What 592,000 Conversations Taught Us About Pediatric Vaccine Perceptions Online
What 592,000 Conversations Taught Us About Pediatric Vaccine Perceptions Online
Summary
A social listening study by RILA Global Consulting analyzed over 592,000 online conversations to uncover public perceptions of pediatric vaccines, including routine immunizations and the COVID-19 vaccine for children. The research found that discussions were dominated by concerns about vaccine safety, ingredients, and efficacy, with misinformation fueling much of the skepticism. Routine vaccines like MMR, flu, and polio were often referenced to contrast with the newer COVID-19 vaccine. Many expressed hesitancy, citing low perceived risk for children, distrust in health authorities, and fears about long-term effects. Structural barriers like access issues and lack of awareness about free vaccine programs also contributed to lower uptake. The study highlights the value of real-time digital monitoring in shaping effective public health communication.
Overview
In a digital-first world, public health conversations happen not just in doctors’ offices but on Twitter (X), Facebook, Instagram, and Reddit. To better understand the public's attitudes toward pediatric vaccines, our team at RILA GLOBAL CONSULTING conducted a deep-dive social listening study analyzing over 592,000 online conversations across 100,000+ digital platforms.
The goal? To uncover how people really feel about routine childhood vaccinations and the pediatric COVID-19 vaccine — and how those sentiments shape public trust and decision-making.
Misinformation has plagued vaccine discussions since long before COVID-19. But the pandemic intensified confusion, fear, and skepticism — with ripple effects now touching long-standing childhood vaccines.
Our government client requested to conduct research aimed to:
Identify the most talked-about vaccine-related topics.
Understand attitudinal and structural barriers to vaccination.
Discover the most influential content and voices driving the conversation.
What We Found: A Breakdown of the Key Themes
Using Synthesio,an enterprise social listening tool, we uncovered eight major topics that dominated discussions around pediatric vaccines:
The top three topics were:
Safety (35% of all topic mentions): Users debated potential adverse events, recalled vaccines, and the trustworthiness of safety data.
Ingredients (31.4%): Concern around what's actually inside the vaccines drove high levels of speculation and misinformation.
Efficacy (23%): Many users compared the effectiveness of long-established vaccines (like MMR or flu) against the newer COVID-19 vaccine for children.
Vaccines That Sparked the Most Discussion
Our research focused on both routine and COVID-19 pediatric vaccinations. Among the routine vaccines, the most frequently mentioned were:
Flu Vaccine (Influenza)
MMR Vaccine (Measles, Mumps, Rubella)
Polio Vaccine
HPV Vaccine
Interestingly, these vaccines were often used as comparative benchmarks — with users noting their historical success rates, longer trial periods, and broader public acceptance compared to the COVID-19 pediatric vaccine.
A Surge in Vaccine Skepticism — and Misinformation
While many users praised vaccines for protecting public health, a significant portion expressed hesitancy or distrust, particularly toward newer vaccines and government recommendations.
Attitudinal Barriers We Identified:
Perceived low risk of COVID-19 for children.
Distrust in pediatricians and health officials post-pandemic.
Worries about long-term side effects.
Structural Barriers:
Lack of access for children under 5.
Unawareness of programs like Vaccines for Children, which offer free or low-cost vaccines.
Why Social Listening Matters
Understanding how people feel — in real time — is critical to building effective communication strategies. At RILA GLOBAL CONSULTING, we use cutting-edge tools and multilingual human expertise to turn digital conversations into actionable insights.
Whether you're in public health, pharma, or consumer research, social listening helps you listen smarter, act faster, and communicate better.
Want to explore how your brand or organization can use social listening to shape strategy?
👉 Contact RILA GLOBAL CONSULTING to learn how we turn data into decisions.
