Background: Vaccination is crucial for controlling COVID-19 transmission and reducing severe illness. Despite the significant impact of initial doses, emerging variants and waning immunity underscore the need for booster doses, particularly the third dose. This study aims to investigate the impact of an educational intervention on the attitudes and behavioral intentions of Iranian adults towards the COVID-19 booster dose.
Materials and Methods: This quasi-experimental study was conducted in Bushehr, Iran, in 2022 and involved 100 individuals aged 18 years or older who had not received the third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Participants were selected using the SIB system and a convenience sampling method. The educational intervention consisted of eight training sessions based on the constructs of the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). Participants completed a researcher-designed questionnaire before the intervention and two months later. Data analysis was performed using SPSS software (version 16.0).
Results: A total of 100 individuals participated in this study, with a mean age of 36 years (SD = 11.4). The majority of participants were men (68%). Before the intervention, 13% of participants reported a history of chronic disease, and 51% had been infected with COVID-19. The results of the paired t-test demonstrated a significant improvement in participants’ attitudes and behavioral intentions toward vaccination after the educational intervention (p < 0.05). Specifically, attitudes improved from a mean score of 48.65 to 50.72 (p< 0.017), and behavioral intentions increased from 8.78 to 11.94 (p< 0.001).
Conclusion: Based on the results, the educational intervention significantly improved participants’ attitudes and behavioral intentions toward vaccination. These findings highlight the effectiveness of the intervention in enhancing readiness for vaccination and promoting vaccine uptake.