communication to improve childhood vaccination experiences and coverage rates.

查看原文本刊更多论文

中国父母对儿童疫苗接种经历的看法和支付意愿：一项多城市综合评价研究。

背景：随着中国家庭政策的发展和父母期望的提高，对改善儿童疫苗接种体验的需求日益增加。本研究旨在评估中国父母对儿童疫苗接种体验改善的综合认知和支付意愿（WTP），特别关注联合疫苗的偏好。方法：于2021年1月至12月在代表中国东、中、西部地区的五个城市进行多城市横断面调查。对60个社区卫生服务中心1845名1-18月龄儿童家长进行了面对面访谈。该研究采用问卷调查、具有四个属性（注射频率、每剂预防疾病、疫苗覆盖率和成本）的离散选择实验（DCE）和条件评估方法来评估WTP对特定疫苗接种效益的影响，包括减轻疼痛、预防不良反应和改善便利性。结果：参与者平均年龄30.95±4.34岁，79%为母亲，66.4%为本科学历。超过三分之二（67.84%）的人表示强烈关注不良反应，74.40%的人报告在接种疫苗期间儿童明显哭闹，65.02%的人认为前往接种地点的旅行时间过长。DCE分析显示，中国家长更倾向于少注射、每剂疫苗预防更多疾病、更高的准时接种覆盖率和更低的成本。结论：中国家长优先考虑疫苗的安全性，而不是方便性因素，他们对不良反应有明显的担忧，并且强烈倾向于减少注射频率的联合疫苗。研究结果支持强调联合疫苗开发、政府采购规划和加强安全沟通的政策举措，以改善儿童疫苗接种经验和覆盖率。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Vaccine 医学-免疫学

CiteScore

8.70

自引率

5.50%

发文量

992

审稿时长

131 days

期刊介绍： Vaccine is unique in publishing the highest quality science across all disciplines relevant to the field of vaccinology - all original article submissions across basic and clinical research, vaccine manufacturing, history, public policy, behavioral science and ethics, social sciences, safety, and many other related areas are welcomed. The submission categories as given in the Guide for Authors indicate where we receive the most papers. Papers outside these major areas are also welcome and authors are encouraged to contact us with specific questions.