Effect of Government Enforcement on COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake: Evidence from China

• In Event: Assessing Global Pandemic Response Strategies: Lessons from China, Korea, and the European Union

Abstract

During the COVID-19 pandemic, governments worldwide have employed mandates, restrictions, and other enforcement measures to secure adequate vaccination coverage. Despite controversies surrounding their political and ethical implications, the actual effect of these measures remains underexplored. This study addresses the gap by focusing on China, a country where the government has also implemented enforcement measures, albeit through a mass mobilization approach. Based on a nationwide online survey conducted in the summer of 2022 using proportional quota sampling, this study finds that 14.6% of respondents reported that they opted for vaccination due to the government’s mass mobilization efforts. Regression analysis further reveals that members of the Chinese Communist Party were more likely to cite mass mobilization as their reason for vaccination, while those affiliated with state institutions, employed in non-state sectors, or unattached to any work unit showed negligible differences. Furthermore, although individuals who preferred Western vaccines not authorized in China were less inclined to get vaccinated voluntarily, they had a great propensity to be influenced by the government’s mass mobilization efforts. Beyond evaluating the effect of government enforcement on vaccine uptake, this study sheds light on the dynamics of mass mobilization in China and underscores the effectiveness of these enforcement measures in compelling a subgroup whose preferences cannot be met.

Author

• YUE GUAN, Aarhus University