Determination of vaccine hesitations, face mask perceptions and social media addictions of adults 18-64 years old during the pandemic

The study aims to determine the vaccination status of adults aged 18-64 living in the city center of Manisa for vaccination in the pandemic; to determine the perceptions of people about the use of face masks recommended to prevent COVID-19 and other diseases and to determine their social media Deceptions. The research is a descriptive correlational type of study and was conducted at the City Hospital where the researcher works in Manisa. The sample size of the study was calculated in the Epi Info 2000 program to the scope of the research, voluntary adults with patients and relatives who live in Manisa and apply to outpatient clinics of the City Hospital for any reason were taken with easy sampling. November- December 2021, the adults who applied to the hospital and volunteered were included in the study (n=384). The data of the study were collected face-to-face with the Personal Information Form, the Vaccine Hesitancy Scale in Pandemics, the Face Mask Perception Scale and the Social Media Addiction Scale, by the researcher in compliance with the rules of social distancing, at the hospital. The data obtained from the research were analyzed in the "Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS-21)" program. The research was started after obtaining ethical approval from the Ethics Committee of the Ministry of Health and permission from the Provincial Health Directorate, and written consent was obtained from adults accompanied by a voluntary consent form. The average age of the adults participating in the study was 39.04±13.17 (Min:18-Max:64); 58.3% of them were women. It was found that 42.8% of adults had COVID-19 themselves, and 43% had received two or more doses of mixed-type vaccines. The general hesitation levels of adults against vaccines during the pandemic period were found to be moderate. 42.4% of adults stated that they use face masks all the time, 89.6% said that they use surgical masks, 48.7% said that they use the mask only once for a maximum of three hours. It has been determined that the perceptions of comfort, utility, discomfort feeling, and independence are above the middle in the perception of face mask. The social media addiction levels of the adults who made up the research group were found to be above the middle (close to high). Hesitation to vaccination is positively associated with the perception of a face mask, it is inversely associated with social media addiction. With the widespread use of social media, it is thought that measures aimed at information pollution and false / erroneous news that will occur in this area will also help with the problem of hesitation about vaccines.