Population Health

Assessing drivers of HPV vaccine hesitancy

Image of a teen after receiving a vaccinationIn the United States, human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination rates are well below national and local targets. Wider vaccination against HPV could make a significant impact in preventing thousands of cases of cancer each year.

The University of Washington Population Health Initiative is leading a mixed methods study to understand what factors drive HPV vaccination and vaccine hesitancy among parents, in order to inform interventions that could help increase coverage among adolescents. Through this project we will:

  1. Use national-representative survey data to identify the trends in HPV coverage between U.S. states.
  2. Identify the most relevant sociodemographic factors associated with HPV vaccination.
  3. Conduct primary data collection in six local communities across two U.S. states that could provide greater insight into the barriers and successes associated with timely HPV vaccination.

We believe this study will yield results that are directly comparable to similar projects investigating vaccine hesitancy more generally in the United States as well as HPV vaccine hesitancy in the United Kingdom and the European Union.

This project is a collaboration with researchers from the Vaccine Confidence Project at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.

Funding Acknowledgement

This study is funded by a research grant from the Investigator-Initiated Studies Program of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp (MISP Reference Number 100933).