The relationship between fear of COVID-19 infection, fear of COVID-19 vaccination and Big Five personality traits: a mediation model

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND The primary objective of our correlational, cross-sectional study was to determine the relationship between fear of COVID-19 infection and fear of COVID-19 vaccination and the role of the Big Five personality traits in this re-lationship.PARTICIPANTS AND PROCEDURE The study sample consisted of 462 participants, including 286 women and 176 men, aged 18 to 75, recruited from the general population. The Big Five personality traits were di-agnosed using the Polish version of the Ten-Item Personal-ity Inventory. We used an 11-point numerical rating scale to measure the intensity of fear of COVID-19 infection as well as fear of COVID-19 vaccination.RESULTS The results indicate that fear of infection has a weak posi-tive correlation with fear of vaccination. Both types of fear have a weak negative correlation with emotional sta-bility and openness to experience. People diagnosed with COVID-19 have significantly higher levels of fear of vac-cination and lower levels of emotional stability compared to those without a COVID-19 diagnosis. Fear of infection proves a good predictor of fear of vaccination and a likely mediator between emotional stability and fear of vaccina-tion against COVID-19.CONCLUSIONS The results may increase our understanding of the role of personality traits, such as emotional stability, in the fear of infection and COVID-19 vaccination hesitancy.