Making decisions about our health is a fancy and sometimes difficult process.
On top of our own attitudes, experiences, and perspectives, we're inundated with information from other people (friends, family, health professionals) and external sources (news or social media) about what it means to be healthy. what does it mean
Sometimes, this information corresponds to what we take into consideration our own health. At other times, it might conflict with our own beliefs. And to make things much more complicated, sometimes this information is given on purpose. Wrong information.
How will we make sense of all this after we make decisions about our health? What determines whether we hold fast to our attitudes, or change our minds?
Most of us can probably relate. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we had to alter lots of our practices to cut back the spread of the virus. That means working from home, wearing masks, staying in our “bubbles,” and eventually getting vaccinated.
While the choice to get vaccinated was obvious for a lot of, it was not so straightforward for others. Research The period immediately before the supply of the COVID vaccine in New Zealand showed that a big minority were unsure or unlikely to get vaccinated.
These people were more more likely to be young, female, and fewer educated, and were primarily concerned about unknown future unwanted effects. our New research It seems that cognitive flexibility may be related to attitudes toward vaccination.
A versatile mind
Past research suggests that mental flexibility plays a crucial role in our decision-making. Imagine doing something at work, having a conversation with someone who has a special opinion, or being told that it is best to make a healthier alternative (like exercising more).
Some people navigate these situations with ease. Others find it harder to adapt. Cognitive flexibility describes the power to adapt our attitudes, thoughts, or behaviors when faced with recent or changing information.
Studies show how mental flexibility is affected. Our opinion is extreme.how likely are we? Believe the wrong information. Or “fake news”, nonetheless we make it Environmentally friendly choices or engaged Health-promoting behaviors (eg sun protection or physical exertion).
To increase vaccination coverage, governments often use educational campaigns that emphasize the effectiveness, and importance, of immunization. However, these campaigns Don't always succeed In reducing feelings of uncertainty about vaccination.
We desired to know why, and we thought that mental flexibility might play a job. To test this, we surveyed 601 New Zealanders on their opinions and experiences of vaccination.
Some questions asked about external aspects, akin to how easy they thought the vaccine was to access or afford. Other questions asked about internal aspects, akin to personal beliefs about vaccination, perceptions of their very own health, and the way necessary or protected they thought vaccines were.
Overall, our participants reported few external barriers to vaccination, with 97% saying they found the vaccine accessible or reasonably priced. These percentages are promising, and will reflect the government. Continuous efforts To make it easier to get the vaccine.
In contrast, internal aspects played a bigger role in vaccine uncertainty or reluctance. Specifically, nearly 1 / 4 (22%) of participants reported concerns in regards to the health risks of vaccines. And 12 percent said they didn't trust the method or the people developing the vaccine.
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Examining adaptive behavior
We also asked our participants to play a game designed to measure mental flexibility.
It involves matching cards based on a rule – for instance, match cards with the identical variety of objects. The rules will change randomly throughout the game, meaning that participants could have to adapt their behavior as the sport progresses.
Interestingly, those that found it difficult to adapt to rule changes (ie, had lower levels of mental flexibility) also reported more internal barriers to vaccination.
For example, after we divided participants into two groups based on their mental flexibility, the low-flexibility group was 18 percent more more likely to say that vaccination was inconsistent with their beliefs. They were 14% more more likely to say they didn't trust vaccines, and 11% more more likely to report concerns about negative vaccine unwanted effects.
It was not a matter of external aspects. Mental flexibility didn't predict whether people thought vaccines were accessible or reasonably priced.
Information is usually not enough.
These findings suggest making decisions about our health — including whether to get vaccinated — relies on greater than just getting the “right” information.
Simply communicating the importance of vaccination will not be enough to alter attitudes or behaviors. It also relies on each individual's unique cognitive style – the best way they understand and process information.
Declining vaccination rates have been a worldwide concern, including in New Zealand, ever since Before the pandemic. Our results suggest that health education campaigns could also be simpler in the event that they keep in mind the role of cognitive flexibility.
One technique is to alter paths. Information is generated. For example, quite than simply presenting facts in regards to the safety or importance of vaccination, educational campaigns encourage us to query our perspective, or “what if?” Asking questions can encourage you to assume alternative realities. Questions
Research shows that one of these framing can engage our deliberative thought processes (people who help us think deeply and critically), increase mental flexibility, and ultimately make us more receptive to alter. Makes an acceptor.