title: Social capital and immunisation against the 2009 A(H1N1) pandemic in Sweden.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the connection between social capital indicators and immunisation.
  
  
  METHODS
  The national Society Opinion & Media (SOM) survey is an annual cross-sectional postal survey. In 2009, a random sample of persons aged 16-85 was drawn from the Swedish national register and yielded a 59% participation rate. The number of respondents analysed was 2130. A multiple logistic regression model was used to investigate the connection between the explanatory variables institutional trust and generalised trust and the outcome variable immunisation intent. The analyses included sex, age, education, self-rated health, and personal and societal concern about the 2009 A(H1N1) pandemic.
  
  
  RESULTS
  For institutional trust in health care, the odds ratios for intention to vaccinate against the A(H1N1) pandemic were significantly higher in the Medium trust and High trust categories as compared to the Low trust reference category. For generalised trust, the odds ratio for vaccination intention was significantly higher in the High trust category as compared to the Low trust reference category.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Two important social capital indicators - institutional trust in health care and generalised trust - seem to be independently associated with intention to accept vaccination against the 2009 A(H1N1) pandemic. The effect holds also when controlling for plausible confounders, such as education, self-rated health, and personal and societal concern about the 2009 A(H1N1) pandemic.
authors.affiliation: Department of Political Science, University of Gothenburg, Göteborg, Sweden.
authors.forename: Björn
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rönnerstrand
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001294:Attitude to Health; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007114:Immunization / Q000523:psychology*; D053118:Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype; D007252:Influenza Vaccines / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D007251:Influenza, Human / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D033182:Intention; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D058873:Pandemics / Q000517:prevention & control*; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology; D035502:Trust; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D007252:Influenza Vaccines
keywords: A(H1N1); Sweden; generalised trust; immunisation; institutional trust; social capital