Feminist identity is associated with positive COVID-19 vaccine behaviors and beliefs

In this manuscript we consider the potential associations between feminist identity and willingness to adopt vaccine related COVID-19 mitigation efforts. Recognizing that individuals’ pandemic experiences were highly gendered and that the costs of the pandemic were distributed asymmetrically between men and women, we theorize that individuals espousing commitment to feminist ideals were more likely to adopt behaviors intended to mitigate disease risk during the pandemic. We empirically validate our hypotheses by analyzing data from a large, nationally representative multi-wave survey of US respondents deployed in early 2022. The results of these analyses suggest that feminist identity is associated with beliefs and behaviors relating to a range of COVID-19 vaccination mitigation efforts. Notably, this relationship holds for both women and men, highlighting the role of identity independent of sex. Thus, identity-based public health policies might be one means to overcome public skepticism during future pandemics.