Psychosocial predictors of hepatitis B vaccination among young African-American gay men in the deep south

Background: Despite recommendations for vaccination against hepatitis B virus (HBV) of men who have sex with men (MSM), most remain unvaccinated. Goal: The goal of this study was to identify attitudes and beliefs associated with vaccination against HBV among black MSM. Study Design: The Birmingham Vaccine Acceptance Questionnaire was used to collect data from gay bar patrons. Results: Of the 143 participants, nearly 42% reported at least one dose of HBV vaccine. In multivariable analysis, characteristics associated with vaccination were a decreased perception of barriers to HBV vaccination (odds ratio [OR], 0.37; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.22-0.61; P = 0.001); increased perceived medical severity (OR, 5.34; 95% CI, 2.38-11.96; P = 0.001) and personal severity (OR, 2.22; 95% Cl, 1.38-3.56; P = 0.006) of HBV infection; and increased perceived general medical self-efficacy (OR, 9.22; 95% CI, 3.52-24.11; P = 0.0001) and personal self-efficacy (OR, 2.3; 95% CI, 1.14-4.63; P = 0.008) to complete the three-dose series. Conclusions: Our findings underscore the need to increase vaccination through innovative approaches to reduce perceived barriers to vaccination while increasing perceived severity of HBV infection and self-efficacy to complete the vaccine series.