Social Vulnerability and COVID-19 Vaccine in Spain.

Different analyses show that the design of vaccination policies should especially protect the most vulnerable social groups, since the level of acceptance is determined by the population's knowledge, attitude and concerns about the safety and efficacy of vaccines. The objective of this work will be to detect the most socially vulnerable groups with respect to COVID-19 and to analyze the factors that influence predisposition to vaccination. This is a cross-sectional study using data from the Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas (CIS) on the Effects and Consequences of Coronavirus (Study 3346 of December 2021). Sociodemographic variables (sex, age, employment status, studies and subjective class identification) were extracted, as well as the answers to the questions indicating the attitude towards vaccination, corresponding to questions 7,8,10 and 11 of the study. The most vulnerable group was lower class women (self-perceived), under 45 years of age with lower educational level, unemployed or performing unpaid work in the home. Most of them are not predisposed to vaccinate only because of the obligation to do so, mainly due to lack of belief in the power and efficacy of vaccines, as well as fear of health risks/collateral side effects. The lower vaccine uptake in this vulnerable population group may be due to a lack of awareness and lower trust in the authorities, as well as the benefits of the vaccine, which could be related to a lack of policy targeting the most socially vulnerable populations.

Older Adults and Positive Mental Health during the Second and Sixth COVID-19 Waves in Spain.

The spread of the COVID-19 virus was a worldwide phenomenon, which was unprecedented in modern times. The restriction measures can be perceived as a heavy burden for mental health during this period, particularly for some groups. The aim of this study is to examine a positive mental health model across ages, where a moderated mediation model is proposed involving sex differences and confidence in coping with COVID-19. Two independent samples were studied during the second and sixth waves in Spain: n = 2861 and n = 2462, respectively. The main conclusions can be described as follows: (i) while age was not related to mental health during the second wave, a positive relationship was found between it and the sixth one; (ii) age was positively related to the confidence in coping with COVID-19 during both of the waves; (iii) women showed worse scores for the variables in the study than the men did during the second wave, but this pattern was reversed in the sixth one; (iv) after a moderated mediation model on the relationship between age and positive mental health in terms of confidence in coping with COVID-19 and sex, an interaction was found for the second wave but not for the sixth one. These results suggest that older adults and women would develop more strategies and resources for a positive mental health across time.